2026 sees the return of our Museum Objects of the Week (last featured in 2022!) Week 1: Our first exhibit has to be the Oldest Lawnmower in the World (1830s), exhibited by us throughout 2025 until tomorrow, when it will return to its home in Ipswich. The Budding mower made by John Ferrabee of Stroud and is owned by Ransome Jacobsen Ltd. Curator Clive Gravett says: "It will be missed, but what a fantastic year bringing this unique and rare mower to the public’s attention and

I had a very pleasant surprise in June this year when I was consulted by Stroud Museum regarding a Budding lawn mower they had been offered, with only two original Budding mowers existing, was this going to be the third. When a photograph was received it appeared the main roller was wooden with a degree of woodworm, there was nothing in the photo to give an idea of scale, so unless the woodworm were as thick as my finger, it became clear it was not a full-size mower. I was su

Budding's Patent Lawn Mower No. 1623 If spring has started with a bit of warmth, many readers will have already dragged their lawn mower from its winter slumber and commenced this year’s mowing. But have you ever wondered where the first lawn mower came from? Edwin Beard Budding from Stroud, Gloucestershire, was the man responsible. He was a talented engineer, and collaborated with John Lewis, who invented and manufactured machinery for the woollen industry. One of the invent

Designed in 1876 by G. Gastine to help the battle against an aphid-like insect Phylloxera native to North America, it was carried across...

The Follows & Bate’s Climax lawn mower was the first British made side-wheel lawn mower, patented on 31st March 1869. Everett G Passmore...

The Johnson Lawn Mower c.1878 (Hand Operated) In 1877 Frank G Johnson of New York observed that the rapidity of the action of lawn mower...

We are pleased to have an Atco Motor Mower in our collection that belonged to Sir Winston Churchill and was used for mowing the lawns at...

Acquired by the museum in June 2021, a unique conversion of a 1930s Qualcast Panther push lawn mower, motorised by the addition of a 1951...

Whilst we hold some unique items in our collection, we would never have thought that a plastic watering can from 1957 would prove to be...

This year we are featuring an object from our museum collection on our social media channels each week. All our 52 posts will also be...

For over 150yrs George Stephenson, of Rocket fame, has been credited with inventing and even patenting the cucumber straightener. After...