Cranbrook Museum 2026 exhibitions

Cranbrook – a small town with a fascinating past. A market town since 1290, Cranbrook has been known for centuries as the Capital of the Weald.

Cranbrook Museum is located down Carriers Road in the 15th century rectory, set in a beautiful garden which is also the location of the old ‘town lockup’. Visitors are invited to wander through the museum which is based on three floors; each of the fifteen rooms offering wide ranging displays. The town owes its prosperity, in the late Middle Ages and Tudor times, to the broadcloth industry. A large display area is devoted to the production of this cloth, and dye plants grown in the museum garden.

Another important industry was hop growing – hence the many Oast houses in the locality converted into private houses. A hop press is displayed in the museum together with many other artefacts relating to this industry.

One of the most exciting exhibits is the Colony Room. In the 1800s the Cranbrook Colony consisted of the Hardys, Horsley, Mulready and Webster, artists living in the town who portrayed the way of poor, rural families. The museum is fortunate to have a growing number of originals on display, including the Chimney Sweep by F D Hardy painted in 1862 recognisably in the Colony Room when it was part of one of the small cottages.

Cranbrook Museum is a participant in Wheels of Time – an initiative for children to encourage them to visit museums and historic sites of interest in Kent. There are currently over fifty other participants.

Come and visit:

Opening Times, April to October, Tuesday to Saturday, 2.00 to 4.30, and also Sunday in August.

Address:

Cranbrook Museum, Carriers Road, Cranbrook, TN17 3JX

Website: www.cranbrookmuseum.org