Willis Museum

The Willis Museum is a local history museum in the Market Place, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England. The building, which was the headquarters of Basingstoke Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building.[1]

Willis Museum
The old Town Hall, now the Willis Museum
LocationBasingstoke
Coordinates51°15′46″N 1°05′13″W
Built1835
Architectural style(s)Classical style
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated6 November 1984
Reference no.1230876
Shown in Hampshire

History

The building

Since the 14th century a Mote Hall was situated in Market Place, just to the east of Lloyds Bank.[2] The present building, which was designed in the Classical style, was completed in 1835.[1] The building served as a corn exchange and market hall and dances were held in the room upstairs.[2] It was also the headquarters of the Council of the Borough of Basingstoke until the borough was abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in 1974.[3] It then served as the headquarters of the enlarged District of Basingstoke until the Civic Offices opened nearby in 1981.[2] It has been home to the Willis Museum since 1984.[2]

The museum

The museum was originally housed in the old (now demolished) Mechanics' Institute building in New Road.[4] It was founded by the local clockmaker, George W. Willis, as the Basingstoke Museum in 1931.[4][5] Renamed after the founder in 1956, the Willis Museum was expanded to cover the town and surrounding area's history, from the Upper Cretaceous Age through to the development experienced during the 1960s and 1970s. It moved to the Town Hall in 1984.[2] As well as funding from visitor donations, the Willis Museum receives grant funding from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council.[6]

Exhibitions

Displays covers local history, including remains of an ancient human known as "Basingstoke Man"[7] and what is rumoured to be the world’s oldest wedding cake.[8][9][10] In 2014, the museum faced criticism after some medieval coins, donated by a local treasure hunter, were removed from display.[11]

In January 2018 the museum faced criticism after specialist job roles were cut as part of a restructure of the wider Hampshire Cultural Trust service.[12]

The museum is home to the Sainsbury Gallery, which hosts temporary exhibitions. The gallery was added to the museum in 2008[13] with funding by the Linbury Trust, founded by Lord Sainsbury.[4] Previous exhibitions in the Sainsbury Gallery have included:

  • May The Toys Be With You[14]
  • Turner and the Sun[15]
  • Alice in Wonderland[15]

Jane Austen statue

Situated outside the museum is a statue of Jane Austen.[16] The life-sized bronze figure was created by sculptor Adam Roud[17] as part of a series of events marking the 200th anniversary of the writer's death. It is considered to be the first of Austen in the world.[18] The events were credited with boosting the previously falling number of visitors to the museum, though it is unknown for how long or successfully this effect will last.[19]

The location was chosen as it is speculated to be the same square Austen would have visited to go shopping or to dance at the assembly rooms nearby.[20] The statue was unveiled at a public ceremony attended by civic figures as well as Austen fans (or "Janeites") in Regency costume. Jane Austen spent the first 25 years of her life in nearby Steventon, where her father was vicar. Roud claimed that the statue represents Austen as a "daughter and a sister" as she walked through the town.[21]

References
  1. Historic England. "Town hall with attached drinking fountain (1230876)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  2. "Town trail info" (PDF). www.basingstoke.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  3. "Local Government Act 1972". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  4. "The Willis Museum". www.friendsofthewillis.org.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  5. "Famous People". www.bas-herit-soc.org. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  6. "Museums and galleries". www.basingstoke.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  7. Pattinson, Iain (3 September 2009). Lyttelton's Britain: A User's Guide to the British Isles As Heard on BBC Radio's I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. Random House. ISBN 9781848091733.
  8. "Is this the oldest wedding cake in the world? Picture". Daily Mirror. 14 February 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  9. Quinlan, John. "Oldest cake around? Who knows? But it's still a slice of history". Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  10. "Oldest Wedding Cake: 113-year-old wedding cake sets world record". www.worldrecordacademy.com. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  11. "Medieval coins removed from display at Willis Museum". Basingstoke Gazette. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  12. "Plans to cut museum roles". Basingstoke Gazette. 9 January 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  13. "Cultural award info" (PDF). documents.hants.gov.uk. 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  14. "The Force is with Basingstoke in Star Wars collection exhibition at the Willis Museum". Basingstoke Gazette. 19 January 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  15. "'Turner and the Sun' opens at The Gallery, Winchester Discovery Centre on 5 August, 2017". The Arts Shelf. 7 June 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  16. "Basingstoke unveils the first life-size bronze sculpture of Jane Austen". Maria Miller. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  17. "Jane Austen". Adam Roud Sculptor. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  18. Rahim, Zamira (19 July 2017). "'World first' statue of Jane Austen unveiled". CNN. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  19. "Rise in visitor numbers put down to Jane Austen effect". Basingstoke Observer. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  20. "Lifesize Jane Austen statue unveiled in Basingstoke town centre". Basingstoke Observer. 25 July 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
  21. "Jane Austen anniversary statue unveiled". BBC. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
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