Step into the rich history of Wragby with the latest pop-up museum:
"Wragby Museum: Where Five Roads Meet" showcased the depth of history and heritage at Wragby where five roads converge in a picturesque East Lindsey market town. The co-produced free to enter museum attracted c.2000 visitors following the “pop-up museum model”.
The content for the museum was curated, researched, and written by volunteers from the Wragby Heritage Group, a local history society. The museum occupied two floors of a formerly empty commercial property, turned into a coherent, multi-media experience by local fitters Allen Signs based on design work by Energy Cell. The museum was dedicated to the local heritage of Wragby with video content, artefact displays, interactive content, information boards, printed work, and a ground floor bathroom available for use.
The museum told the story of Wragby town from the very beginning, covering topics ranging from the prehistoric inhabitants of the town, interior decoration and unruly toddlers in Roman villas, an impressively grand medieval manor, the 1917 auction of the entire town, and the war years. Full sized display cases were used to showcase archaeological and historical museum objects, many of which were on display for the first time on loan from the Lincoln Museum and Museum of Lincolnshire Life.
The aims of the project were to provide an opportunity for skill-building, and to contribute to an increased sense of pride of place at Wragby, strengthening the community according to local priorities. The feedback for the project was very encouraging with visitors coming from across Lincolnshire, and further afield. Notably people were visiting who had either lived in Wragby previously and moved away, had lived in Wragby since the 1960s, or who had moved to Wragby recently. Various local groups were brought together as part of the project including local knitters who provided bollard toppings, and local school children who made history themed drawings based on real events and landmarks from Wragby which were incorporated into the exhibition.
The museum was the culmination of extensive, passionate research by the Wragby Heritage Group, with contributions from Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council with Councillor Ru Yarsley and funding from the East Lindsey Investment Fund (ELIF), The Lincoln Museum, The Museum of Lincolnshire Life, Lincolnshire Archives. We are also very grateful for the contributions from Allen Archaeology Limited, Portable Antiquities Scheme, PCAS Archaeology Limited, Pre-Construct Geophysics, Dave Watt Archaeological Illustration, Pighill Heritage Graphics, Allen Signs, and Energy Cell.
