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The Royal Albert Memorial Museum in 1979

Updated 31st October 2011

Also see
History of the RAMM
Last Days of the RAMM

As a student on an art course at Dartington College in the late 1970s, I was required to do a three week placement in the community or a workplace. I chose a museum, and Dartington arranged a place at the RAMM, working with Lucy Harding the Education Officer at the time. These photographs were taken during the three weeks in October 1979. And I didn't even take a photo of Gerald!

RAMMs main entrance - 1979 New
Probably not much changed from when it first opened in 1869, the entrance was designed to give the sense of entering a place of learning and knowledge.

A school group visit
This is a party of children who were being shown around the museum by Lucy Harding, the Museum Education Officer at the time. They would return to the schoolroom and draw and paint, or write about, objects that they had seen in the galleries.

Cuddling a stuffed rabbit
One of the young visitors to the school room became very attached to the hard as rock, stuffed rabbit, mounted on a board.

New Salmon fishing from Topsham
The display showing the history of Topsham's salmon fishermen, complete with model boats.

Sladen Gallery exhibits
This gallery, named after Walter Percy Sladen who lived in Northbrooke Lodge from 1897 to 1901 did, and still does display many marine specimens prepared by Sladen. This case displays an old fashined hourglass, amongst other things.

The Sladen Gallery
Another view of the Sladen Gallery shows the bespoke cabinets that were specially made at a cost of £500 in 1903. Strangely, I had forgotten this image when I took an almost identical photo last November which appears in the Last Days of the RAMM page.

The schoolroom skeleton
This fellow, in his glass fronted cupboard, was situated in the corner of the schoolroom. The schoolroom later became the café on the ground floor.

Ethnic items from Brazil Considered rather old fashioned nowadays, this glass fronted case contains ethnic artefacts from Brazil.

Exeter Spoons
Exeter silver, especially spoons, are a popular item on Ebay. The museum had a large collection on display in 1979, which I don't recall seeing in the last few years. I could make a fortune with this lot!

The life of the beaver
This display of a stuffed beaver has a distribution map and information on the beaver's habitat.

Glass bottle exhibits
Glass House Lane is named after a glass bottle factory in the area that existed from 1681 until 1793. I don't recall if these bottles were from the works, but I suspect some where.

A case of decorative glass
More glass in these displays, but this time, more decorative than bottles.

Costumes at Rougemont House
In 1979, RAMM had a museum in Rougemont House devoted to costumes through the ages. A range of hats are in front of dresses from the Victorian and Edwardian age.

Costumes at Rougemont House
Costumes from the 1920s in these two photographs. Hopefully, the museum will have a chance to display some of these in the new building in 2010.

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