About
March and District Museum tells the story of a Fenland market town in the heart of Cambridgeshire — one of the great agricultural communities created by the seventeenth-century drainage of the East Anglian fens. Located in the centre of March, the volunteer-run museum holds rich collections documenting the town's history, its agricultural and railway heritage, and the extraordinary Fenland landscape that surrounds it. Most distinctively, the museum exhibits a notable collection of stained glass.
March lies on the River Nene in the heart of the Fens — an immense area of low-lying land that was, before drainage, a vast watery wilderness of meres, reed beds, and seasonal flood. The systematic drainage of the Fens by Cornelius Vermuyden and the Bedford Level corporation in the seventeenth century transformed the region into some of the most productive agricultural land in England, but at the cost of the traditional commoners' way of life. March prospered as a market centre serving this transformed landscape, and the museum documents both the long history of human habitation on the Fenland islands and the dramatic story of drainage and agricultural improvement.
The town's most famous feature lies not in the museum but a short walk away: the parish church of St Wendreda, whose double hammerbeam roof of carved oak angels is one of the supreme treasures of English medieval craftsmanship. Some 118 carved angels with outstretched wings appear to soar above the nave — a sight that John Betjeman declared 'worth cycling forty miles in a headwind to see'. The museum provides essential context for visiting the church, alongside its other displays of stained glass and ecclesiastical material.
March was also one of the great railway towns of East Anglia. The arrival of the railway in 1847 and the subsequent development of Whitemoor marshalling yard — at one time the largest railway marshalling yard in Europe — made the town a major centre of railway employment. The museum documents this railway heritage alongside Fenland agriculture, brickmaking, local trades, schools and chapels, and the social life of one of the most historically distinctive landscapes in England. The museum is volunteer-run, free to enter, and open on a seasonal basis from spring to autumn.
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Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
💡 Visitor Tips
- Combine your museum visit with St Wendreda's Church — the angel roof is one of the most spectacular medieval ceilings in England and a ten-minute walk from the museum.
- Check opening days carefully — the museum is volunteer-run and currently open only Wednesdays and Saturdays.
- Ely Cathedral and Ely Museum are an easy drive south for an extended Fenland heritage day.
- The museum is free but donations help support the volunteer running of this independent local museum.
- March railway station is on the Birmingham-to-Stansted CrossCountry line as well as the Liverpool Street suburban service, making the town accessible by train.
- Allow time to walk through the town centre — March retains many handsome Georgian and Victorian buildings around its market square.
- Bring a camera for both the museum's stained glass displays and the angel roof at St Wendreda's.
- The Ouse Washes RSPB and WWT reserves are spectacular in winter for wildfowl — a perfect complement to a museum visit during the colder months.
Highlights
Stained Glass Collection
The museum holds a notable collection of stained glass panels removed from local churches, chapels, and domestic buildings — including significant examples of Victorian ecclesiastical glasswork.
Displayed in lightboxes that allow visitors to appreciate the colour and detail of the work, the collection forms one of the museum's most visually striking features and provides important context for the broader ecclesiastical heritage of the Fenland region. Information panels explain the techniques of stained glass manufacture, the major workshops responsible, and the iconography of religious subjects.
St Wendreda's Angel Roof Display
Although the magnificent double hammerbeam roof with its 118 carved angels is in St Wendreda's Church itself (a short walk from the museum), the museum holds an extensive display explaining this masterpiece of late medieval English craftsmanship. Photographs, drawings, and information panels describe the construction of the roof, the iconography of the carved angels, and the broader context of East Anglian medieval woodwork.
The museum's display prepares visitors for the breathtaking sight of the roof itself, which John Betjeman called 'worth cycling forty miles in a headwind to see'.
The Draining of the Fens
The dramatic story of the seventeenth-century drainage of the Fens is told through maps, prints, and interpretive material. Cornelius Vermuyden, the Dutch engineer brought in by the Earl of Bedford, led the construction of the Bedford Levels — straight cuts that diverted the rivers Nene and Great Ouse and transformed vast areas of wetland into arable land.
The museum explains the engineering, the financial consortia that funded it, and the opposition from Fenland commoners (the 'Fen Tigers') who lost their traditional rights of fowling, fishing, and reed-cutting.
Whitemoor Marshalling Yard and Railway Heritage
March was transformed by the arrival of the railway in 1847, and the development of Whitemoor marshalling yard — at one time the largest railway marshalling yard in Europe — made the town a major centre of railway employment. The museum's railway display includes photographs of the yard at its peak, equipment, uniforms, and personal items donated by railway families, alongside material on the Great Eastern Railway and its successors.
Whitemoor closed in 1991 but its memory remains central to March's twentieth-century identity.
Collections
March and District Museum holds approximately 8,000 objects, documents, and photographs relating to March and the surrounding Fenland communities. The stained glass collection is one of the museum's most distinctive features, with panels removed from local churches and chapels displayed in lightboxes.
Archaeological collections span the prehistoric, Roman, and Saxon periods, with material from the Fenland islands that were the only habitable ground before drainage.
Social history collections document the seventeenth-century drainage, agricultural development, the railway era and Whitemoor marshalling yard, local trades, and twentieth-century community life. The photographic archive is extensive and includes material from private family donations as well as commercial photographic sources.
Ecclesiastical material related to St Wendreda's Church is particularly strong.
March: A Fenland Market Town
Chronological display tracing the history of March from its medieval origins to the twentieth century.
📍 Main Gallery
Stained Glass of the Fens
Display of stained glass panels from local churches and chapels, illustrated in lightboxes.
📍 Stained Glass Gallery
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.