(Links to the previous parts in the series are at the end of this post.)
June 08, Saturday
I love museums because I learn a lot from the displays there. For this trip, I had a choice of a few. I picked Beamish because, from what I read, it is pretty exhaustive, covering a lot about the history of northeast England. One of the reviews even said one day is not enough to see the whole of it.
At the end of the day, I wasn't disappointed at all.
We boarded a metro from Northumberland Park station, got down at Hay Market, and took a bus to Beamish Museum.
After we alighted at Hay Market, we took a short walk around the place since the bus had yet to arrive.
WAR MEMORIAL
We went to Old Eldon Square, a public square completed in 1840 after about 15 years of work.
In 1923, a war memorial was unveiled at the square in memory of the city's residents who had lost their lives in World War I. According to the BBC, the Monument was "paid for by people living in the city, via an appeal for residents to contribute a shilling each."
At the top of the 32ft (almost 10m) high memorial is a bronze statue of St George on horseback slaying a dragon.
A little ahead is the Grey's Monument. Unveiled in August 1838, it was built to recognise the contributions of Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830 to 1834.
It is located at the heart of the city, at the intersection of Grainger Street and Grey Street, two of Newcastle's most historic thoroughfares.
The 135-foot-tall Monument has a 13-foot statue of Earl Grey at the top. He is shown holding a scroll that symbolises the Reform Act, which was enacted during his time.
The whole structure was built with local sandstone. It is said that the original plan was to make it 150 feet in height, but there wasn't enough money for it.
The Monument's base features inscriptions and bronze reliefs that celebrate Grey's achievements and the significance of the Reform Act.
There is quite a lot of space around the Monument for the public to gather for meetings and events.
After spending some time there, we got back to the bus terminus for the bus to the museum.
RELIVING THE PAST
Beamish Museum is definitely a must-see for anyone interested in history and local traditions.
Located in the picturesque county of Durham in northeast England, this is an open-air museum sprawled over 350 acres that brings history to life, showcasing the region's rich heritage from the early 19th century to the mid-20th century.
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| The map of the premises. |
It was founded in 1970 by Frank Atkinson, who got the idea after visiting Scandinavian folk museums in the 1950s.
On seeing that the traditional local industries like coal mining, shipbuilding and iron and steel manufacturing were disappearing, along with the communities that served them, Atkinson felt that the life of the past must be preserved in the way it existed then.
According to the museum website, Atkinson presented a report to Durham County Council recommending that items of everyday history be collected. An army camp of 22 huts rapidly filled up with objects ranging from steam engines to sewing machines! They were to eventually form part of the open-air museum.
A REPLICA OF EVERYTHING
The vast expanse is divided into many sections, and it is just impossible to write about everything we saw the whole day there.
We saw innovations in agriculture and the beginnings of industrialisation. The was a replica of an early railway, complete with a working steam locomotive.
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| The dental hospital. The interpreter explained how the system worked. That's the chair on which the patient sat. |
There were costumed interpreters who brought the era to life, offering insights into daily life, trades, and social customs of the time.
At the replica of a dental hospital, the interpreter elaborately explained the almost brutal way in which a tooth was extracted those days.
HOW MONEY USED TO BE SENT
What struck me at the bank was how money used to be sent from one place to another. Suppose a pound had to be sent to someone.
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| The bank |
On receipt of the acknowledgement, the other half is sent. Both halves have a code; they are matched at the receiver's end, and an actual pound is presented to the receiver.
Meanwhile, the torn halves are pasted together, and a new pound is printed against the torn one.
My obvious question was, why couldn't the actual currency note of one pound be sent? The answer was: because it could be stolen on the way!
COAL MINE
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| Making our way into the simulated coal mine. |
For the miners everything was given free of cost, residence as well as food. But they led a perilous life, and the casualty rate was very high.
Once a miner was dead, his wife was thrown out of the house within 72 hours. Therefore, it was common for widows to marry another miner within that period so that they could continue to live there.
We also descended into a simulated mine shaft and saw the harsh realities of their job. Staying down there with just the light of a lantern for days together was unimaginable.
JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
There are tram rides, vintage vehicles, and charming countryside settings. Beamish Museum is not just a collection of artefacts; it's a vibrant, dynamic portal to the past as you literally step into another world with so many immersive and interactive experiences.
After such a unique and truly unforgettable journey through time, we got back home by around 7 pm.
Here are the links to all parts of the series:
02 -Dockwray Square, Tynemouth
04 - Howick Hall Gardens & Arboretum
An interesting post on the open-aired Beamish museum covering several aspects of living in the past when technology had not developed and things were accomplished in a crude and hard way eg; the mining activity and dental extraction. Built by public donations, how is it maintained? Is there any entrance fee or the local municipal authority has taken over? A good read, thank you
ReplyDeleteHi KP - Thank you. There is an entrance fee for the Beamish Museum. Regarding Grey's Monument, on some days the public are allowed to go on top but by paying a fee. What I have noticed is that the museums are so good, they are so very well maintained. It's all worth it.
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteOne of our more famous 'living history' installations and quite often used as backdrop for period dramas in film and television. It's a great place indeed and I'm so glad you got to visit it. I am also grateful you gave the link of your post, for Blogger has not yet decided to send it to my reader list! This often happens with yours and a couple of other of my blogpals. No rhyme or reason! YAM xx
Hi Yamini - Yes, we really enjoyed the visit to the museum. I thought it might help if I gave the link to the latest post at the end of the comment. Yes, Blogger does act up all too often. Thank you.
DeleteFabulous open air museum. There's never enough time to see everything.
ReplyDeleteI was struck by the method of sending money and also by the harshness of a miner's widow's life. Not much charity then!
Hi, yes, it's incredible to see how the world has changed. I am sure the world will change further!
DeleteSending money by cutting the note into two halves is quite amusing. I first read about it in K R Meera's novel Assassin and first thought it was fiction.
ReplyDeleteHi Tomi - I found it so weird. What a painful way of sending money! But probably, in those days it must have been an incredibly efficient way!
DeleteThose types of museums are our favorite versus standing on hard floors to stop and read placards. It's kind of rough on mine and my husband's aging back and feet. lol This is fascinating stuff; I learned a lot! Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHi Darla - Thank you.
DeleteThank *you*, my dear. It's so wonderful reading about your life experiences. We need more global understanding and appreciation in these dark days. Be well!
DeleteThis was really fascinating to look at, almost like being there myself. That bit about how money was sent is really wild.
ReplyDeleteYes, I also found it quite weird. Those days, it must have been the most efficient way of sending money!
DeleteThis business of cutting money in half was in fact fairly common. It ensured that a job was completed or a delivery made.
ReplyDeleteOkay. I wasn't aware of it. It did sound quite interesting!
DeleteInteresting read and thanks for sharing. Have not heard about this museum before reading your blog post.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteSounds fascinating. Sending money was definitely perilous. Always the chance of theft. I can't imagine having dental work done in that era.
ReplyDeleteYes, the description of dental care sounded terrible!
DeleteI have fond memories of Newcastle after being intruduced to its historical features by a work colleauge who lived in the area.
ReplyDeleteI have visited many times but I don't recall seeing the war memorial on any of my visits.
The beamish museum sound fascinating. I really enjoyed reading about the pound note being split in two for payement, it is not something I knew about.
Hi CherryPie - Glad you also enjoyed your visits to Newcastle. Yes, the war memorial could be missed. Beamish museum is amazing place!
DeleteIt was our second visit last year and it really is a terrific day out, and for both visits, the sun shone. Sadly the steam locomotive wasn't operating during our visit. The sending of a pound is very interesting.
ReplyDeleteIn my Blog for Post folder I have a photo of Grey's Monument with the intention of writing about it, but you've done it better.
Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed it, too.
DeleteInteresting place.
ReplyDeleteHi Ajeya - Thank you.
DeleteAn interesting step back in time Pradeep - it would have been fascinating walking through it all and getting a glimpse of life back in those times - nice to visit but we wouldn't want to live there!
ReplyDeleteHi Leanne - Thank you. Yes, life was different and in many ways very hard those days.
DeleteThanks for visiting and commenting on my blog (from Andrew's blog)
ReplyDeleteWhat a tall monument, it does look wonderful.
Seems you thoroughly enjoyed the museum. That sewing machine shown, I've used one of those when small, my grandmother had one.
Take care.
Hi Margaret - Thank you for dropping by and for the comments. Yes, that monument is indeed quite tall. It was difficult for me to get the whole structure while taking the photo.
DeleteRegarding the sewing machine, the same here, as well. We had a Singer machine. But it was operated with the hands.
I thoroughly enjoyed this edition of your blog ND all the rest of the too. Almost all of my ancestors are from England, Scotland and some from Wales. I would dearly love to be taking the same tour as you and your wife. Once I joined Ancestry.Com I had the opportunity to see where my DNA is and came from. We've done a decent job too, of genealogy. Thoroughly, I will say again, enjoy your tour. Grateful you have shared it with all of us. The pictures are a wonderful plus. Thank you for those as well.
ReplyDeleteHi Katie - I'm glad you're enjoying the blog posts about our trip, and that it's resonating with you. It sounds like you've done some great research on your family history using Ancestry.com. Perhaps one day you can plan a similar trip to visit those ancestral lands! There's so much history to discover in Britain. Thanks for following along. :-)
DeleteI also love museums and whenever we go on a holiday I look for museums to check out, so I really liked this post with so many wonderful photos
ReplyDeleteHi Jo-Anne - Thank you. I usually need to set apart a good amount of time for museums!
DeleteI 💘 visiting musuem.
ReplyDeleteHi Dora - Thank you.
DeleteThis sounds like a great museum tour. I love open-aired museums. Thank you for sharing this with us.
ReplyDeleteHi Donna - Thank you.
DeleteThat sure was an interesting visit!
ReplyDeleteLes musées sont toujours intéressants, mais celui-ci est original en plus ! J'aime particulièrement la machine à coudre, et le patchwork "crazy" qui est posé à côté ;)) Le cabinet dentaire fait froid dans le dos (une expression pour dire que ça fait peur) !
ReplyDeleteC'étaient de belles vacances, merci pour les reportages !
Great trip...
ReplyDeleteHi Pradeep - such an interesting museum - thanks for the map ... which enlightens me a great deal more ... did Henry realise that Frank Atkinson was interested in fossil collecting?! Honestly - if I ever get up north again ... I'll use your posts as guides - well done on them ... cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteThank you, Hilary. The north has really wonderful places, steeped in history and landscapes!
DeleteWhat I forgot to mention was the fact about - the pound note ... I hadn't come across that way of sending money - makes sense though. And the other thing - so many industrial magnates tied their workers into the token system of payment - their wages went back into the magnates pockets via being caught within that production system. They couldn't shop elsewhere ... no cash for that. Cheers Hilary
DeleteHi Hilary - Yes, that is a very strange way of sending money. Unimaginable nowadays. I wasn't aware of the token system. That's so unfair!
DeleteWhat an interesting post, i am happy to see the Beamish museum, felt sad for the women who had to remarry to find security for themselves; the dental extract must be terrible; the transfer of money sounded strange, tearing it into half:) thanks for this historic post:)
ReplyDeleteHi Genevive - Thank you for the comments. Yes, indeed, people in the mines in those days did lead a very difficult life.
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