An emotional Sarah Priestley said it felt “amazing” to welcome visitors back as Watford Museum opened its doors to the public for the first time this morning since December.
Mayor of Watford Peter Taylor performed a ceremonial ribbon cutting before the first visitors were welcomed into the High Street museum at 10am.
Museums have been one of the last sectors allowed to reopen as coronavirus restrictions have been eased, but the museum curator was delighted the day had finally arrived.
She said: “It’s amazing, it’s actually really emotional as well. Last year we were so positive about reopening and it is very tough for people. A lot of what we do is about connecting and communicating with people, so it is a real challenge. But people being safe as well is so important.
“It’s amazing to all be back as a team, to have our visitors in and volunteers as well.”
The enforced closure gave Watford Borough Council and museum staff the opportunity to carry out an extensive refurbishment.
Visitors will immediately notice the entrance area feels more spacious and lighter, while another area of the museum to benefit from an extensive makeover has been the Cassiobury gallery housing portraits, other paintings and historic objects relating to the Earls of Essex and the park.
The refurbished Cassiobury gallery
Sarah said: “This is a really beautiful museum, we have such gorgeous collections and also there’s lot going on. We’ve got so many different connections, partnerships, there’s always things happening here, but the fabric was really tired.
“What we’ve done - and it’s an ongoing programme - is the foyer has been refurbished, so that’s a new exhibition space, and our Cassiobury gallery is such a priority for us.
"We have people coming to visit that gallery from all over the world, but also we want Watford people to be really proud of that history and it better showcases what we’ve got. And we want people to feel welcome and be proud of their museum.”
One of the museum’s most popular displays is dedicated to Watford FC, and the museum has a new treat for Hornets fans, including a piece of silverware dating back more than 120 years.
Sarah explained: “We’ve very proud of Watford being promoted and to celebrate that the club have lent us the trophies. This is the actually the most promotion trophies that have ever been together at any one time.
The display of Watford's promotion trophies
“The new trophy is with the club at the moment, we wouldn’t expect them to part with that so soon, but we’re delighted we’ve got the 2015 promotion trophy, 2006 from the Millennium Stadium play-off final, 1999 which for me is such an iconic promotion, the previous year’s Division Two title and our oldest trophy, which we absolutely adore, is the 1899/1900 [Southern League] Division Two championship trophy.
“That was an amazing story. It was presented to [former chairman] Jim Bonser when Watford got promoted, so it’s actually been a promotion trophy twice, and we were able to purchase it with support from the club, local business and a fan to bring it back to Watford.”
Part of the Watford at War exhibit
The museum is currently open on a Saturday only and people need to book a time slot before visiting. This can be done by calling 01923 232297 or email info@watfordmuseum.org.uk
For more details visit the museum’s website at www.watfordmuseum.org.uk
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