Exhibitions

The Market Square in Eynsham, showing St Leonard's Church and the Bartholomew Room

On this page, you can see a glimpse of the special exhibitions held at Eynsham Museum and Heritage Centre to date, and the museum’s current exhibitions. The photos shown here really are just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more to see, learn and enjoy when you visit the museum.

This video, kindly provided by John Richards and shown in the museum, is a journey on the last passenger train through Eynsham in 1963. It is just over four minutes long.

This video, kindly provided by Martin Flatman and shown in the museum, is a walk around Eynsham, pointing out which buildings used to be farms. It is nine and a half minutes long.

Eynsham from Prehistory to the 20th Century

27 September – 26 OCTOBER 2025

Our permanent exhibition in the upstairs gallery features a wide range of displays and artefacts from prehistory to the modern day. Amongst other artefacts, the exhibition includes:

  • a timeline of Eynsham’s long history;
  • a mammoth tooth;
  • a Bronze Age spearhead;
  • stones from Eynsham Abbey;
  • a selection of medieval tiles (including one with graffiti);
  • a fragment from a reliquary;
  • pottery, coins and brooches from Roman times;
  • cannon and musket shots from the 17th-century Civil War;
  • a selection of distinctive bottles from Eynsham soft drinks manufacturer, Blake & Co, which started production in 1877;
  • the ever-popular working model of Eynsham railway station; and
  • a variety of railway memorabilia.
Cabinet of prehistoric artefacts, including a mammoth tooth, flints and a spearhead.
Cabinet display of stones from Eynsham Abbey with a panel describing carved stones and life in the Abbey.
Display cabinet with ceramic and glass bottles make by Blakes & Co, an Eynsham company founded in the 19th century.
A display case with floor tiles and remnants of floor tiles from Eynsham Abbey
A display case with a selection of Roman pottery, coins and brooches

Eynsham Past and Present

5 April – 26 October 2025

In the downstairs gallery, our permanent photographic display, Eynsham Past and Present, features 15 boards all around the room. Old photos and prints of Eynsham are displayed alongside their modern equivalents. People love to see what has changed over the years – and what remains the same.

Eynsham Past and Present board with photos of properties in the village, displayed in the downstairs room of Eynsham Museum.

Rural Eynsham

5 April – END AUGUST 2025

The Rural Eynsham exhibition explores Eynsham’s development as a rural community from the Middle Ages to the 20th century, and the impact of this development on the village today. Amongst other things, the exhibition includes:

  • a photographic display of Eynsham’s farming and development over the years;
  • a video of some of Eynsham’s surviving farm buildings;
  • artefacts of rural trades and occupations;
  • maps;
  • a jigsaw puzzle; and
  • a working model of Eynsham Station and its surroundings as they were in 1958.
Rural Eynsham exhibition display, including a variety of glass bottles, clay pipes and a stoneware hot water bottle.
Rural Eynsham exhibition selection of stoneware jugs and glass bottles. There is a sign. 'Grocers & Ironmongers' hanging above the display. Panels of the walls show different shops and trades in Eynsham through history.
Rural Eynsham exhibition objects, including a tractor seat and an urn.
A selection of exhibits, including bottles, clay pipes, a tractor seat and an urn

One of Eynsham's old farmhouses, Home Farm.
One of Eynsham's old farmhouses, Blankstones Farmhouse.
An old farmhouse, called Lord's Farm, on the corner of Queen Street and the High Street in Eynsham.
Some of the old Eynsham farmhouses
From left to right: Home Farm, Blankstones Farm and Lord’s Farm

A photo of Acre End Street looking east, taken in the early 20th century. You can see Howe's chemist on the left, and thatched cottages on the right, which still exist. This part of Acre End Street used to be called the High Street at that time, and you can see the words 'High Street, Eynsham' at the bottom of the image..
A photo of the junction of Station Road and Acre End Street, taken on the early 1950s. It features seveal men (one on a bicycle) and one woman, and the tail end of cows that were probably being driven from pasture to Blankstones Farm. There is a Barclays Bank and a shop called Burbank.
A photo taken in the early 20th century, showing the corner of Mill Street and Acre End Street in Eynsham, known as Carfax or Harris's Corner. Several adults and children are posing in the street.
Screenshot
A few of Eynsham streets. From left to right: Acre End Street in the early 20th century, the junction of Station Road and Acre End Street in the 1950s, and Carfax (or Harris’s Corner) in the early 20th century.
A map showing part of the 1802 Enclosure Map of Eynsham
Part of the 1802 Enclosure Map of Eynsham

Eynsham Past and Present

13 July – 27 October 2024

In the ground-floor room of the museum, you can enjoy an updated photographic display, Eynsham Past and Present. There are now many additions to the original photos on display, with 15 boards taking up all the wall space. Old photos and prints of Eynsham are displayed alongside their modern equivalents. Can you see your own property or properties you are familiar with? It’s fascinating to see how things have changed!

Three boards with photographs of Eynsham Past and Present, displayed in the downstairs room of Eynsham Museum.
Eynsham Past and Present board with photos of properties in the village, displayed in the downstairs room of Eynsham Museum.
Four boards with photographs of Eynsham Past and Present, displayed in the downstairs room of Eynsham Museum.
Three boards with photographs of Eynsham Past and Present, displayed in the downstairs room of Eynsham Museum. A bookcase is also visible.

Eynsham’s Lost Railway

August – November 2023; 23 March – 27 May 2024

At the Eynsham’s Lost Railway exhibition, you could read about the history of Eynsham’s railway, which was closed down in the 1960s, and see an accurate, detailed working model of railway station and its surroundings. The exhibition proved so popular when it first opened in 2023 that it had to be extended by a month. It was then reopened in 2024. The railway model remained as an exhibit in the Rural Eynsham exhibition, too.

View of Eynsham railway station in July 1956, showing the stationmaster's office and the railway line.
A view of a railway engine at Eynsham Station.
Views of Eynsham Station

Two single line key tokens, used to avoid potential collisions. A train driver could only enter a section of the line if in possession of the token.
A Great Western Railway signal lamp with paraffin reservoir and burner, used at Eynsham Station.
Two of the numerous items on show at the Eynsham’s Lost Railway exhibition.

The working model of Eynsham's Lost Railway, made by David Thomas. Streets, allotments, houses, gardens and other features are visible in the detailed model, and there are two trains at Eynsham Station.
Partial view of the highly detailed working model of Eynsham Station and its surroundings