Walsall Museum

Walsall Museum stood in the heart of Walsall, a town in the West Midlands. It held objects from the 17th century to the 21st, including firemarks, posters and a large costume collection. The Hodson Shop Collection was its most notable holding, containing unsold working-class clothing from the 1920s to the 1960s. The museum also displayed items from local industries such as lorinery, locks and brass wares. Its wartime section featured gas masks and soldiers’ equipment from the two world wars. The Hodson Shop Collection is nationally significant for its everyday garments from the 1920s to the 1970s. The museum’s curios included a scold’s bridle, a preserved crocodile and a child’s arm found in a chimney in 1870. Items linked to local notables such as Jerome K. Jerome, Sister Dora and John Henry Carless were also on display. The metalworking collection showed locally made locks, chains and brass wares. Visitors could see innovative stainless steel homewares made by Old Hall of Bloxwich. The displays included Gaydon and Beetleware items produced by BIP’s Streetly Plastics. The museum’s costume and textile holdings covered everyday clothing and working-class garments. Its collections of curios and local products gave a wide view of Walsall’s history and industry.