In 1778 journeyman bladesmith, Richard Garrett, arrived in the East Suffolk town of Leiston from Woodbridge. He took over a small but established forge, married, and began the transformation of the area for which his family would become famous.
From the production of superior sickles and scythes, Richard’s sons successively added to and grew the business. In 1851 Garrett’s were a major exhibitor at the Great Exhibition, showing threshing machines, seed drills and steam engines! In 1853 Garrett’s constructed the Long Shop – the first building created with the purpose of containing a production-line process.
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Garretts exported its agricultural equipment and steam engines all over the world. Sadly, however, control of the business passed from the family in 1932. Although the business continued under a variety of owners until the late nineteen seventies, Garretts heyday had definitely passed.
In 1979, the Richard Garrett Engineering Works closed permanently. Permission was soon sought to redevelop the seven-acre site for housing. Fortunately, it was quickly realised that the Long Shop was threatened with demolition by this planning application. Interest in the historical importance of the Long Shop and other buildings of the Works in Main Street was also growing – the County Archivist, W R Serjeant, became involved and the Long Shop was soon protected by Grade II* listing.
The Long Shop Project Trust was set up in 1981 to acquire the Long Shop and its adjacent buildings, with Lord Cranbrook and Michael Hilton together being the founding trustees. In 1984 the site was inaugurated as a museum.
Exhibits were collected from near and far. The 1917 threshing machine was obtained from a local farmer; the 1923 steam roller was found in dilapidated condition in Ibiza. Tony Errington was appointed the museum’s first Manager and was influential in the original design and the curation and layout of exhibits.
In 2016, governance of the museum switched from the Project Trust to the newly formed Charitable Incorporated Organization (CIO) ‘The Long Shop Museum’, shortly thereafter it also became, and has remained since, an accredited museum.
Today, the museum showcases the history of the agricultural and industrial revolutions in East Anglia, tells the stories of the communities that were embroiled in a period of significant innovation and change, and preserves and interprets a collection of over 10,000 objects ranging from spectacles to steam engines.
The museum is managed by a small team led by Museum Director, Fraser Hale, and Engagement Manager, Jasmine Betts, and is supported by an indispensable cohort of 70 volunteers. The museum operates as a wellbeing hub, working collaboratively with a range of community support agencies, creative groups, and local health and government actors. It attracts around 7,000 visitors a year with key audiences being older couples, family groups, and organised groups (e.g. U3A). Income from this footfall, coupled with food and merchandise sales, and multifarious grants, is what keeps the museum going financially.
The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday from late March to early November each year, from 10am ‘til 5pm (11am – 3pm on Sundays).
Click here to visit the Long Shop Museum website (opens in a new tab)