7,365 cups of tea served, 324 Halloween monsters, 8 million steps back in time, and one staff baby – it’s been a very busy first year for Shire Hall Historic Courthouse Museum.
Since the courthouse museum on High West Street in Dorchester opened on May 1, 2018, more than 17,018 visitors have come through the doors from around the world. Each visitor takes an average of 514 steps around the courthouse and cells, which means that the 17,018 visitors have taken more than 8,747,252 steps back in time, or 4,060 miles (roughly half way to Australia). The 120 volunteers at the museum have put in 9,568 hours of their time for free to help visitors learn about social justice and injustice, and the cafe has become a popular community hub with 11,998 hot drinks (41,993 litres of tea and coffee) and 4,563 slices of cake being served up. There was also a lovely new addition to the Shire Hall family, as apprentice Nathanial Green became a father for the first time.
Director Anna Bright said: “It’s been a wonderful year – it has flown by! From day one we have been overwhelmed by the support shown to us by the community in Dorchester and the enthusiasm visitors have for the museum from across the world.
“We have had so many successes this year, including our two powerful exhibitions: Journey to Justice, about the US and UK Civil Rights Movements and our augmented reality exhibition, Tolpuddle Martyrs Remixed: Six Dorset Men Who Changed the World.
“We have lots of ideas and new exhibitions in the pipeline that we can’t wait to show everyone. This really has been a journey for us all and we would especially like to thank our volunteers, supporters and visitors for all their enthusiasm and kindness. We believe we have a one-of-a-kind museum here – it’s about social justice, but it’s modern and relevant. This isn’t a stuffy museum where silence is enforced – we want people to take ownership of this space, to find relevance for themselves and their lives in its messages and to leave feeling like they can change the world.”
For more information about visiting the museum and the events that are on, visit shirehalldorset.org or call 01305 261849.
