Science at the seaside

Hadjiafxendi, K, Hodson, S, Nathwani, A and Plunkett, J (2015) Science at the seaside. Ilfracombe Museum, April 2014 - ongoing.

Item Type: Exhibition
Creators: Hadjiafxendi, K, Hodson, S, Nathwani, A and Plunkett, J
Abstract: This permanent exhibition is the theme of ‘Seaside Science’ and was launched in April 2014 at Ilfracombe Museum to showcase the creative, commercial and scientific engagement with the North Devon coast from the 1830s onwards. The project as a whole seeks to engage local communities with a neglected aspect of their heritage; namely, the growth of seaside science and environmental tourism in North Devon during the Victorian and Edwardian periods. The North Devon coast attracted many literary and scientific visitors, local and distinguished, professional and amateur; these included well-known figures such as George Eliot, George Henry Lewes, George Tugwell and Philip Gosse, who explored, collected and displayed scientific specimens, as well as published accounts of their visits. There is a rich history of writing about the North Devon coast, which deserves to be better known as it played an important national role in the growth of Victorian popular science.
Official URL: https://scienceattheseaside.org/research/
Date: 22 January 2015
Funders: North Devon Flag
Event Location: Ilfracombe Museum
Projects: Science at the Seaside: Pleasure Hunts in North Devon
Note:

The ‘Science at the Seaside’ exhibition cabinet included in the exhibition is one of the outputs of the FLAG-funded collaborative public engagement project, 'Science at the Seaside: Pleasure Hunts in North Devon', between Bath Spa University (Kyriaki Hadjiafxendi), Exeter University (John Plunkett) and Ilfracombe Museum (Sara Hodson).
Some of the other outputs of the project, made possible with the help of the education officer Anita Nathwani, include the creation of an eHive through the digitalization of items from the museum collection, a symposium on curious objects, a range of family activities (including Victorian rock pool rambles and a writing competition) and an ongoing programme of workshops on the theme of ‘Seaside Science’ for junior schools in Devon.

Keywords: Environmental tourism, natural history, North Devon, Seaside collecting, popular science, Victorian/Edwardian periods
Divisions: School of Writing, Publishing and the Humanities
Date Deposited: 09 Apr 2015 13:42
Last Modified: 26 Oct 2023 12:14
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