Durham Museum

Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy some Christmas-y berries from Durham. We hope you have a wonderful day (and make sure to tell everyone where mustard comes from at Christmas dinner!) ☃️

Durham Mining Memories - these all come from our visitor interaction board in the museum

Did you know that mustard as we know it today came from Durham? c.1720, Mrs Clements developed a new way of producing mustard by fine milling the mustard seeds to produce a stronger flavour. Mrs Clements’ mustard was enjoyed across the country, including by King George I, until it was eventually passed on to Coleman’s in Norwich.

Next time conversation dries up at the family dinner table, wow them all with your mustard origin knowledge 🌭

Some blue skies to warm you up in snowy Durham!

Enjoying these community stories? Keep your eye on this space!

Enjoying seeing these community stories? Keep an eye out for what’s coming!!

The end of season votes are in! What’s your favourite thing in the museum?

It’s the last weekend of the season! Come along to the museum today for your final chance to see our exhibits until Spring 2024

We will still be around online though, watch this space :)

Some blue skies to brighten up your day with the recent weather :)

Mining stories

If you have a story you want to share please get in touch or come and see us at durham museum!

North Road as it used to be!

Stories from the mines

Come along and share your story

Durham Museum is your gateway to the past! Welcome to Durham if you’re moving in this weekend, come and learn a little bit more about your new home :)

Though now hidden by trees, the pictured building was part of the College of the Venerable Bede (Bede College) when this postcard was sent on the 9th of January 1937. An all-men’s college when it was established in 1838, Bede College was merged with St Hild’s College, an all-women’s college, in 1975. Both colleges were established as educational training colleges, but later began offering more diverse degree choices. The building photographed later became part of Durham University’s School of Education. This postcard was published by G. Bailes & Son, and was donated in December 2010.

Postcards from the Past is a volunteer-led project. Volunteers at Durham Museum have the opportunity to take on projects based on their interests, regardless of if they want to focus on marketing, exhibition creation, historical research, or anything else. If you’re interested in volunteering please email [email protected]

Stories from the mines

There are all from our Durham Miners Association interactive board, come in to add your own stories or see what other people have added!

Volunteer Object 🔎
It may be easy to forget as you enter our wonderful little museum with its peaceful garden in the heart of the old city of Durham that you are also entering the site of an historic church with its own churchyard. Unfortunately, all we have to remember this old burial ground (aside from its longstanding residents) are several surviving tombstones such as this one, which have since been moved from their original position to ensure their preservation. This particular tombstone is one of our best preserved and commemorates the burial of Jane Waugh, a resident of North Bailey who died at the age of 40 in 1834, as well as two of her children who both died remarkably young over a decade prior. Unfortunately, we know very little about Jane herself, her tombstone notes that she was the wife of Robert Waugh, while her obituary predominantly discussed the role of her father, the local Durham solicitor Henry Donkin. This was not unusual by the patriarchal standards of the period, as the value and significance of women was typically only understood in relation to her male relatives, while they themselves often remained quite anonymous in wider public life (and indeed death). It is ironic therefore that Jane’s husband Robert, despite occupying so much space on her tombstone, was not even buried with her, but rather at the newer Bow Cemetery across the river. At his death in 1880 at 83 years of age Robert Waugh was described as having been the “oldest inhabitant” of the city, who “far outlived his own generation that he was unknown to the Durham people, and his death elicited little comment”, perhaps not the most flattering epitaph. However, it is difficult to know whether Robert’s burial apart from Jane was a matter of choice or necessity, as during this later period the sanitary impact of inner-city burial had begun to raise concerns. As such, subsequent Public Health Acts led to the opening of new suburban cemeteries and the restriction of burials in old inner-city churchyards such as St Mary Le Bow, many of which were converted to open recreation grounds and gardens intended for public enjoyment, as this one hopefully still does.

-Daniel Burrell

Volunteer Object 🔎
It may be easy to forget as you enter our wonderful little museum with its peaceful garden in the heart of the old city of Durham that you are also entering the site of an historic church with its own churchyard. Unfortunately, all we have to remember this old burial ground (aside from its longstanding residents) are several surviving tombstones such as this one, which have since been moved from their original position to ensure their preservation. This particular tombstone is one of our best preserved and commemorates the burial of Jane Waugh, a resident of North Bailey who died at the age of 40 in 1834, as well as two of her children who both died remarkably young over a decade prior. Unfortunately, we know very little about Jane herself, her tombstone notes that she was the wife of Robert Waugh, while her obituary predominantly discussed the role of her father, the local Durham solicitor Henry Donkin. This was not unusual by the patriarchal standards of the period, as the value and significance of women was typically only understood in relation to her male relatives, while they themselves often remained quite anonymous in wider public life (and indeed death). It is ironic therefore that Jane’s husband Robert, despite occupying so much space on her tombstone, was not even buried with her, but rather at the newer Bow Cemetery across the river. At his death in 1880 at 83 years of age Robert Waugh was described as having been the “oldest inhabitant” of the city, who “far outlived his own generation that he was unknown to the Durham people, and his death elicited little comment”, perhaps not the most flattering epitaph. However, it is difficult to know whether Robert’s burial apart from Jane was a matter of choice or necessity, as during this later period the sanitary impact of inner-city burial had begun to raise concerns. As such, subsequent Public Health Acts led to the opening of new suburban cemeteries and the restriction of burials in old inner-city churchyards such as St Mary Le Bow, many of which were converted to open recreation grounds and gardens intended for public enjoyment, as this one hopefully still does.

-Daniel Burrell

Stories from the mines

If you want to share your story feel free to come into the museum or reach out to us digitally

📬Postcards from the Past📬

This Postcard from the Past is an actual postcard that was sent on the 8th of September 1956. It was published by T. Mason & Co and donated to the museum in December 2010. The hotel has long been a staple of the city, first opening its doors in 1815 after having been designed by Tributus Design Unit LTD. The buildings range from the early 18th to late 19th centuries and have had a variety of uses over the years. For a short period in the late 18th century part of the building was used as a boarding school, and the balcony has been used historically by miners’ leaders and politicians alike for the annual Miners’ Gala, making it a significant location for the labour movement in the north east. Pre-dating the hotel itself, the impressive main staircase is from c.1660 and was brought in from Loch Leven Castle. Finally, it is believed that the hotel started using the prefix “Royal” after a visit from King Edward VII.

Postcards from the Past is a volunteer-led project. Volunteers at Durham Museum have the opportunity to take on projects based on their interests, regardless of if they want to focus on marketing, exhibition creation, historical research, or anything else. If you’re interested in volunteering please email [email protected]

Stories from the mines

Thank you to everyone who had shared their stories with us. If you would like to share yours, feel free to visit us in the museum, DM us, or email us at [email protected]

Volunteer object spotlight ✨

As someone still very much new to the region, this drew my interest as I am still looking to learn more about Durham’s cultural history. Begun in 1834, the Durham Regatta is an annual boat race across the River Wear.
It commemorates the Duke of Wellington’s victory at the battle of Waterloo. It began as an annual celebration of the victory that ended France’s attempts to command over Europe.
The regatta is the second oldest boat race in England and this year marks its 186th anniversary.
Colleges of Durham University compete alongside competitors from across the UK. The regatta has become an important social event for the county, previously attracting more than 10,000 spectators as well as offering hospitality to the surviving relatives of the battle of Waterloo.

This object spotlight was by our volunteer, Lucy

Durham Miners’ Stories, post 2

Volunteer Object Spotlight ✨
I item I chose is this January 1914 programme for Patience by the Durham & District Excelsior Amateur Operatic Society and performed at the Assembly Rooms Theatre, which can still be found in Durham today. The Durham & District Excelsior Amateur Operatic
Society, founded in 1909, was part of a wider National Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Association. This programme, with its unusual metallic gold cover, includes a variety of information about the performance including lists of both the cast and members of the
Operatic Society, photographs of the cast and is also filled with advertisements for local
Durham businesses. The details inside the programme provide an insight into life in Durham during the early twentieth century, from the mixed gender membership to the 17 different shops being advertised. It also tells us that Patience was part of a series of performances
including another Gilbert & Sullivan opera the Mikado, which was performed twice, once in 1910 and 1912, suggesting that Gilbert & Sullivan operas were popular with the theatre-going populace in Durham at this time.

This volunteer object spotlight was by Annabel

Look out for these blue crests on our social media in the coming months - they all have real stories told by visitors to the Durham Museum! If you want to tell your story feel free to come in to the museum (Wednesday to Sunday, 11:00-16:30), DM us, or drop us an email

Volunteer object spotlight:
On display in our temporary exhibition until the end of the year is this model of Thomas Sharp's plan for Durham.

Thomas Sharp, born in County Durham in 1901, was a renowned and controversial town planner who in the 1940s was appointed to draw up a redevelopment plan for Durham. The city had fortunately not been bombed during the war, but it was nevertheless identified as an opportunity to highlight and preserve its long heritage, while still adapting to modern needs such as that of the car. The plan was centred around the Cathedral and the Durham Peninsula, but also encompassed its surroundings. Although much of the plan was not implemented, post-war development in Durham nevertheless took some inspiration from Sharp's proposals.

This spotlight was made by our volunteer, Luke

How does your Durham Story fit into The Durham Story?

Volunteer Object Spotlight

For my artefact this week, I chose to investigate the history of the Teasdale shotgun. Created by Joseph Teasdale it was manufactured in 20 silver street (likely between the years 1828 to 1864). The Teasdale gun makers were a family business, in the name of William Teasdale from 1858 onwards (where the business moved from 20 to 24 silver street). One of a number of sporting fi****ms acquired by Staffordshire County Museum from the Ministry of Defence (Army Dept) following the amnesty announced in 1961, they were subsequently donated to Durham Museum. Percussion shotguns, of which Teasdale's is an example, were a form of firearm that was fired via the striking (or 'percussing') of an external primer (a percussion cap, which created sparks) which sends a flash into the breech (the part of the barrel closest to the trigger) that ignites the main powder charge, and thereby fires the gun.

Step back into time with our dress up section once you’ve learned about the social history of Durham!

This photograph of an unidentified boat club was published by Fillingham’s, a photography study which opened in 1911. Fillingham’s was a major photographer for the university, and most of the photographs in the archive can be accessed online but none dating back to before 1974 survive. As is to be expected from a city on a peninsula, there are many boat clubs in Durham and to this day you will find many boathouses on your walk along the river. Durham is also home to a major racing event, the Durham Regatta, which has been taking place every summer for 190 years. If you want to learn more about the Durham Regatta, we have a display on it in the museum!

Postcards from the Past is a volunteer-led project. Volunteers at Durham Museum have the opportunity to take on projects based on their interests, regardless of if they want to focus on marketing, exhibition creation, historical research, or anything else. If you’re interested in volunteering please email [email protected]

This is the daily paper from Friday 21 July 1944, 79 years ago to this day. The News Chronicle was a national daily paper which ran up to 1960, and this copy was probably sold and read in Durham. Today’s headline is about the attempted assassination of Adolf Hi**er by Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg the day before, 20 July 1944. While we look back on events with hindsight, the newspaper offers a rare glimpse of what people knew, thought, and believed at the time. The News Chronicle did not know who was behind the assassination attempt, but speculated accurately that it must have been a high-ranking German army officer and predicted the hundreds of murders and executions of people connected to the German resistance carried out by the N***s in the wake of 20 July 1944.
The front page also features a fascinating comment speculating that Hi**er had secretly been replaced as head of state by head of the SS Heinrich Himmler, the emerging “super gangster boss,” and that the coup would be announced in a few weeks’ time.