Lynton and Lynmouth Museums and Art Galleries

(Lynton and Lynmouth, North Devon, England, UK)

The towns of Lynton and Lynmouth have one real museum worth visiting - the Lyn and Exmoor Museum. Housing local artefacts and maritime relics from the area's past, the Lyn and Exmoor Museum is to be found directly across from the Lynton primary school, being housed in a charming stone cottage named 'St. Vincent's'.

This cottage is actually the most historic surviving domestic house in Lynton and Lynmouth and is said by many to be haunted, coming with its very own resident ghost. However, that said, the Exmoor National Park Visitor Centre does also deserve a mention and contains some interesting information about extreme coastal weather and the subsequent ensuing dramas.

Lyn and Exmoor Museum

Address: St. Vincent's Cottage, Market Street, Lynton, England, UK
Tel: +44 01598 752317
There are a series of collections at the Lyn and Exmoor Museum, which include paintings, photographs documenting local events spanning the past 200 years or so, agricultural tools and objects relating to an authentic Exmoor kitchen, Lorna Doone memorabilia, pre-historic objects and some impressive fossils, which are spread around seven different rooms. Particularly interesting is the information about the flood disaster of 1952, when constant storms over a 24-hour period caused rain levels of a staggering 23 cm / 9 inches and an enormous river of debris through Lynmouth. In total, more than 100 buildings were either destroyed or badly damaged, as 34 people sadly lost their lives. Of interest, it is suggested that the extreme rain may have been the direct result of a government operation where clouds were 'seeded', so that they would rain on demand, although evidence of this is rather scant and most consider this to be a conspiracy theory.
Open hours: late March to late October, Monday to Friday - 10:00 to 12:30, 14:00 to 17:00, Sunday - 14:00 to 17:00
Admission: charge, discounts for children

Exmoor National Park Visitor Centre

Address: The Esplanade, Lynmouth, England, UK
Tel: +44 01598 752509
Located alongside Lynmouth Harbour and on the Esplanade is the Exmoor National Park Visitor Centre. As well as providing visitors with bespoke information and advice about how to make the very most of your time here, with lots of leaflets about walking trails, the Exmoor National Park Visitor Centre also remembers the story of the Louisa lifeboat and its treacherous rescue mission at the Porlock Weir. This event took place more than 100 years ago, in 1899, and saw the entire crew of 13 on the ill-fated Forrest Hall ship successfully rescued after the ship was transported by road around 24 km / 15 miles by horses, so that it could be launched in the more sheltered harbour at Porlock.
Open hours: April to October, daily - 10:00 to 17:00
Admission: free