Lyme Regis Museum

About the museum

Lyme Regis Museum stands on the old sea wall beside the Guildhall, on the spot where the fossil collector Mary Anning once lived and sold her finds. The building was put up by Thomas Philpot in 1902 and designed by George Vialls in a mixture of styles. It stood empty for some years, served as a Red Cross depot in the First World War and was given to the town by Caroline Philpot in 1920. It opened to the public in March 1921 with displays of fossils, archaeology and natural history.

The first honorary curator, Dr Wyatt Wingrave, was joined by W D Lang, a former curator at the Natural History Museum in London, and together they built up the fossil and geology collection for which the museum is known. After the Second World War, when the building had been used as an air raid post, the museum struggled for lack of money and professional care. In the 1960s local figures including Laurence Whistler, Roger Mayne and John Fowles worked to secure its future. Fowles became honorary curator in 1978, founded the Friends of the museum and helped to raise funds for restoration. The museum won the Gulbenkian Award for the best small museum in 1999.

A new extension, the Mary Anning Wing, was added in 2016 and opened in 2017 by Sir David Attenborough. Today the museum is run by professional staff and volunteers as a registered charity, and its galleries cover geology and fossils, the story of Mary Anning and the Jurassic Coast, local writers and artists, the town's maritime and social history, its former railway and life in wartime.

Highlights

• Geology Gallery with celebrated Jurassic Coast fossils
• The story of Mary Anning on the site of her former home
• Writers' Gallery about authors and artists linked to Lyme
• Displays on the town's railway, wartime and working life
• Guided fossil walks on the beach with local experts

Permanent exhibitions

• Geology Gallery – Fossils from the Jurassic Coast and the story of Mary Anning and the birth of palaeontology, on the first floor.
• Ground Floor Gallery – The maritime and social history of Lyme Regis and the people who lived, worked and visited the town.
• Writers' Gallery – Authors and artists connected with Lyme Regis.

Founded

1921

Operated by

Lyme Regis Museum (registered charity)

Admission & discounts

A ticket gives free return entry for a year; it is not transferable, so keep it for re-entry. UK taxpayers can Gift Aid the ticket at no extra cost. Guided fossil walks are booked separately and include museum entry.

Accessibility

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

Entrance and ground floor are level, and a lift serves the first floor. The second-floor gallery and rotunda can only be reached by stairs. An accessible toilet and baby changing are on the first floor. Mobility scooters are not allowed inside because of the narrow spaces. Assistance dogs are welcome. Pushchairs can be left in the entrance foyer at the owner's risk. Fossil handling sessions are offered as an alternative to fossil walks. Visitors with special requirements are asked to call before they come.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Baby changing facilities

Child-friendly museum trails are available, and school-holiday craft sessions such as clay modelling or fossil polishing are usually drop-in with admission. There are touch objects and touchscreens in the galleries, and visitors on a fossil walk can keep the fossils they find.

Getting there & parking

Use postcode DT7 3QA for satellite navigation.

Amenities & dining

• Café: not available
• Museum shop

No café at the museum, but there are many cafés and restaurants nearby. The museum shop on the ground floor sells books, cards and gifts.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Private parties
• Corporate events
• Weddings / ceremonies

Up to 40 guests.

The Fine Foundation Learning Space on the first floor holds 40 standing or 25 seated guests and has a view over Lyme Bay. The whole site, including the galleries, can be hired for private openings, parties and wedding photography; food and drink are not allowed in the galleries.

Plan your visit