Topsham Museum recently welcomed a remarkable visitor - 93 year old Eddie Childs who, as a six year old boy, had been evacuated to the town at the start of World War Two in 1939.
He and his family, who now live in Essex, retraced those steps and revisited Topsham, and in particular its most famous street - Strand - where young Eddie was billeted in two houses over two years.
Although the Museum is currently closed for long-term repairs by Exeter City Council, volunteers reopened part of it as a surprise for Eddie to share reminiscences about his time in the town....
A much-loved Museum has discovered a treasure chest of items it knew little or nothing about, thanks to a special project undertaken entirely by volunteers.
The aim of the project was to trawl through a vast reserve store of artefacts held in Topsham Museum but not previously put on display. Volunteers then assessed the historical value of each item, cleaning, indexing and photographing each in turn.
The end result will be the creation of a “hidden gems” section on the Museum website, allowing visitors to see the items for the first time.
One of the west country’s best loved events is back this June - the Secret Gardens of Topsham.
Organised by Topsham Museum and held on Sunday June 8 the event - normally staged on alternate years - attracted no fewer than 1,400 visitors in 2023 and this year aims for even more.
For 2025 the event, which is held with the support of Wilkinson Grant estate agency, will consist of 15 gardens throughout the town. They each truly deserve the title of ‘hidden gem’. Most are completely private except for this event with some boasting views over the Exe Estuary.
The late 17th century building at the heart of Topsham Museum is undergoing large-scale repair work for several months this year - preventing the museum opening for its 2025 season as scheduled in the spring.
Work undertaken late last year by the museum’s landlord, Exeter City Council, revealed more substantial problems with the structure of the building, located on Topsham’s Strand, close to the Exe Estuary.
Using specialist contractors, the council has now enveloped the period house in scaffolding. The building has been emptied of its collections and the council...
Topsham Museum has announced its first-ever patron - Charles Courtenay, 19th Earl of Devon.
The Earl lives on the opposite shore of the Exe Estuary from Topsham, on the Powderham estate that has belonged to his family since 1325. He now runs this as an environmental heritage enterprise, sustainably managing the ancient land and buildings for social benefit.
He has been an active supporter of the Topsham community and its Museum for many years.
In August 2016 he took part in the first of the modern era ’Charter Day’ celebrations in Topsham, arriving by boat from...
Mother’s Day is an extra special event at Topsham Museum this year - it’s not just a
celebration for Mum but also the launch of a new kitchen at the popular destination.
The Museum is run entirely by volunteers and attracts some 10,000 visitors a year, many of them stopping off at its traditional tea room and garden on Topsham’s Strand.
Tea at the Museum has long been a favourite on Mother’s Day, and this year on March 10 the treats will include sandwiches, cakes, scones and other goodies - all locally sourced and served for the first time from the venue’s...
A record total of £13,500 has been raised by one of the largest garden events in Devon this summer.
Topsham Museum is based in one of the town’s 17th century houses close to the Exe estuary, and volunteers from the Museum organised a Secret Gardens event in June.
This involved 14 ‘hidden gem’ gardens dotted around the estuary town being thrown open to visitors one afternoon: and despite uncertain weather, a record 1,600 entry programmes were sold, with some individual gardens seeing up to 1,300 visitors during just five hours.
Programmes are now on sale for one of the most popular events on the social calendar in Devon - the Secret Gardens of Topsham , taking place on June 11.
It’s the first time the event has taken place for five years and gives hundreds of visitors a rare opportunity to see 14 hidden gem gardens. These are not normally open to the public and are dotted around the town’s streets, lanes and waterside walks.
Programmes went on sale recently with a quartet of volunteers from the organising body, Topsham Museum, dressed in event livery and taking to the town’s streets to sell to...
With the spotlight on the 250th Anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence, Topsham Museum is proud to have the unique opportunity to stage a talk by Exeter's own award-winning historian of the US, Dr Henry Knight Lozano.
Marking the 250th anniversary, the lecture will explore the cause of the declaration and its consequences which continue to this day.
Titled ‘1776 and the US Declaration of independence’ this lecture - by award-winning Exeter historian Dr Henry Knight Lozano - will address key questions about the event.
