Home   Spalding   News   Article

Subscribe Now

Lasting legacy of Spalding Romany museum




Gordon Boswell set up his Romany museum in 1995 and, five years after he passed away, his wife is helping to maintain its legacy.

“It’s a history of the Boswell family,” Margaret Boswell says.

Gordon was born into a well known Romany family, and was always proud of his heritage. After starting to deliver talks about his trips to Appleby Horse Fair by horse and wagon, he was inspired to open the Gordon Boswell Romany Museum in Spalding.

Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931316)
Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931316)

“We’ve got quite a big collection of wagons, wagons of all different styles,” Margaret (85) says.

“We’ve got carts, trailer caravans. People are always amazed when they come down because we’re pretty much the only museum of this kind. Other museums maybe have a section, but not a complete set up for it.

“People maybe think there won’t be a lot here, but then they come in and see how beautiful everything is and hear the stories.”

Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931308)
Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931308)

The museum was put on hold for a time when Gordon passed away, but Margaret couldn’t let his dream die.

“It was very tough, and so sudden as well,” she says.

“I did close, but I couldn’t close the door on it forever. We’d spent so much time on it, and he loved the place so much.

“I’ve got children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and it’s their heritage. That needs to go on.”

Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931330)
Gordon Boswell Romany Museum (49931330)

With such a range of vehicles of days gone by on show, the museum offers the chance to learn something new and interesting.

“Strangely enough, we don’t get a lot of local people,” says Margaret. “Sometimes if they have visitors, they’ll bring them along for something to do.”

“It seems to be people travelling to us, but I think that’s fairly common in most places.

“Clubs sometimes come, but obviously the pandemic has altered life a lot. Maybe this will be the new normal – I don’t know.”

Covid-19 restrictions unsurprisingly had an affect on Margaret and the museum.

“During the week, I have coaches of people come in. I had to cancel 12 of these during the pandemic, and that’s a big chunk of our income,” she says.

“The last visitor entry in the book before that was September 2019, so it’s nearly two years really. It had been closed for a long time.

“Since we’ve opened again, we have had some very busy weekends. I think people want to come out and about again, don’t they? They’re getting a bit more confident to move about now.”

While Margaret says the museum offers a little something for everyone, she believes it has a particularly lasting impact on younger audiences.

“Children are very interested when they see the wagons and how people lived,” she says.

“One little lad was looking around and said he wanted to live in one – and he asked where he could plug his television in!

“I said there’s no electricity, no gas. He couldn’t get over it! They can’t believe that people actually lived that way.”

Gordon Boswell Romany Museum may now be without its founder, but Margaret is doing the family heritage proud. By paying a visit, you can help with that.

“It’s lovely to see people come, and to see their faces light up,” she smiles.

“I’ve got a visitors’ comment book, and we’ve never had a bad comment.

“Reading it, it sometimes brings a tear to my eyes. I’m overwhelmed to see that.”

The museum is open on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays from 11am until 4pm, and will be until the end of September.

You can find it at Clay Lake, PE12 6BL.



Comments | 0
This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies - Learn More