Discovery Museum

The Discovery Museum is a science museum and local history museum situated in Blandford Square in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It displays many exhibits of local history, including the ship, Turbinia. It is managed by Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums.[1]

The Discovery Museum
The Discovery Museum
 Discovery Museum shown within Tyne and Wear
OS grid reference  NZ240639
Established1934
LocationNewcastle upon Tyne, England
Coordinates54°58′08″N 1°37′30″W
Public transit accessNewcastle Central Station
WebsiteOfficial website

History

The Discovery Museum started life in 1934 as the Municipal Museum of Science and Industry.[2] The collections were housed in a temporary pavilion built for the 1929 North East Coast Exhibition in Exhibition Park, Newcastle.[3]

The collections and displays grew for another forty years, until the temporary pavilion could no longer meet the museum's needs. In 1978, the museum was re-located to Blandford House, the former Co-operative Wholesale Society Headquarters for the Northern Region.[4] Designed by Oliver, Leeson & Wood in 1899, the building had been the distribution centre for over 100 Co-op stores across the region, and contained extensive warehouse space and offices.[5]

The museum was re-launched as Discovery Museum in 1993 at which time the Turbina was moved from Exhibition Park.[2] In 2004 the £13 million redevelopment of the museum was complete[2] and the following year the venue attracted 450,000 visitors.[6]

Exhibits

The museum includes Turbinia, the 104 feet 9 inches (31.93 m) ship built by Charles Algernon Parsons to test the advantages of using the steam turbine to power ships, which could go up to 34 knots (39 mph; 63 km/h).[7][8] It houses the regimental museum for the Light Dragoons and the Northumberland Hussars, exploring the human side of 200 years of life in the army. It is a "hands-on" museum designed to interest both children and adults.[9] It also features examples of Joseph Swan's early lightbulbs which were invented on Tyneside.[10]

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References
  1. "About | Discovery Museum". Twmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  2. Henderson, Tony (17 July 2014). "Newcastle Discovery Museum marks 80th anniversary with birthday bash". The Journal. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  3. "Exhibition Park". Newcastle City Council. Archived from the original on 27 January 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  4. "Two Cities, One River - Newcastle And Gateshead Heritage Trail". Culture24. 20 July 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  5. Pevsner, Nikolaus; Richmond, Ian Archibald; Grundy, John; Ryder, Peter; McCombie, Grace; Welfare, Humphrey (1992). Northumberland. Yale University Press. p. 447. ISBN 978-0300096385.
  6. "Happy birthday Discovery Museum: Pictures from Newcastle's home of history past". Culture24. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  7. "Discovery Museum - Nexus Tyne and Wear". Nexus.org.uk. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  8. "History of the North East in 100 objects". www.100objectsne.co.uk. Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  9. "Charge! The story of England's Northern Cavalry". Light Dragoons. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  10. "Collections | Discovery Museum". Twmuseums.org.uk. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
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