Plans for Bath Postal Museum get stamp of approval
Bath Postal Museum - 8th November, 2005
Thanks to a grant of £238,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), the future of Bath Postal Museum is now secure. The grant will enable the museum to revitalise its collections and displays when it moves to its new site in Green Street, Bath later in the year. It is the only registered postal museum regularly open to the public in the UK and is dedicated to spreading the message about the history of writing and its development in communications.
The grant amounts to 90% of the estimated costs of the move and upgrading the exhibitions. Museum Trustee Colin Baker said "We are indebted to the HLF for this very generous grant which will enable us to realise our exciting plans for the museum. We are also grateful to Future Heritage of Bath for making the new site available to us at a rent we can afford, and Bath and North East Somerset Council for a handsome contribution to our matching funding. We would also like to thank the many friends who have contributed to our Phoenix appeal to raise money for the move and redesign."
Devon-based design consultants Imagemakers helped put the HLF bid together and will be designing the new museum, which will tell the story of 4000 years of communications in a way that will appeal to a wide audience. The museum holds many rare and important artefacts, including collections of Victorian valentine's cards and letters retrieved from shipwrecks, as well as information on key figures involved in the development of the Post Office and the history of the British post box and Post Office uniforms.
For further details, please contact Colin Baker or Ivan Holliday at Bath Postal Museum on 01225 460333.
Background information
Bath Postal Museum was founded in 1979 by Audrey and Harold Swindells and was originally situated in the basement of their house at 51 Great Pulteney Street. The museum was a success from the word go and got a favourable mention in the Sunday Times Good Museum Guide in its first year. However, by 1984 the original premises had become rather overcrowded when a wonderful opportunity arose – the entire building at 8 Broad Street became vacant. This was the site of Bath's main Post Office from 1822 to 1854: the very place where the first recorded posting of a Penny Black took place on 2 May 1840 – four days ahead of the official date! The building belonged to Bath City Council who kindly granted a subsidised lease to the museum. After much fundraising, the ground floor display was opened at the end of 1985 by celebrity Friends Richard Briers and Leslie Crowther; the Queen Mother sent a greeting by pigeon!
In 2003, due to the "Best Value" Directive, Bath & North East Somerset Council informed the Trustees that the subsidised rent could no longer be justified. The rent for 8 Broad Street was reassessed to a figure that the museum could not possibly afford. The future of the museum was in the balance. However, the Trustees were overwhelmed by letters of support from all over the world and also by generous financial contributions. The Council was also impressed and granted the museum a "stay of execution" to attempt to find a solution.
In the summer of 2004 Stephen Green of Future Heritage came to the museum's rescue by offering a 15 year lease in the new Post Office redevelopment in Green Street at an affordable rent. The Council was delighted that a solution had been found and very generously allowed the museum to stay put until the new premises were ready. The Post Office is also excited that the museum will be sharing the same entrance and have given a handsome donation towards matched funding.
The museum hopes that the move to the site in Green Street will take place in late summer. Imagemakers, who will be designing the new museum, have exciting plans to retell the story of People and the Post in a thoroughly modern manner, which will continue to entertain and educate visitors.