Harris Museum
Encyclopedia
The Harris Museum, Art Gallery & Preston Free Public Library is a Grade I listed museum building in Preston and has the largest gallery space in Lancashire
, England
.
boom hit the United Kingdom
. The town of Preston wanted a grand museum and library for its inhabitants. Since 1850, locals had held fund-raising events to get enough money to build a Museum
and Public Library
. In 1877, a Preston lawyer called Edmund Robert Harris
, finally made the dream of Preston into a reality. He left instructions in his will with a sum of £300,000 to establish a trust that would provide funds to support the creation of several organisations in Preston including a library, museum and art gallery. The trust would work with Preston Council. In 1879, the first Preston lending library was set up in the Town Hall basement, while a public museum was set up on Cross Street, opening Ist May 1880. The popularity of this made the council decide to make a purpose built building to house the Public Library
and Museum
. Building work officially started on the museum in 1882 during the Preston Guild and it officially opened in 1893.
, Lucian Freud
, Ivon Hitchens
and Graham Sutherland
and a decorative art collection that holds the largest scent bottle collection in the country. In addition there is a varied contemporary art programme of national and international artists, touring shows and in-house exhibitions.
Amongst the fine works of art and historical artifacts there is a nationally important prehistoric elk
skeleton, known as the Poulton
Elk.
A Foucault pendulum
hangs in the central foyer, through all the floors, over a butterfly-shaped plate marked with the hours of the day. As a result of the rotation of the Earth, this functions as a decorative and reasonably-accurate clock.
This monumental building also houses Preston City's Free Public Library, which is run by Lancashire County Council, and the building was initially built with funds donated by Edmund Robert Harris.
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
History
In the 19th century, a Public LibraryPublic library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
boom hit the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The town of Preston wanted a grand museum and library for its inhabitants. Since 1850, locals had held fund-raising events to get enough money to build a Museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
and Public Library
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
. In 1877, a Preston lawyer called Edmund Robert Harris
Edmund Robert Harris
Edmund Robert Harris was an English lawyer from Preston, Lancashire, UK who was the principal benefactor of the Harris Museum, Harris Institute or Art School, Harris Technical School and the Harris Orphanage....
, finally made the dream of Preston into a reality. He left instructions in his will with a sum of £300,000 to establish a trust that would provide funds to support the creation of several organisations in Preston including a library, museum and art gallery. The trust would work with Preston Council. In 1879, the first Preston lending library was set up in the Town Hall basement, while a public museum was set up on Cross Street, opening Ist May 1880. The popularity of this made the council decide to make a purpose built building to house the Public Library
Public library
A public library is a library that is accessible by the public and is generally funded from public sources and operated by civil servants. There are five fundamental characteristics shared by public libraries...
and Museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
. Building work officially started on the museum in 1882 during the Preston Guild and it officially opened in 1893.
Collections
The collections include important local history and archaeology collections, highlights of which are displayed in the Story of Preston, which gives a historical account of the city. There is also a fine art collection including work by Stanley SpencerStanley Spencer
Sir Stanley Spencer was an English painter. Much of his work depicts Biblical scenes, from miracles to Crucifixion, happening not in the Holy Land but in the small Thames-side village where he was born and spent most of his life...
, Lucian Freud
Lucian Freud
Lucian Michael Freud, OM, CH was a British painter. Known chiefly for his thickly impasted portrait and figure paintings, he was widely considered the pre-eminent British artist of his time...
, Ivon Hitchens
Ivon Hitchens
Ivon Hitchens was an English painter who started exhibiting during the 1920s. He became part of the 'London Group' of artists and exhibited with them during the 1930s. His house was bombed in 1940 during World War II, at which point he moved to a caravan on a patch of woodland near Petworth in...
and Graham Sutherland
Graham Sutherland
Graham Vivien Sutherland OM was an English artist.-Early life:He was born in Streatham, attending Homefield Preparatory School, Sutton. He was then educated at Epsom College, Surrey before going up to Goldsmiths, University of London...
and a decorative art collection that holds the largest scent bottle collection in the country. In addition there is a varied contemporary art programme of national and international artists, touring shows and in-house exhibitions.
Amongst the fine works of art and historical artifacts there is a nationally important prehistoric elk
Irish Elk
The Irish Elk or Giant Deer , was a species of Megaloceros and one of the largest deer that ever lived. Its range extended across Eurasia, from Ireland to east of Lake Baikal, during the Late Pleistocene. The latest known remains of the species have been carbon dated to about 7,700 years ago...
skeleton, known as the Poulton
Poulton-le-Fylde
Poulton-le-Fylde is a market town in Lancashire, England, situated on the coastal plain called the Fylde. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 18,264. There is evidence of human habitation in the area from 12,000 years ago and several archaeological finds from Roman...
Elk.
A Foucault pendulum
Foucault pendulum
The Foucault pendulum , or Foucault's pendulum, named after the French physicist Léon Foucault, is a simple device conceived as an experiment to demonstrate the rotation of the Earth. While it had long been known that the Earth rotated, the introduction of the Foucault pendulum in 1851 was the...
hangs in the central foyer, through all the floors, over a butterfly-shaped plate marked with the hours of the day. As a result of the rotation of the Earth, this functions as a decorative and reasonably-accurate clock.
This monumental building also houses Preston City's Free Public Library, which is run by Lancashire County Council, and the building was initially built with funds donated by Edmund Robert Harris.