The Museum of Farnham is located in

Willmer House Willmer House is a grade I listed building in Farnham, Surrey, in England. Built in 1718 for a local hop merchant the building later became a school and dental surgery. Since 1961 it has housed the Museum of Farnham. The building was purchased ...

, an 18th-century town house completed in 1718 with a decorative brickwork façade on West Street in

Farnham Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a trib ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

. Events were held in 2018 by the museum to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the building. The Museum houses a collection of artefacts spanning several periods of the town's history and prehistory. Open from Monday to Saturday, there is no admission charge.Museum of Farnham
Farnham Town Council website The Museum has a Muniment Room available to researchers with its extensive collection of printed material relating to

and the surrounding area. Charles I nightcap Farnham

The museum was founded in 1961 to provide the Farnham community with a collection dedicated to the history of the local area in an elegant

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

townhouse which still retains many original features, including a walled garden. Spread over two floors and in six rooms, displays include items from a large and eclectic collection; from ancient archaeological artefacts to nationally important artworks by local artists and an extensive costume collection. Permanent displays include an elaborately embroidered nightcap belonging to

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, who in 1649 stayed in a nearby house on his way to trial in London; a decorated and gilded cassone panel by W. H. Allen; artworks of local scenes by John Verney, and objects connected with

William Cobbett William Cobbett (9 March 1763 – 18 June 1835) was an English pamphleteer, journalist, politician, and farmer born in Farnham, Surrey. He was one of an agrarian faction seeking to reform Parliament, abolish "rotten boroughs", restrain foreign ...

The Museum of Farnham is part of the Farnham Maltings Association, a creative organisation working with artists and communities to encourage people to get involved in Art in every aspect, including making and seeing Art. To achieve that aim, the Museum is closely involved with the

Farnham Maltings Farnham Maltings is a creative arts centre in the heart of the market town of Farnham in Surrey, England History Farnham Maltings was bought by the community, currently led by its town council A town council, city council or municipal coun ...

.Museum of Farnham
Surrey Museums website Wilmer House was purchased by

Waverley Borough Council Waverley may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Waverley (novel), ''Waverley'' (novel), by Sir Walter Scott **Overtures by Hector Berlioz#Waverley, ''Waverley'' Overture, a work by Hector Berlioz inspired by Scott's novel * Waverley Harrison, a cha ...

from Surrey County Council in 2012. The new owners began a £92,000 restoration of the façade but this was halted in 2017 when the condition was found to be much worse than thought. The council was notified that significant repair work was required in 2018 and since then scaffolding has been erected to protect the public from any falling masonry, this has partially obscured the façade. The costs of the repairs prohibited immediate work and had the potential to threaten the future of the museum in the building. In October 2021 Waverley Borough Council indicated that it intended to relinquish ownership of the museum to an independent trust, as it was judged to make applying for grants easier. In September 2022 the council bid for more than £600,000 of funding from the

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

to restore the façade. If granted this would still leave a shortfall of around £200,000, towards which local councillors started a crowdfunding campaign.

References

External links

Information about the Museum of Farnham

website {{DEFAULTSORT:Museum of Farnham Local museums in Surrey Farnham Buildings and structures in Farnham History of Surrey Museums in Surrey Grade I listed buildings in Surrey Historic house museums in Surrey English Heritage sites in Surrey