March and District Museum
Loan Boxes
March Museum has loan boxes produced by The 'Museums on the Move' project, 'Cambridgeshire Learning Links' project and 'Reminiscence' project. The objects, with a few exceptions, are all for handling as well as looking at.
They are a wonderful resource which use original, and a few reproduction, artefacts as a stimulus for learning in schools, care homes and almost any social club or discussion group.
See the bottom of the page for loan details.
Reminiscence Boxes
These boxes are multi layered with boxes inside boxes with various items from the 1920s to the 1960s. They are intended to be used in care homes for exploration and to stimulate memories particularly in people with memory loss or dementia. These boxes are not intended for school use.
Museums on the Move
The 'Museums on the Move' project was supported by
The boxes/topics available are
Toys in the past
March during World War II
World War II has an additional case about evacuee children
Fenland farming
Victorian schools
The history of March Railway
Domestic bliss through the ages
Each box consists of a medium size fibreboard suitcase, varying in weight according to the subject. In the case of the farming and railway boxes there are additional large items that accompany the box and others can be available on request. The World War II box contains a lot of documents so needs longer use to be fully appreciated.
Cambridgeshire Learning Links
This project was initiated by the Museums & Libraries Association (MLA) 'Open the Box' and supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).
These loan boxes are very different being a set of large plastic boxes and they cover history from prehistory to the 20th century with emphasis on March. They contain some original and many reproduction artefacts from Roman, Tudor and Victorian eras. These boxes are predominantly intended for use in schools.
The boxes can be borrowed all together or separately. The loan fee is the same regardless of the number of boxes borrowed. These boxes are large and would probably not all go together in a small car boot space, some would need to go inside the car.
Box A Prehistoric and Roman
Box B Tudor with some Victorian items and Box BB Tudor
Box C Victorian doll (not for handling)
Box D 20th Century
Box D has a dykeing spade (not illustrated) to accompany it
To borrow any of these boxes contact the Museum as indicated below.
Charges
A loan fee of £5 per box will be appreciated ('Cambridgeshire Learning Links' boxes are a little different, see above).
If a Museum volunteer accompanies the box(es) and explains the items therein please be prepared to pay for their travelling expenses, at a minimum of 25 per mile each way, plus a donation to the Museum in respect of their time and effort.