Events

Join writer Sarah Acton in conversation with Abbotsbury fisherman, Alan Arnold, about the traditions of Dorset seining communities along Chesil beach.  They will be remembering working life on the Fleet lagoon, the bank of pebbles and its people.  There will also be readings from Sarah’s new book to which Alan also contributed, photos and Q&A. […]

Graham Perry, Chair of the Friends of Weymouth Museum, will present a history of the development of the parks and gardens of Melcombe Regis.  The story starts around 1800 and covers the area from Alexandra Gardens to Lodmoor including, of course, ‘the Park’ that never was. The talk will be held in Hope United Reformed […]

The talk is by Richard Crumbleholme, who was secretary of the Friends of Weymouth Museum in its early days. Now retired, he was a member of the Chartered Institute of Building and ran a family business in Weymouth for many years. Before retiring, he joined Dorset County Council as a senior building surveyor. He has […]

Transport historian John New will be talking about the early development of railways in the UK. If you were to ask the passengers on the “Clapham Omnibus’ about early railways you would probably get an answer something like “Well I know George Stephenson built the first steam engine, Rocket to run on the Stockton & […]

This talk, presented by Stuart McLeod, will look at the life and times of Sir Henry Edwards MP (1820 – 1897). Sir Henry was Weymouth’s former MP from 1867 until 1885. Sir Henry became one of the town’s greatest benefactors and his name and many benefactions lives on today through Weymouth Town Charities. Stuart moved […]

This talk looks at the life of Thomas Hardye, the many properties he owned at various times in this area, and his central role at the heart of the Protestant revolution in Dorchester. Steve Fraser retired in 2015 as Head of Classics at the Thomas Hardye School, and has written a number of papers on […]

This talk is presented by David Riches who was for many years Collection Manager at the museum and is a past Chair of the Friends of Weymouth Museum. The talk begins by outlining the process of brewing beer and the development of the breweries in Hope Square before mentioning the other beer breweries with a […]

This talk presented by Carl Whitehouse will look at how the town developed in the 1820’s and 1830’s and also what life was like for its inhabitants, including developments in education, health and justice. Carl first came to Weymouth in 1964 to work at Weymouth and District Hospital, and later at Portwey Hospital.  He met […]

Local historical romance author Rachel Knowles takes you back to the time of George III when the fashion for sea bathing began and Weymouth rose to fame as the King’s favourite seaside resort. A talk in Regency costume. Rachel Knowles writes faith-based Regency romance and historical non-fiction.  She first read Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice […]

“Kill me sooner than take me there,” implores Betty Higden in Dickens’ 1865 novel Our Mutual Friend. Even today, the Victorian workhouse still inspires powerful images of fear and hardship in the contemporary consciousness. But what evidence do we have that life in the “Union” was really so dire? This talk by Luke Mouland draws […]