Social History

Skill and Labour Gallery

The social history collection at Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery tells a history of the town and surrounding area.

Trace the history of Blackburn and Darwen from its early roots, through to life in a mid-twentieth century industrial town right up to present day. In this collection you will find the stories and histories of local people and how social, political and economic life was in this area.

The Social History collection features items covering personal, community, work and political life. Highlights include memorabilia and ephemera of local sporting teams including Blackburn Rovers, Kathleen Ferrier, items from Mrs Lewis’s Temperance Mission and the Pleasington Urn.

Skill and Labour Gallery

 

Taking inspiration from “Arte et Labore” on Blackburn’s coat of arms the ‘Skill and Labour’ gallery on the ground floor explores the social history of the town.

Stretching from the Iron Age and archeological finds found locally the industrial era through to the changing landscape of Blackburn in the 1960s.

Here in the gallery you will find displays showcasing the variety of objects in the social history collection including riot mugs commemorating the town’s turbulent past, a taxidermy dog who was once one of Blackburn’s influential residents and a temperance banner that aimed to warn of the dangers of drink.

Take time to take a seat in the gallery and watch short films made by the museum and members of the community.

Columbian Printing Press

Large black cast iron printing press with a wooden handle. It is decorated with gold studs and designs. The top is adorned with an eagle sculpture and in the centre is a gold plaque with the makers name 'V&J Figgins'.

 

In the Skill and Labour gallery you will find our Columbian Printing Press, built in 1875. The press was donated to the museum in the 1970s by a local printing company and was rebuilt by printing experts from St Bride’s Foundation.

Now part of working collection we regularly host artists and printing workshops for members of the public to give printing a go. We also offer printmaking school sessions using the printing press for Key Stage 2 students. Check out our Learning page for more information.

Find out about any upcoming workshops and demonstrations on our What’s On page.

Donation and Collecting

 

We are actively building a contemporary social history collection to fill in the gaps in our collection. We are looking to collect items that help us tell stories that have not previously been told for example stories of local youth culture.

The museum welcomes offers of donation from the public however we have to be selective about any new objects for the collection and these must be discussed prior to accepting donations. We do not accept unsolicited donations made in person, left at the museum or sent to us in the mail. 

To find out more about how to donate and our collecting policies please refer to our FAQ section on our Collections page.

Large black cast iron printing press with a wooden handle. It is decorated with gold studs and designs. The top is adorned with an eagle sculpture and in the centre is a gold plaque with the makers name 'V&J Figgins'.

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