Torquay Museum Society

TORQUAY MUSEUM SOCIETY
We are a charitable organisation dedicated to promoting a wider understanding of the history, natural environment and cultural heritage of Devon. At the moment there are around two hundred and fifty Torquay Museum Society members. We organise the Annual Lecture Programme and provide voluntary support to the work of the Museum. New members are always welcome.

THE ANNUAL LECTURE PROGRAMME
The programme is in two series: the Autumn Programme, which runs from October to December, and the Spring Programme, which runs from January to April. Lectures are on Tuesday mornings and Wednesday afternoons and are open to Society members, and for a small charge, to members of the public. The lectures cover a huge array of topics and cater for a wide variety of interests.

During the summer months, between the spring and autumn lecture series, we run weekly conversazione, informal meetings involving presentations by members, e.g.short talks, poetry readings, and discussions initiated by members, often around the display of interesting objects and artefacts.

The Autumn/Spring lecture programme is now available, please click here or call in to the Museum to pick up a copy.

THE BOOK COLLECTION
We are the proud custodians of an historic book collection begun at the founding of the Torquay Natural History Society in 1844. This collection is a key resource for specialist researchers from far afield as well as for local people interested in exploring aspects of our common heritage.

VOLUNTEERING
There are many volunteering opportunities for Society members wishing to support the running of the Museum, from helping out with day-to-day practical tasks to assisting at the Museum’s regular educational activities for children and young people; these include outreach events at local schools, the ‘Young Archaeologists Club’, and the monthly Saturday morning family event, ‘Monster Saturday’. Volunteers are also responsible for the cataloguing and care of the Society’s book collection.

HELP RUN THE SOCIETY
As a democratic organisation we encourage members to participate at all levels of the Society. The governing body of the Society, known as the Board of Trustees, consists of up to ten members, who meet bi-monthly to oversee the work of the Society. All members have an automatic right to be elected to the Board and are encouraged to put themselves forward for election to the Board or any of its sub-groups. Members are also encouraged to put themselves forward for roles within the five subject sections of the Society, i.e. Geology, Archaeology and Astronomy, Local History, Zoology and Ornithology, Botany, Literature and the Arts.

Torquay Museum Society was founded in 1844 as the Torquay Natural History Society (TNHS). In 2003 the TNHS was reconstituted as Torquay Museum Society (TMS). On April 1st, 2015, TMS reformed as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Charity Number 1161126). Ownership and responsibility for the Museum, the building and its collections, now lies with the Torbay Museums Trust (Charity Number 1025390)