Watford Museum is a local museum in

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, in the United Kingdom. It is owned by Watford Borough Council and is located on the Lower High Street in Watford. The museum opened in 1981 and is housed in a Grade II-listed Georgian town house which was previously the premises of Benskins Brewery. Its collection includes fine art, displays about local heritage, industry and sport, with a special collection related to the history of the Cassiobury Estate.

History

The mansion house at 194 Watford High Street was built for the Dyson family around 1775, although there are records of a brewery operating on the site since 1750. The three-storey, red-brick house, built in the Georgian neoclassical style, is fronted by a three-bay

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

with a central bull's eye window, and flanked by two lower wings which were added circa 1807. Tall, yellow-brick Victorian brewing premises once stood behind the house, although these have since been demolished. The house was bought in 1867 by Joseph Benskin and continued to operate as a brewery until it was acquired by

Ind Coope Allied Breweries was the result of a 1961 merger between Ind Coope (of Burton), Ansells (of Birmingham), and Tetley Walker (of Leeds). In 1978, Allied Breweries merged with the food and catering group J. Lyons and Co to form Allied Lyons. The brew ...

in 1957. The mansion house was later converted into offices, and it was listed grade II by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

in 1952. It became the site of the Watford Museum in 1982 and was officially opened on 14 March 1982 by the Watford-born actor and comedian, Terry Scott. The museum celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2011. The museum will be closing in October 2023 for about two years so that it can move into a refurbished Watford Town Hall.

Collections

The museum has a significant fine art collection, which includes the notable Cassiobury Collection. Works on display include artworks formerly of the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

's collection at

Cassiobury House Cassiobury House was a English country house, country house in Cassiobury Park, Watford, England. It was the family seat, ancestral seat of the Earl of Essex, Earls of Essex. Originally a Tudor building, dating from 1546 for Sir Richard Morrison ...

, with paintings of the Cassiobury Estate such as ''A view of Cassiobury Park'' by John Wootton, ''View of the South-West Front of Cassiobury House'' by J. M. W. Turner, ''Cassiobury Park Gates'' by Charles Vickers and an 1831 painting of the Cassiobury House Winter Dining Room by William Henry Hunt. The museum also houses portraits of a number of Earls of Essex. Among the other works of art on display are oil paintings of the Dutch and Flemish schools, with works by Adam François van der Meulen, Klaes Molenaer, Pieter Neeffs the Elder and Adriaen van Ostade, as well as paintings by Turner,

Peter Lely Sir Peter Lely (14 September 1618 – 30 November 1680) was a painter of Dutch origin whose career was nearly all spent in England, where he became the dominant portrait painter to the court. He became a naturalised British subject and was kn ...

, Ronald Pope and

Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter who specialised in portraits. The art critic John Russell (art critic), John Russell called him one of the major European painters of the 18th century, while Lucy P ...

. A number of acquisitions for the fine art collection have been assisted by grants from the Art Fund, including paintings by Henry Edridge, Sir Hubert von Herkomer, William Henry Hunt and John Wootton, and a set of 21 engravings from the '' Illustrations of the Book of Job'' by

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

. The museum's sculpture collection features works in works in bronze, copper and steel by Mary Bromet, Charles Browne, Charles Dyson-Smith,

Jacob Epstein Sir Jacob Epstein (10 November 1880 – 21 August 1959) was an American and British sculptor who helped pioneer modern sculpture. He was born in the United States, and moved to Europe in 1902, becoming a British subject in 1910. Early in his ...

, Mario Negri, Ronald Pope and Takaaki. Displays in the museum document the development of Watford Junction railway station, and a small gallery dedicated to the history of Watford Football Club includes sports memorabilia and a stage costume worn by

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

. The museum holds an archive collection of documents, printed ephemera, photographs and diaries related to Watford townsfolk, local government, nobility and businesses. Around a third of the museum's collection is on display.

Location

Watford Museum is located on the lower part of Watford High Street, around south of the Harlequin Shopping Centre. The nearest railway station is

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...

station; after 2017 this will also become a

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...

Metropolitan line The Metropolitan line, colloquially known as the Met, is a London Underground line between in the City of London and and in Buckinghamshire, with branches to in Hertfordshire and in London Borough of Hillingdon, Hillingdon. Printed in mage ...

station. The museum is within easy reach of the A41, the

M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) motorway, A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the count ...

, and

National Cycle Route 6 Route Parts of the route are currently incomplete and some sections follow other routes. London to Milton Keynes The proposed route is to begin in central London, running from via Paddington railway station to the Grand Union Canal. The ...

References

External links

Watford Museum
– official site {{Authority control Local museums in Hertfordshire Watford Museums established in 1981 1981 establishments in England Art museums and galleries in Hertfordshire Georgian architecture in England Houses completed in 1775 History of Watford