Dover Museum & Bronze Age Boat Gallery

31/08/2026

Today Dover Museum's Catherine Holt and Maison Dieu's Katy Tuck continued celebrating Gertrude Ederle by taking part in the Gertrude Ederle 100 Years Anniversary swim events at Dover Harbour.

Maison Dieu

26/08/2026

Happy International Dog Day! 🐕

This year, as we appreciate our four-legged friends, Dover Museum celebrates Stroke, the canine mascot of first female channel swimmer, Gertrude Ederle.

As Gertrude prepared to set off on her historic swim across the English Channel, a small dog leapt from her support tug boat and swam to shore. The dog then delightedly slurped from the can of lanolin that had been used to grease the swimmer's body.

Gertrude Ederle's historic achievement is marked 100 years on by exhibition 'Queen of the Waves' celebrating her legacy at Dover Museum, running until 7th November 2026. Pictured is Gertrude Ederle's trainer Thomas William Burgess greasing Gertrude with some canine assistance on a beach in Cap Gris Nez prior to her successful Channel swim.

Image provided courtesy of Catharine Loxton. The image and caption is taken from an annotated album with photographs taken by spectators of this historic event. This album is kindly on loan to the museum for the exhibition.

18/08/2026

08/08/2026

06/08/2026

06/08/2026

100 years ago, on this day, at 7:08 am, Gertrude ‘Trudy’ Ederle entered the water near Cape Gris-Nez. At 9:40pm she walked out of the water at Kingsdown Beach as the first woman to swim the English Channel, beating the men's record by nearly two hours.

Gertrude (Trudy) Ederle was an American competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and world record-holder in five events and one of the best-known American sports personages of the 1920s. Trudy completed her Channel swim at just 20 years old.

The photograph shows Gertrude walking along the beach at Cape Gris-Nez in the moments leading up to her swim. She is wearing a two-piece bathing suit and goggles she had designed for the swim.

Image provided courtesy of Catharine Loxton. The image and caption is taken from an annotated album with photographs taken by spectators of this historic event. This album is kindly on loan to the museum for the exhibition.

05/08/2026

📣New exhibition open from 12:00pm tomorrow, 6th August: Queen of the Waves

🌊On 6th August 1926, at 7:08am Gertrude ‘Trudy’ Ederle entered the water near Cape Gris-Nez. At 9:40pm she walked out of the water at Kingsdown Beach as the first woman to swim the English Channel, beating the men’s record by nearly two hours and earning the nickname ‘Queen of the Waves’.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Trudy’s historic achievement, this exhibition will be opening on 6th of August at Dover Museum🌊

This exhibition will take place on the museum’s stairwell. An accessible printed copy of the exhibition panels will also be available. Please ask a member of staff at the front desk if you would like to use this during your visit.

Please note that this stairwell exhibition will be closed for a private event in the morning of the 6th of August, but will be open to members of the public from 12:00pm. The rest of the museum will be open as usual.

Admission to Dover Museum and all the exhibitions is free and open 9.30am-5pm Monday to Saturday, 10am-3pm Sunday.

Images provided courtesy of Catharine Loxton. The images and captions are taken from an annotated album with photographs taken by spectators of this historic event. This album is kindly on loan to the museum for the exhibition.

Dover District Council Visit White Cliffs Country - Dover, Deal and Sandwich

05/08/2026

🦖New display at Dover Museum: Fossils in Dover's collections🦖
To celebrate Dinosaur Day, this new display takes a look at fossils that are part of the Museum’s collection. These include ammonites, fossilised sea creatures and a megalodon tooth. Some of the fossils on display are even older than dinosaurs!
This case is located on the ground floor of Dover Museum and Bronze Age Boat gallery.

Admission to Dover Museum and all the exhibitions is free and open 9.30am-5pm Monday to Saturday, 10am-3pm Sunday.

Dinosaur Day is a free event taking place today in Pencester Gardens Wednesday 5 August, 10am to 3pm, with lots of activities celebrating all things dinosaur!

31/07/2026

📣New exhibition from 6th of August 2026: Queen of the Waves

🌊On 6th August 1926, at 7:08am Gertrude ‘Trudy’ Ederle entered the water near Cape Gris-Nez. At 9:40pm she walked out of the water at Kingsdown Beach as the first woman to swim the English Channel, beating the men’s record by nearly two hours and earning the nickname ‘Queen of the Waves’.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Trudy’s historic achievement, this exhibition will be opening on 6th of August at Dover Museum🌊

This exhibition will take place on the museum’s stairwell. An accessible printed copy of the exhibition panels will also be available. Please ask a member of staff at the front desk if you would like to use this during your visit.

Images provided courtesy of Katharine Loxton. The images and captions are taken from an annotated album with photographs taken by spectators of this historic event. This album is kindly on loan to the museum for the exhibition.

Dover District Council Visit White Cliffs Country - Dover, Deal and Sandwich