Central Museum

Trusted for 10 years

A local history museum, Central Museum is a Grade II listed Edwardian building formerly the town's library.  A fine art gallery which houses the town's art collections, including those of Walter Beecroft and Sydney Thorpe-Smith.  It occupies the former Edwardian hotel purchased and dontated to the town by local solicitor, Walter Beecroft. Both the Services' historic houses are Grade I listed, only four percent of all buidlings in the UK have this listing, they are Southchurch Hall and Prittlewell Priory.Central Museum is also home to Southend Planetarium the only public planetarium in the South East, outside London.We have recently taken on the responsibilty for the running and interpretation of the Historic Cliff Lift on the seafront.With increased opening times and the reopening of Prittlewell Priory after a three year closure 2012 promises to be one of our most successful years to date.