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- Schoolchildren on a visit to Priest's House Museum
- Visitors browse the exhibits at Shaftesbury Abbey Museum & Garden
- Visitors at the Red House Museum and Gardens
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Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum
Discover one of the most fascinating historic houses in England. Built by Merton Russell-Cotes as an extravagant birthday gift for his wife, Annie, it celebrates the couple’s passion for art... -
Gillingham Museum
Gillingham Museum features the history of Gillingham and surrounding villages from prehistoric times, through Roman and medieval occupation to the Victorian rebuilding; a 1790 manual fire engine;... -
The Tudor House Museum
Tudor House is one of Weymouth’s treasured Tudor buildings and thought to have been a merchant’s property. It originally fronted an inlet from the main harbour, allowing ships to be...
Welcome to the Dorset Museums website
There’s something for everyone in Dorset’s museums and galleries from the Victorian splendour of the Russell Cotes Art Gallery and Museum in the West to the amazing array of dinosaur fossils to be found in Lyme Regis Museum on the County’s eastern border.
This site provides a gateway to everything Dorset museums have to offer.
Find out more about all the museums near you or use the search function to plan a perfect day discovering Dorset’s fascinating history.
Planning a Fun Day for the Family or Scheduling a School Trip?
The Facilities and Learning sections on the museum information pages will help you discover which Dorset museums are best suited to your needs and interests.
Latest News
Unlocking the Bankes Archive Project Conference
Saturday 16th June 2018, 10am – 4.30pm
Queen Elizabeth’s School, Wimborne
Bookings are now open for this exciting conference highlighting the work Dorset History Centre has been undertaking on one of Dorset’s largest and most significant archive collections – that of the Bankes family of Kingston Lacy and Corfe Castle.
The keynote speakers include:
Anna Sebba, author of ‘The Exiled Collector: William Bankes and the Making of an English Country House’
Martin Papworth, Wessex Regional Archaeologist for the National Trust
Patricia Usick, author of ‘Adventures in Egypt and Nubia: The Travels of William John Bankes (1786–1855)’
Professor Henry French, Professor of Social History at the University of Exeter
Check the Bankes website for further details: https://dcc.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/bankes-archive/bankes-archive-conference/