About
Wycombe Museum tells the story of High Wycombe and the surrounding Chilterns area through extensive collections spanning centuries of local history, with a particular focus on the town's world-famous chair-making industry. Housed in the elegant 18th-century Castle Hill House, the museum occupies a historic building with attractive gardens in the heart of High Wycombe, just minutes from the town centre.
High Wycombe was for centuries the chair-making capital of England, and the museum holds one of the finest collections of Windsor chairs and other furniture anywhere in the country. The Chiltern beechwoods provided the raw material, and generations of skilled craftspeople—from bodgers turning chair legs on woodland pole lathes to factory workers in the town's large furniture manufacturers—created a thriving industry that defined the town's identity. The museum explores this heritage through original chairs, tools, workshop reconstructions, and the stories of the workers whose skill made Wycombe furniture renowned worldwide.
Beyond furniture, the museum's collections cover the full sweep of local history from prehistoric flint tools found in the Chilterns to 20th-century social history. Displays explore the town's medieval market origins, its role in the English Civil War, the growth of paper-making along the River Wye, and the impact of the railway in transforming Wycombe from a small market town into a commuter centre for London. Artworks include paintings and prints depicting the Chilterns landscape, local scenes, and portraits of notable Wycombe residents.
The museum's gardens are a highlight in their own right, providing a peaceful green space with herbaceous borders, mature trees, and a medieval motte (castle mound) from which the house takes its name. Regular exhibitions, events, and educational programmes ensure the museum remains a vibrant community resource serving residents and visitors to this Chilterns market town.
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Annual Visitors (2019)
45,000
Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
📅 Best Times to Visit
Quietest: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
Busiest: Saturday
💡 Weekday mornings for the quietest experience. Summer months are best for enjoying the museum gardens. School holidays feature family events and activities.
💡 Visitor Tips
- The Windsor chair collection is the museum's crown jewel and nationally significant. Take time to study the variety of designs and appreciate the extraordinary craftsmanship that made High Wycombe the chair-making capital of England.
- Don't miss the museum gardens - they're a peaceful escape from the busy town centre with lovely seasonal planting and the medieval castle mound. The motte is worth climbing for views across the gardens and surrounding area.
- Free admission makes this an excellent value visit. A small donation helps the museum continue its work preserving and sharing the town's heritage.
- The museum is just a 2-minute walk from High Wycombe railway station, which has frequent fast trains from London Marylebone (under 30 minutes). No car needed.
- Check the website for temporary exhibitions and events before visiting. The museum runs regular family activities during school holidays and community events throughout the year.
- If you're interested in furniture and craft history, combine with a visit to the Chiltern Open Air Museum (8 miles) which has reconstructed bodger's camp and other historic buildings from the region.
- Enjoy hot and cold drinks, cakes and light lunches at the on-site café, or bring a picnic to eat in the gardens. High Wycombe town centre is also just 5 minutes' walk with plenty of dining options.
- Allow about 90 minutes for the museum itself, plus time for the gardens. Combine with a visit to nearby Hughenden Manor (Disraeli's home, National Trust) for a full day of Wycombe heritage.
Highlights
Windsor Chair Collection
The museum's outstanding collection of Windsor chairs is one of the finest in the world, documenting High Wycombe's position as the chair-making capital of England from the 18th century onwards.
The collection includes rare early examples of Windsor chairs showing the evolution of design, regional variations from across the Chilterns, and examples of every major type from simple country stick-backs to elaborate Gothic and wheelback designs. The chairs demonstrate the exceptional skill of local craftspeople who used Chiltern beech, elm, and yew to create furniture that was both beautiful and democratic—affordable enough for ordinary homes yet elegant enough for grand settings.
Master chairmakers' signed pieces sit alongside anonymous workshop production, telling the story of an industry that defined a town.
Bodgers and Chair-Making Workshop
A fascinating display exploring the complete chain of traditional chair production, from woodland bodgers turning chair legs on pole lathes among the beechwoods to town-based chair factories assembling finished furniture. The workshop reconstruction shows the tools and techniques of the bodger's craft—the pole lathe, draw knife, and shaving horse that were the bodger's essential equipment.
Bodgers worked in temporary camps in the beechwoods, living rough while converting raw timber into turned components.
The display explains how these components were then brought to Wycombe's chair factories for assembly, finishing, and sale. This unique division of labour between woodland and town defined the Chilterns furniture industry for centuries.
Castle Hill House and the Norman Motte
The museum building itself is a significant historical attraction.
Castle Hill House is an elegant 18th-century property built near the site of a medieval castle, and the substantial Norman motte (castle mound) survives in the gardens. The motte dates from the 11th or 12th century and once supported a timber castle controlling the Wye valley.
The house incorporates architectural features from several periods, and its handsome rooms provide an appropriate setting for the museum's displays. Climbing the motte offers views across the museum gardens and surrounding town, connecting visitors to the medieval origins of High Wycombe as a defended settlement at an important river crossing.
Local History Galleries
Comprehensive displays covering the full sweep of High Wycombe and Chilterns history from prehistoric times to the present day. Highlights include Roman artefacts found locally, medieval market town history, the Civil War in Buckinghamshire, the growth of paper-making along the River Wye, and the 19th-century transformation of Wycombe from market town to industrial centre.
The 20th-century section covers the impact of both world wars on the town, the arrival of the furniture firm Ercol (founded in 1920 by Lucian Ercolani), the decline of traditional chair-making, and Wycombe's development as a commuter town.
Photographs, maps, and personal objects bring each period to life through local stories and individual experiences.
Collections
Wycombe Museum holds extensive collections relating to the history of High Wycombe and the surrounding Chilterns area. The furniture collection is nationally significant, with outstanding holdings of Windsor chairs, bodger's tools, chair-making equipment, and examples of furniture production from cottage craft to factory manufacturing.
The social history collection includes domestic objects, clothing, photographs, and personal items documenting everyday life in a Buckinghamshire market town.
The art collection comprises paintings, prints, drawings, and watercolours depicting local scenes and landscapes. Archaeological holdings include finds from prehistoric to medieval periods discovered in the local area. The archive collection contains local newspapers, trade directories, maps, plans, and family papers invaluable for local and family history research.
The photographic collection of several thousand images documents the town's changing appearance and social life from the 1860s onwards.
The Chair-Making Story
The museum's flagship display exploring High Wycombe's famous furniture industry from woodland bodgers to factory production, featuring the outstanding Windsor chair collection and reconstructed workshop displays.
📍 Chair Gallery and Workshop Area
High Wycombe Through the Ages
Chronological displays covering the town's history from prehistoric flint tools and Roman occupation through medieval market town, Civil War, industrialisation, and modern development.
📍 Upper Galleries
Castle Hill House and Gardens
The museum building and gardens as historical exhibits in their own right, including the Norman motte, 18th-century architecture, and landscaped gardens with seasonal planting.
📍 Museum Building and Grounds
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.