History
Clifton House, built in 1783, is a Grade 2* listed building designed by John Carr of York. It was once the seat of the Walker family, who were early industrialists involved in the manufacture of iron and steel.
The house and park were purchased by the Municipal Borough of Rotherham in 1891 and the museum was first opened to the public later that year with the majority of its exhibits loaned by local people. It was administered by the Borough Librarian with a succession of honorary curators until the 1970s. In 1974 the soot blackened stonework was cleaned and the museum building was extended when a roof was placed over the original open courtyard. A Museum education loans service was set up for use by schools in the Borough, and professional staff were employed to catalogue and display the collections. Clifton Park Museum was one of the earliest museums to achieve full registration by the Museums Council in 1989.
Read more about this topic: Clifton Park Museum
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