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Swindon AdvertiserPURTON Museum is holding an exhibition to explore the history of its local railway station, which closed in 1964.
A collection of materials from a former station master has been donated to the museum to teach locals about what it was like to work and live in the area at the time.
Chairman of the Purton Historial Society Marion Hobbs said: “We’ve received a collection of the final station master John Blackwell who died at the beginning of the year. His family kindly donated his old uniform, photographs and a heavy coat he used to wear. It’s an important piece of history.
“The interesting thing is we used to have two lines, which was then reduced to one line, but in 2017 we went back up to two again. It runs along the edge of the village and we have lights installed there.”
Purton Museum is enlarging its WW1 exhibition to celebrate the centenary of the end of the war, featuring artefacts from the village such as a Victorian post-box, materials from an old haberdashery, and farming implements used at the College Farm house, which has a connection to royalty through the Hyde family. Anne Hyde, daughter of Royalist statesman and author Edward, lived at the house and was the first wife of James II.
The chairman added: “I think we need to learn from the past to help us learn about the present, and how history repeats itself. The new exhibition is a village asset and the museum is choc-a-bloc with history.
“The railway was important to Purton because many people worked there or needed it to go to work.”
Exhibitions in the village are put together by the Purton Historical Society. The society describes itself as “a group of passionate historians dedicated in preserving and researching the interesting and diverse history of the village of Purton.” They hold regular meetings and activities of interest for its members who help to maintain the museum.
Members of the public can view the collection for free at the museum, which is located above the Purton Library. The Museum is open on Wednesdays from 2.00-5.00 pm and from 10.00 am to 12:30 pm on Saturdays.
