Norfolk Museums & Archaeology Service
Costume and Textiles Study Centre

Carrow House
301 King Street
Norwich
NR1 2TS

Telephone: +44 (0)1603 223870

Please note Carrow House is currently closed for building work. Alternative study and visit facilities are available at the Shire Hall Study Centre on Thursdays. For further details please telephone 10603 493625. We apologise for any inconvenience.

www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk

museums@norfolk.gov.uk

About Carrow House

Purpose: Inspiration, education and enjoyment for all

Carrow House is a specialist Study Centre devoted to costume and textiles. We are open by appointment on Tuesdays and Thursdays for students, researchers, groups and members of the public.

We collect, preserve and provide access to our collection of British clothing, accessories, needlecrafts and home furnishings.

The substantial collection of over 20,000 items was previously housed at Strangers' Hall and has been developed over 130 years. It is now one of the finest collections in Britain. It reflects changing fashions, styles and technology in the clothing and textiles of ordinary people over the last five hundred years. All items in the collection can be viewed by members of the public.

The collection is housed in the impressive former family home of the Colman family of mustard-making fame, a grade two listed building. This, together with Carrow Abbey, formal gardens and the food production factory forms a significant industrial and residential complex bordering the River Wensum.

Costume collections include:

· Women’s clothing
· Men’s clothing
· Children’s and Infants’ clothes
· Accessories
· Underwear & sportswear
· Clothes worn for work and special occasions
· Civic costume and religious dress.
· A wonderful collection of over 100 Norwich shawls

Textile collections include:

· Samplers
· Bed-covers
· Banners
· Linens and textiles used in the home
· Embroideries
· Canvas-work
· Patchwork & quilting
· Beading and lace-making
· Material relating to textiles production in Norwich.

Services:

We offer services for researchers, specialists, the education sector and the general public:

Visits to view items from the collection. You can choose what sort of things you’d like to see, such as patchwork, shawls, knitting patterns, shoes.

Access to the extensive reference library & resources area

Mini-tours for new visitors or leisure groups (currently charged at £2.50 per person)

Access to our temporary exhibition

Talks and events programme

Help in identifying your own British costume and textiles

Advice on how to look after your own precious textiles

Facilities

The Resources area contains collections of fashion and women’s magazines, craft magazines and journals, trade and exhibition catalogues, and specialist costume and textile society publications.

Also available are collections of fashion plates, photographs dating from the mid 19th century, knitting, crochet and dress-making patterns and pattern books, embroidery patterns, line drawings of dresses and shoes in the collection and the museum’s collection of picture references.

The Library holds over 4,000 books on costume and textiles, including many rare and out of print books. It is a reference library only.

Exhibition/ Events room
Thematic exhibitions, usually drawn from the museums own collection, are displayed in our small gallery. This also doubles as a lecture/research room.

Access to the catalogue is available on-line on the Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service searchable database or by searching the holdings of Norfolk County Council Cultural Services on NOAH (Norfolk On Line Access to Heritage)

Lockers are available for researchers to use. We request that researchers use pencil in the library and resources area. Photocopier available at 10p for A4 sheet. Written permission is needed for photography of the collections. Cloakroom facilities are limited.

Access

The Library, Resources area and Exhibition/Lecture Room are on the ground floor with two steps into the building (ramp available). A stair lift and disabled toilet facilities are located in an adjoining building. We regret that the first floor of the Study Centre is not yet accessible to wheelchair users.

A hearing induction loop is available at reception. Large print texts of exhibition labels are available in the exhibition. Other resources can be made available in alternative formats. Please contact Carrow House to discuss your requirements.

For a copy of the Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service Access Guide, please contact:

Ruth Fleming
Access Officer
Norfolk Museums & Archaelogy Service
Shire Hall
Market Avenue
Norwich NR1

ruthfleming@norfolk.gov.uk

Norfolk Museums Service Access Policy

Location

Carrow House is situated one mile from the City Centre of Norwich, approximately 20 minutes walking time from both the Centre and the Railway Station. The Costume and Textiles Study Centre is housed in the imposing former home of the Colman family of mustard-making fame.

Click on the map for an enlargement.

Directions

From city centre on foot: follow King Street out of town until you come to a T junction (Carrow Road football ground visible ahead and to your left). Keep going straight ahead (King Street continues as the right arm of the T junction) until you come to the Carrow House, part of Norfolk County Council buildings, set back in their own grounds just before the junction of King Street with Bracondale.The Study Centre is the Victorian building adjoining a large conservatory.

By Car: the easiest route it from the A47 Norwich south by-pass. Take exit for Lowestoft/County Hall (A 146): left hand lane at traffic lights to City Centre, then right hand lane to turn right towards the County Hall roundabout. Keep in right hand lane in Bracondale, turn right at first traffic lights into King Street, and straight away first right entrance into Carrow House.

Park and Ride information

Public Transport: By bus from City Centre (St Stephens) Service 34 to Bracondale junction with King Street. More information

Parking: Very limited parking is available by arrangement only. Nearest car parks are at Riverside or Rouen Road (each 5 – 10 minutes walk). Disabled car-parking spaces are available.