Salt Museum, Northwich
Encyclopedia
The Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse, Northwich
, Cheshire
, records the social, cultural and industrial history of west Cheshire. It was formerly known as the Salt Museum, reflecting its earlier focus on the history of salt extraction, a local industry
dating back to Roman
times. The museum was renamed Weaver Hall Museum in 2010 as its remit now extends to cover the broader history of the area and also the history of the building itself as a former workhouse.
The museum is located in the old Northwich Union workhouse
, dating from 1839 and situated on the A533 road. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II listed building.
It also holds an image library of over 8,000 items recording the history of west Cheshire, particularly in relation to the salt and chemical industries and associated canal
transport.
In addition to regular displays of items from its own collections the Museum also hosts visiting exhibitions, art exhibitions, special events, holiday activities, talks and regular film shows in its own mini-cinema the ‘Regalette’ (named in honour of the town's last surviving cinema, the Regal, which closed in 2007.)
In 2009 over 21,000 people visited Weaver Hall.
The museum collection originally shared a building with Northwich library
but mine subsidence
- once a significant problem in the town - caused this to collapse. A new combined library-and-museum building was put up in 1909, which still exists: it now houses only Northwich library, though the former title over the door remains.
The collection moved into Weaver Hall in June 1981, in large part thanks to the efforts of Mary, Lady Rochester, who played a leading role in its early establishment. It opened under the name of The Salt Museum and displayed exhibits which particularly illustrated the history of the salt industry and its impact on the area. In 2010 the proposed redevelopment of a second museum based nearby at the former Lion Salt Works
encouraged restructuring, and reverting to its name of Weaver Hall the museum enlarged its focus to cover the broader history of the west Cheshire region.
, which standardized the system of poor relief throughout England and Wales. Groups of parishes were combined into 'unions' which were responsible for providing for the poor and needy in the area. The law forbade all relief to the able-bodied in their own homes. Anyone wishing to receive aid had to live in workhouses. This act led to the building of 554 Union workhouses in England and Wales. Conditions were harsh, based on the theory that pauperism among able-bodied workers was a moral failing. Entry to the workhouse aimed to stimulate workers to seek employment rather than charity. During the 19th century conditions improved and workhouses were replaced by the public welfare system in the 1930s.
The Northwich Union Workhouse was commissioned in 1837, after 65 local parishes and townships comprising nearly the whole of mid-Cheshire were combined in October 1836 into a single union. The building was designed by architect George Latham
to a standard model. In 1850 a fever hospital was added, and in 1863 better receiving wards – with proper baths – were installed. Poor Law Unions and their Guardians were abolished in April 1930, when Northwich Workhouse transferred to Cheshire County Council
as a public assistance institution.
In 1948 the building became the Weaver Hall Old People’s Home. Most of the workhouse buildings were demolished in the 1960s, though an original range of rooms fronting London Road remained, along with an adjoining Board of Guardians room built in 1892. The main building ceased to be an old people's home in 1968, when residents were moved to a purpose-built facility at the rear.
In June 1981 the former workhouse building was re-opened as The Salt Museum, and continued until its renaming in 2010 as the Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse.
Northwich
Northwich is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, records the social, cultural and industrial history of west Cheshire. It was formerly known as the Salt Museum, reflecting its earlier focus on the history of salt extraction, a local industry
Salt in Cheshire
Cheshire is a county in North West England. Rock salt was laid down in this region some 220 million years ago, during the Triassic period. Seawater moved inland from an open sea, creating a chain of shallow salt marshes across what is today the Cheshire basin...
dating back to Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
times. The museum was renamed Weaver Hall Museum in 2010 as its remit now extends to cover the broader history of the area and also the history of the building itself as a former workhouse.
The museum is located in the old Northwich Union workhouse
Workhouse
In England and Wales a workhouse, colloquially known as a spike, was a place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment...
, dating from 1839 and situated on the A533 road. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II listed building.
Current Museum
Weaver Hall Museum houses a large collection covering the archaeology, architecture, industries and social history of Cheshire from prehistory to the present. Permanent displays include a Victorian workhouse schoolroom and the 'Board of Guardians' boardroom.It also holds an image library of over 8,000 items recording the history of west Cheshire, particularly in relation to the salt and chemical industries and associated canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
transport.
In addition to regular displays of items from its own collections the Museum also hosts visiting exhibitions, art exhibitions, special events, holiday activities, talks and regular film shows in its own mini-cinema the ‘Regalette’ (named in honour of the town's last surviving cinema, the Regal, which closed in 2007.)
In 2009 over 21,000 people visited Weaver Hall.
Collection
The first 'salt museum' was set up in the 19th century by Thomas Ward and John Brunner, two local salt proprietors, who felt the town needed something to explain its status as the then "salt capital of the world". Ward and Brunner donated the library and museum to the town in 1887..The museum collection originally shared a building with Northwich library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
but mine subsidence
Subsidence
Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...
- once a significant problem in the town - caused this to collapse. A new combined library-and-museum building was put up in 1909, which still exists: it now houses only Northwich library, though the former title over the door remains.
The collection moved into Weaver Hall in June 1981, in large part thanks to the efforts of Mary, Lady Rochester, who played a leading role in its early establishment. It opened under the name of The Salt Museum and displayed exhibits which particularly illustrated the history of the salt industry and its impact on the area. In 2010 the proposed redevelopment of a second museum based nearby at the former Lion Salt Works
Lion Salt Works
The Lion Salt Works is the last remaining open pan saltworks in Cheshire, England. It closed as a works in 1986 and is now preserved as a museum...
encouraged restructuring, and reverting to its name of Weaver Hall the museum enlarged its focus to cover the broader history of the west Cheshire region.
Building
The building which was eventually to become known as Weaver Hall was opened in 1839 in response to the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834Poor Law Amendment Act 1834
The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, sometimes abbreviated to PLAA, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed by the Whig government of Lord Melbourne that reformed the country's poverty relief system . It was an Amendment Act that completely replaced earlier legislation based on the...
, which standardized the system of poor relief throughout England and Wales. Groups of parishes were combined into 'unions' which were responsible for providing for the poor and needy in the area. The law forbade all relief to the able-bodied in their own homes. Anyone wishing to receive aid had to live in workhouses. This act led to the building of 554 Union workhouses in England and Wales. Conditions were harsh, based on the theory that pauperism among able-bodied workers was a moral failing. Entry to the workhouse aimed to stimulate workers to seek employment rather than charity. During the 19th century conditions improved and workhouses were replaced by the public welfare system in the 1930s.
The Northwich Union Workhouse was commissioned in 1837, after 65 local parishes and townships comprising nearly the whole of mid-Cheshire were combined in October 1836 into a single union. The building was designed by architect George Latham
George Latham (architect)
George Latham was an English architect and surveyor, from the town of Nantwich in Cheshire.-Life:Latham married the daughter of the Wesleyan Methodist minister of Nantwich, the Reverend Thomas Gee...
to a standard model. In 1850 a fever hospital was added, and in 1863 better receiving wards – with proper baths – were installed. Poor Law Unions and their Guardians were abolished in April 1930, when Northwich Workhouse transferred to Cheshire County Council
Cheshire County Council
Cheshire County Council was a County Council, of the second highest level of United Kingdom Government for the residents of Cheshire. Founded in 1889, it ceased to exist on 1 April 2009, when it and the district councils in Cheshire were replaced by two unitary authorities; Cheshire West and...
as a public assistance institution.
In 1948 the building became the Weaver Hall Old People’s Home. Most of the workhouse buildings were demolished in the 1960s, though an original range of rooms fronting London Road remained, along with an adjoining Board of Guardians room built in 1892. The main building ceased to be an old people's home in 1968, when residents were moved to a purpose-built facility at the rear.
In June 1981 the former workhouse building was re-opened as The Salt Museum, and continued until its renaming in 2010 as the Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse.
See also
- Salt in CheshireSalt in CheshireCheshire is a county in North West England. Rock salt was laid down in this region some 220 million years ago, during the Triassic period. Seawater moved inland from an open sea, creating a chain of shallow salt marshes across what is today the Cheshire basin...
- Lion Salt WorksLion Salt WorksThe Lion Salt Works is the last remaining open pan saltworks in Cheshire, England. It closed as a works in 1986 and is now preserved as a museum...
- Open pan salt makingOpen pan salt makingIn Europe virtually all domestic salt is obtained by solution mining of underground salt formations although some is still obtained by the solar evaporation of sea water. Salt is extracted from the Brine using vacuum pans, where brine is heated in a partial vacuum in order to lower the boiling...
- Weaver Hall, DarnhallWeaver Hall, DarnhallWeaver Hall is a country house in the parish of Darnhall, Cheshire, England. It was built in the early 17th century, largely rebuilt in the early 18th century, and remodelled in 1847. The house is constructed in brick with a slate roof. It has an H-shaped plan, and is in three storeys...