Robin Hood's Bay Museum

About the museum

The museum occupies a small cottage built into the slope at Fisherhead, on the south side of the village. In 1891 the Vicar of Fylingdales, the Rev. R. J. Cooper, bought the building on a 1,000-year lease. At his own expense he turned the downstairs room into a coroner's room and added a mortuary against its east wall.

From 1900 the building also served as a reading room for the village, with newspapers, periodicals and lending books. The reading room and library closed in 1987, and the building has since been used as a museum.

The museum has only three rooms but holds a great deal of local material. It is run by volunteers on behalf of the Fylingdales Museum and Archive Trust, a registered charity, and everything on show is linked to Robin Hood's Bay and the wider parish of Fylingdales.

Highlights

• Displays on fishing, shipping, shipwrecks and rescues, including items from the last lifeboat stationed in the village
• Smuggling display with a hidden-contraband search
• Models of the old village, the Ravenscar alum works and the railway station
• Banner of the Robin Hood and Little John Friendly Society
• Thomas Cooper's sea chest and a 1669 Robin Hood's Bay halfpenny
• Largest collection of Bay crested china in the country

Permanent exhibitions

• Fishing, shipping and rescues – The old coroner's room covers fishing and shipping in the bay, with shipwrecks and rescues, items from the last lifeboat stationed in the village and several sailing ship models.
• Smuggling – A display about who smuggled in the bay and what they brought ashore, with a search for contraband hidden around the room.
• Village models and everyday life – Upstairs are models of the old village, the Ravenscar alum works and the railway station, and the old mortuary shows village life from the cradle to the grave.

Operated by

Fylingdales Museum and Archive Trust

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free; donations are welcome. Charges for groups and school parties are available on request.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• 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

The building can only be reached along narrow cobbled paths and steps. Dogs are not allowed, except assistance dogs.

Kids & families

School parties are welcome by prior arrangement. The old coroner's room has a smuggling display that invites visitors to look for hidden contraband.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on Fisherhead, on the south side of the village, reached by narrow cobbled paths and steps. The village streets are steep.

Amenities & dining

Public toilets are nearby at the Dock. The museum sells a local history book and two walking guides to the village.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit