Alderney Museum

About the museum

The Alderney Society was founded in 1966 in the basement of the Island Hall, but the premises proved unsuitable for storing the records and objects that islanders were donating. The States of Alderney then offered the Society the old St Anne’s school, which a former governor had built in 1790. With a tiny budget and a handful of dedicated volunteers the building was renovated, the first displays were created and the Alderney Society Museum opened to the public in 1970.

The museum tells the history of the island from its rocks to the 20th century. Its collections cover geology, the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age, finds from an Elizabethan shipwreck discovered off the coast in 1977, the Victorian fortification of the island, the garrison and militia, coins and medals, and the First and Second World Wars, including the German Occupation after the evacuation of the population in June 1940.

The Society also looks after the Victorian Fort Doyle, which opened to visitors in 2022, and the Alderney watermill as conservation sites.

Highlights

• Finds and two cannon from an Elizabethan wreck discovered in 1977
• Collection of artefacts from the German Occupation of Alderney
• Geology display, including rocks around 2.2 billion years old
• Victorian social history and the island’s fortification
• Housed in the former St Anne’s school of 1790

Permanent exhibitions

• Elizabethan wreck – Artefacts from an Elizabethan shipwreck found off the Alderney coast in 1977, including two cannon raised from the site.
• World War II and the German Occupation – Artefacts and information on the fortification of the island by German troops after the evacuation of the population in June 1940.
• Victorian Alderney – The Victorian fortification of the island and a selection of social history objects.

Founded

1970

Operated by

Alderney Society

Admission & discounts

Admission is free for members of the Alderney Society.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on High Street in St Anne, the island’s main settlement.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

The museum bookshop sells a large selection of books on Alderney’s history and culture and can post them worldwide.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit