Mersea Island Museum

About the museum

Mersea Island Museum was founded in 1976 as an independent museum. It stands next to the parish church in West Mersea in a red brick building that a local builder, Stanley Hills, gave to the people of the island. The building has been extended several times, most recently in 2010.

The museum is run entirely by volunteers and maintained by the Mersea Island Museum Trust. It shows traditional island activities such as fishing, oystering, wildfowling and boatbuilding, and it holds the John Leather Memorial Maritime Collection of books, plans and photographs.

The main hall has a new exhibition each year, alongside permanent sections on local, social and natural history, geology, marine history and family history. A Resource Centre gives computer access to more than 50,000 images, parish records, audio and video files, and a reconstructed fisherman’s cottage with a Victorian kitchen range shows how islanders lived.

Highlights

• Reconstructed fisherman’s cottage with Victorian kitchen range
• John Leather Memorial Maritime Collection
• 1919 punt and a 1930 West Mersea One Design dinghy
• Resource Centre with more than 50,000 photographs and documents
• New summer exhibition in the main hall each year

Permanent exhibitions

• Marine collection – Boat models, local craft, fishing gear and boatbuilding tools, including a 1919 punt, a 1930 West Mersea One Design dinghy and the John Leather Memorial Collection.
• Social history and fisherman’s cottage – A reconstructed fisherman’s cottage centred on a Victorian kitchen range, with a wash house and household items from earlier times.
• Natural history and geology – Wildlife of the local marshes and mudflats, together with fossils, rocks and minerals from many places.

Founded

1976

Operated by

Mersea Island Museum Trust

Admission & discounts

Adults pay £2 by card or cash; museum members are free. There is no charge for school parties, but a donation towards expenses is appreciated.

Accessibility

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

There are no steps in the museum; access is through double doors and all exhibition areas are on the ground floor. A push button beside the main doors calls for help. Seating is provided in the hall, the Resource Centre and outside. Limited disabled parking is available at the museum. Only guide dogs and assistance dogs are allowed inside the building, but dogs are welcome in the grounds.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide

The museum has puzzles and quizzes for children, and children are admitted free.

Getting there & parking

Mersea Island is about 9 miles south of Colchester on the B1025. The museum is just east of the parish church; turn left in front of the church to reach the entrance gates.

Amenities & dining

• Café: not available
• Restaurant: not available
• Museum shop
• Wi-Fi

The shop sells books, postcards and souvenirs and takes cards. Wi-Fi is available inside the museum. The museum serves no refreshments, but cafés, a pub and shops are within 500 metres. There are three toilets, one of them accessible.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit