BEHIND THE SCENES AT…..TOTNES MUSEUM
The mark of a good local museum is coming away with a Fancy That expression and a warm glow of satisfaction that you know a little bit more about your home town than you did yesterday.
To my shame I hadn’t visited Totnes museum for years but I did so the other Friday and learnt that Britain’s first robots – Eric and George – were created by a son of Totnes. Fancy that!
The jewel that is Totnes Museum is an eccentric hodge-podge of stuff that even its most ardent fans would admit needs a lot of tidying. It also needs volunteers to do just that, as well as greeting people, preparing displays, filing, researching and generally loving the place.
Kate Wilson is chair of trustees. “The whole museum is an artefact. The building is from 1575, built on a Saxon house.”
Pre Clive Sinclair
She leads me into the Babbage Room, named of course after Charles Babbage whose Difference Engine was the precursor to today’s computer. Chunky brass cogs from the engine, on loan from
the Science Museum, show how massive early computers were. There is a disconcerting Charlie mannequin seated behind a desk – which elicits a shudder of horror from Kate and a squawk of laughter from me.
“I have a particular hatred of mannequins,” she says.
“Apparently it’s a thing – automatonophobia ? But school children love it, taking selfies next to him.”
In the same room , in a small glass box, is Eric – or a very small metal model of him. Eric was the creation of Captain William Henry Richards, who is described as a soldier, journalist and world traveller. He was clearly a great salesman too, as in 1928 he got his mates in the Society of Model Engineers to build a mechanical man. The inspiration was from a play, Rossum’s Universal Robot. Eric, he said, could fill in opening a top exhibition when the then Duke of York was unavailable.
The moving life size metal man was such a smash he went on to tour America. Realising he was onto something, the Captain then built George, who had a much more human face. George also went on tour, reaching Australia before being retired in 1938. The story is on the family’s website about Eric and George.
Your Guide for today
Arguably a visitor will learn more abut the museum and the town by chatting to a volunteer than just reading about the exhibits. Peter Bethel has been a trustee for 12 years and admits he once thought Totnes didn’t have much history……but in a kind of what did the Romans ever do for us Monty Python conversation, he reels off LOTS of history. Like the Roman road which still exists; the fact that the little top floor windows which look down the main street were so merchants could see when their ships were coming up the river; like the staircase’s central pole was a ship’s mast; like Totnes was once a centre of clock making, and that it exported pilchards as well as wool. Fancy that!
The real mc-coy
Because the museum is accredited – I think than means it’s proper, not amateur – it is loaned things by the national behemoths of museumland.
Kate points to a rather gloomy oil of Sir Edward Seymour on loan from the National Portrait Gallery. The bewigged nobleman’s descendants are still here but may not approve of this comment from Samuel Pepys who said, allegedly, that Sir Edward was “singularly unpleasant”. Far nicer is the picture of Christopher Wise painted by the Elizabethan miniaturist Nicholas Hilliard. Wise was twice mayor of Totnes , in 1605 and 1621. Hilliard was born in Exeter in 1547 so perhaps that’s how their paths crossed. Hilliard painted Queen Elizabeth so Wise is in exalted company. Find him next to the four poster bed.
Last year the museum had 14,000 visitors and as it’s free to enter, it relies on donation, grants and goodwill to keep going. Kate says:”We have 12 volunteers and need at least twice that so we can open more often. Topsham Museum in contrast has 200 volunteers.”
Gauntlet thrown Totnes! Get involved and join in with The Totnes Museum…..contact info@totnesmuseum.org to find out how.
The recruitment drive is working though. On the front desk is 23 year old archeology student Katie Wood, who is on her first day as volunteer. She’s come from Liskeard. Why so keen?
“I love small town museums. People think local history isn’t important but it is and we need to highlight it.” Her mentor next to her is Christine, one of the longest serving volunteers.
“You meet people, learn about the history of the house and the collection ,and help visitors about what else Totnes has to offer.” So if you fancy that, Kate and her team would love to hear from you.
Top Image: Katie and Christine at front desk.