River and Rowing Museum

The River and Rowing Museum stood beside the River Thames at Mill Meadows in Henley-on-Thames. Designed by the modernist architect Sir David Chipperfield, the building won the Royal Fine Art Commission Building of the Year award in 1999. Queen Elizabeth II opened it in November 1998. The museum explored three main themes: the River Thames, the sport of rowing, and the town of Henley-on-Thames. It included four galleries and a family attraction based on Kenneth Grahame’s book The Wind in the Willows. The museum’s galleries told the story of the Thames from source to sea, the history of rowing from ancient Greece to the modern Olympics, and the development of Henley-on-Thames. The Schwarzenbach International Rowing Gallery featured interactive exhibits, film footage, and objects from rowing history. The Henley Gallery displayed an Iron Age coin hoard found locally and traced the town’s growth from a 12th-century inland port to a centre of rowing. A 360° panoramic film showed the Henley Royal Regatta in action. Visitors could walk through a recreation of The Wind in the Willows using E.H. Shepard’s illustrations brought to life with models and sound. The Thames Gallery combined art, music, and objects to show the river’s role in trade, wildlife, and culture. Interactive displays explained river management and the importance of weirs and locks. The museum also held temporary exhibitions by local artists such as John Piper and Chris Gollon.