The Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre
Welcome to the History Centre, your passport to the past
The Wiltshire & Swindon History Centre is open to the public on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 9.30am to 5pm, and on the first Saturday of the month. Whether a first-time visitor or a regular you are assured a warm and friendly welcome from our staff who are on hand to answer your queries and help you make the most of your time in the search room.
Ahead of your visit you can search our online archive catalogue.
It is advisable to book your archives and local studies visit in advance by contacting us by email or telephone. If you have any problems or queries please get in touch by email in the first instance or telephone 01249 705500.
Latest News
The year of Magna Carta
One of the highlights of my year so far was the careful unrolling of a statute roll dating from around 1300 to reveal a contemporary copy of Magna Carta. Contents page and Magna Carta in the Savernake statutes roll. (9/32/1) This was under the watchful gaze of [...]
Book review: The Making of the British Landscape by Nicholas Crane
The Making of the British Landscape by Nicholas Crane, 2017 Weidenfeld & Nicolson, ISBN: 9780753826676 581 pages, includes bibliography and index, paperback Nicholas Crane is a geographer by profession, probably best known for presenting the BBC TV series ‘Coast’. In this publication, Crane attempts to uncover the history of [...]
A brief look at Wiltshire knitters
Oftentimes, archives (especially the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre) can be the perfect place to explore archives with a focus on recreation and tactile engagement. Indeed, we often find recipes, fabric samples, and even patterns, ‘hidden’ among the documents. During a recent Treasures from the Archives session, we did [...]
