Photo: Trevor Harris · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Earls Colne Heritage Museum

A volunteer-run village museum in the former Atlas Works water tower, currently closed for renovation and redisplay.

Temporarily closedFree admission

Temporarily closed. The museum is closed while the Water Tower is renovated and the displays are renewed. The last opening day in the tower was Wednesday 30 September 2026. A pop-up display is planned at the village hall on the first Monday of each month from 12:00 to 16:00, starting in November.

About the museum

Earls Colne Heritage Museum opened in 2005 in the Old Water Tower of the former Atlas Works. The tower was built in 1885, after the Great Colchester Earthquake, to supply water to the works, which was R. Hunt's agricultural machinery foundry. The foundry helped to turn Earls Colne from a farming village into an industrial one during the 19th and 20th centuries.

The museum collects and shows objects from the Neolithic period to the present day and is also a centre for local and family history research. Its displays cover early settlement, Roman bricks re-used in the tower of St Andrew's Church, the Atlas Works and the Hunt family, and the Second World War aerodrome. The upper gallery has a display about the philanthropist Mary Gee, and a memorial remembers the 15 aircrew killed in a mid-air collision over the village in 1944.

A National Lottery Heritage Fund grant awarded in April 2026 allowed the museum to buy the Water Tower. It is now closed while the building is renovated and the displays are renewed. The team continues to run talks, walks and community events during the closure.

Highlights

Local finds from the Neolithic period to the 21st century
The Atlas Works foundry and the Hunt family
Re-used Roman bricks in St Andrew's Church tower
Second World War Earls Colne aerodrome and Lancaster memorial
Mary Gee display in the upper gallery

Founded: 2005
Operated by: Earls Colne Heritage Museum (registered charity)

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission was free when the museum was open; donations are invited through the museum website.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

By car

Parking available

The museum has said that car parking space is available.

The Old Water Tower is on Reuben Walk, reached from Massingham Drive. Turn into Massingham Drive about 100 yards past the zebra crossing when coming from Halstead, or at the second left after the crossing when coming from the High Street.

Get directions