Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings

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The Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings is an open-air industrial and architectural museum located in Stoke Heath, a district of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England. Opened in 1967, the museum was conceived following the dismantling of a 15th century timber-framed house in Bromsgrove in 1967 to provide a location for its reconstruction.

The museum is centered on a collection of buildings which have of necessity had to be relocated from their original sites and restored. This includes a fully functioning windmill and a 1940s prefab house as used in many towns and cities after the Second World War to provide quick affordable replacements for houses destroyed by bombing.


A Glasgow Police box, reminiscent of the BBC's Dr Who is part of the museums kiosk collection.
A Glasgow Police box, reminiscent of the BBC's Dr Who is part of the museums kiosk collection.

The museum also contains the UK National collection of telephone kiosks, part of BT's Connected Earth heritage project. It is the largest collection of telephone kiosks in the country together together with three fully working analogue telephone exchanges including a manual switchboard and early automatic systems. The collection which is frequently staffed by knowledgable volunteers shows the complete history of telephone kiosks in the UK from 1912 to the 1990's together with hands on demonstations of how telephone calls were routed and connected before the advent of digital technology.


BT's last Strowger electromechanical exchange from the London region is preserved at Avoncroft in working condition in its original building.
BT's last Strowger electromechanical exchange from the London region is preserved at Avoncroft in working condition in its original building.

The museums Victorian church, originally built in 1891 at Bringsty Common Herefordshire was opened and re-dedicted in 1996 and services are held regularly during the museums open season. The church is also regularly used for weddings with receptions often held in The New Guesten Hall, a new building at the museum which was built to incorporate the preserved timber roof of Guesten Hall originally built next to Worcester Cathedral for entertaining the Priors Guests. The New Guesten Hall is also frequently booked by outside parties for concerts, conferences, exhibitions and meetings, therefore it is not always open to visitors.








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