| Guisborough Museum It was a sad day for Gisborians when the County Museum Service was reorganised and the town’s Chapel Beck Museum and Gallery was closed in the 1980’s .
To local resident and estate agent Roger
Darnton, transferring the valued collections to Kirkleatham Old Hall Museum, was like losing the family silver, and he vowed that one day he would set up a permanent museum in Guisborough.
Showing gritty determination, he set about seeking support for his scheme lobbying various voluntary and local authority contacts, and spreading the gospel wherever he went.
His resourcefulness finally paid off when in 1988 Guisborough Town Council set up a Tourism Committee. At last Roger had the backing of like minded individuals who saw a museum as an obvious tourist attraction.
The biggest problem facing him and his supporters was finding a suitable building to house a museum.
Step forward the local council. It owned a redundant building at the rear of Sunnyfield House off the High Street. Originally the building had been a stable block and although small and very dilapidated Roger saw that it had huge potential. A peppercorn rent was negotiated and in 1988 the “Friends of Guisborough Museum” was formed and volunteers moved in to start on the restoration work. Finance was obtained by passing round the begging bowl to local industries, local authorities and interested and generous individuals.
Mindful of how the Chapel Museum and Gallery had perished under the prevailing political dictat of the time, Roger and his friends established a Board of management which broke away from the Town Council.
A new company - Guisborough Museum Ltd - was formed and Guisborough Museum became a registered charity.
“This was a very important step.” said Roger who was appointed Chairman and
Hon. Curator. “It meant the museum now had its own identity and was free from any local authority control or political influence.”
Roger’s policy is to give a focal point for all aspects of life in the town.
Much of the every day work is carried out by two volunteer archivists - Edgar Winfield and Cliff Elliott together with a dedicated team of volunteer clerks who are there to assist the likes of family history researchers, local historians and students who regularly access the thousands of photographs and ephemera. Accessibility to students and school children is high on the museum’s priority list. “It is essential we encourage a sense of ownership and pride in these young people” says Roger. The future of the Town lies with them.” The museum is open every Thursday and Saturday 10am to 4pm.
This article originally appeared in the June 2000 issue of Now
& Then Magazine
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