Museum of Norwich at the Bridewell

About the museum

The Museum of Norwich stands in one of the oldest buildings in the city. Its surviving medieval range was built in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries as a large merchant’s house, home to the Appleyard family, whose members included Norwich’s first mayor. The city bought the property in 1584 and opened it in 1585 as a Bridewell, a house of correction meant to reform and employ the poor, although in practice it also punished and imprisoned people. A fire in 1751 damaged the ground and first floors, and after a new prison was built in 1828 the building was sold and used as a factory.

In 1923 the shoe manufacturer Sir Henry Holmes bought the building and gave it to the city, and it opened as the Bridewell Museum. A redevelopment costing about £1.5 million ended with a reopening in 2012, when lifts were installed and around 5,000 objects went on display. In 2019 a crowdfunding campaign allowed a restored seventeenth-century wooden figure of Samson to go on show in a climate-controlled case.

Today the galleries tell the story of Norwich through its trades and daily life, including the textile trade, shoe, chocolate and mustard making, and the city in the two World Wars. Visitors can see the last Jacquard loom that wove cloth in Norwich, listen to recorded memories of workers, watch archive film in a recreated cinema and play old board games. The museum also shows paintings by artists of the Norwich area, and the medieval undercroft can be visited on tours.

Highlights

• Ten galleries on the trades, industry and daily life of Norwich
• The last Jacquard loom to weave cloth in Norwich
• Medieval undercroft, among the largest in the city
• Restored seventeenth-century figure of Samson
• Recreated cinema with archive film and recorded workers’ memories

Permanent exhibitions

• Museum of Norwich galleries – Ten galleries on two floors presenting the history, trades and daily life of Norwich, with interactive displays and archive film.
• Medieval undercroft – The brick-vaulted cellars of the fourteenth-century building, visited on guided tours.

Founded

1923

Operated by

Norfolk Museums Service

Admission & discounts

Free admission: Free entry on selected days during the Norwich History Festival, Freemen’s Fortnight and Heritage Open Days.

Free for Norfolk Museums Pass holders. Some groups, such as foster families and looked-after children, enter free; proof of eligibility may be requested. Tickets can be bought at the door or online and are not refundable.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description

The museum states that it is fully accessible. A platform lift links the street entrance to the ground floor, where reception, the ticket desk and the shop are, and a second lift serves all levels. Large powered scooters do not fit in the lifts, but two wheelchairs can be borrowed. A hearing loop is installed at the reception desk, audio-visual presentations are subtitled, and large-print information is available. The accessible toilet has grab rails; there is no Changing Places toilet. The medieval undercroft can only be reached by stairs. Assistance dogs are welcome.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Hands-on stations
• Baby changing facilities

The museum has hands-on displays, a recreated cinema and retro board games, and a baby changing facility on the ground floor.

Getting there & parking

Drop-off is possible on Duke Street or Charing Cross.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

The shop is on the ground floor next to reception.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit