Beaminster Museum
Beaminster Museum, Whitcombe Road, Beaminster, Dorset, DT8 3NB
Stories of rural working life are woven throughout the museum, brought to life with interactive displays, evocative photographs, historic documents and oral histories.
Since medieval times, Beaminster has been shaped by its agricultural setting – once dominated by sheep farming and now more focused on dairy. Explore the town’s notable flax and sailcloth industry, which flourished in the 18th and 19th centuries and supplied canvas and rigging for the British Navy. A field to fabric exhibit shows how flax was grown, spun, and woven into linen, nets, smocks, and sailcloth. Beaminster’s skilled clockmakers, active locally for generations, added another dimension to the town’s working past. An atmospheric Agriculture Corner recreates a traditional, timeworn barn, complete with historic farm implements and artefacts representing sheep, dairy, and arable farming. New for 2026, the Fire Flood Frost exhibition presents compelling accounts of resilience, exploring how Beaminster and its surrounding communities endured fires, floods, and severe winters long before the advent of modern emergency services.
Timings
- Saturday 12 September:
- 10.30-16.00
- Sunday 13 September:
- 14.00-16.30
- Tuesday 15 September:
- 10.30-16.00
- Thursday 17 September:
- 10.30-16.00
- Saturday 19 September:
- 10.30-16.00
- Sunday 20 September:
- 14.00-16.30
Location & directions
Beaminster Museum, Whitcombe Road, Beaminster, Dorset, DT8 3NB
- Contact on day:
- Richard Smith
- Telephone number:
- +447517661989
Booking information
- Pre-booking requirement:
- Pre-booking not required
Accessibility details
Entry ramp to reception. Ground floor wheelchair and pram / pushchair accessible. Stairlift to first floor, with use of wheelchair on first floor. Please contact museum in advance to check if accessibility could be an issue for you.
