Maldon Museum in the Park
Volunteer-run local museum in the Edwardian Park Keeper’s Lodge at Promenade Park, showing two centuries of Maldon’s social and industrial life.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The museum began in 1922 as Maldon Borough Museum, in a room above the old fire brigade premises on London Road. When a new fire station was built in 1938 the collection moved briefly to council buildings on the High Street, and in 1939 it was put into storage in a shed on Market Hill at the start of the Second World War. Much of it was lost or damaged beyond repair.
After the war a Market Hill resident, Mrs Catherine Backus, found what was left and rebuilt the collection. In 1968 it opened in rooms above a shop on the High Street, where it grew until it ran out of space. A further move followed around 1990, and in 1996 the museum settled in the Park Keeper’s Lodge by the main gates of Promenade Park on Mill Road. The lodge was built in 1915 with money left by the philanthropist Colonel Thomas Cramphorn.
Maldon District Council looks after the building, while the museum pays its other running costs. It is a registered charity governed by trustees, and everyone from the trustees to the front-of-house stewards is an unpaid volunteer. The displays cover more than 200 years of the town’s social, domestic and industrial history and change in part each season.
Highlights
- Old Maldon shopfronts with tins and packaging from past decades
- Model of Maldon East Railway Station
- Vintage fire engine
- Barge and maritime heritage displays
- Objects from lost local industries such as Sadd’s Joiners
Permanent exhibition
- Maldon’s social, domestic and industrial history – Displays on more than 200 years of life in Maldon, with old shopfronts, objects from lost local industries, a model railway station, a vintage fire engine and barge heritage.
- Founded
- 1922
- Operated by
- Maldon Museum in the Park (registered charity)
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Admission during regular opening hours is free. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible: no information
- Elevator: no information
- Accessible restroom: no information
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
The museum has not published accessibility information.
Kids & families
Groups of families and school or education groups of all ages can book out-of-hours visits.
Getting there & parking
By car
Paid parking
A small pay-and-display car park is closest to the museum; the main entrance for vehicles is further along Park Drive, where there is plenty of pay-and-display parking.
The museum is beside the main gates of Promenade Park on Mill Road, and signs in the park lead to it.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Café: not available
- Restaurant: not available
- Museum shop
The museum has no toilets or refreshments of its own; both are available nearby in Promenade Park and in the town.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| School programs | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Out-of-hours visits for families, schools, education groups, social organisations and care groups can be booked by email. |
