Kennet & Avon Canal Museum

The Kennet & Avon Canal Museum in Devizes, Wiltshire, England has a range of exhibits about the conception, design, usage and eventual commercial decline of the Kennet and Avon Canal, as well as its subsequent restoration.The museum is located in an old bonded warehouse at Devizes Wharf, off Couch Lane, within easy walking distance of the centre of Devizes and the Caen Hill Flight of 29 locks. The building was at one time used to store wine brought up the canal after being imported through Bristol Harbour.The museum is operated by the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust, which also has its headquarters and a shop within the Canal Centre. On the same site is the Wharf Theatre in an old warehouse. The wharf is also the starting point of the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Marathon.The museum houses memorabilia, papers and photographs relating to the canal, which was constructed between 1794 and 1810. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the canal gradually fell into disuse after the opening of the Great Western Railway. In the latter half of the 20th century the canal was restored in stages, largely by volunteers. After decades of dereliction and much restoration work, it was fully reopened in 1990. The visitor book signed by Queen Elizabeth II when she formally reopened the canal in 1990 is held at the museum. It also holds models of locks and narrowboats along with traditionally decorated implements traditionally used on the working boats.