Housing a fascinating collection related to pioneer plastic surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe, The Guinea Pig Club and the Queen Victoria Hospital. Built with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and money raised by the local community, East Grinstead Museum invites you to discover the old market town and surrounding area, through exciting new displays, hands on experiences, inter-actives and audio/visual presentations. The Museum has both a permanent exhibition area as well as a regularly changing programme of temporary exhibitions. The interesting and varied permanent displays explore the history of East Grinstead and its surrounding villages. The collection forms a unique combination recording both the story of a town which formed an historic staging post between London and the coast together with the McIndoe Collection and story of the Guinea Pig Club which is of worldwide interest and importance. Artefacts, emphemera, memorabilia and images are interspersed with touch screen inter-actives and a film that brings the past alive. For younger visitors there are activity packs and a mini sand-pit. A Research Room, which holds books and records relating to East Grinstead and the immediate surrounding area is available for use by researchers who are interested in exploring local history in more depth. In here, also, the Museum's entire collection can be searched – just ask the steward on duty. Appointments can be made with the Curator to look at objects, images or archives that are not on permanent display. The Museum also has a 'handling collection' of objects that can be borrowed by, for example, schools or reminiscent groups and a regular programme of holiday activities for children.
