Museums and Galleries

W H Smith Museum

24 High Street, Newtown, Powys SY16 2NP

Tel: 01686 626280

This Newtown shop and museum form a unique combination amoung W H Smith's many High Street branches. The shop has been restored to its original state at the time it was first opened in 1927, and on the first floor you will find the museum.

The museum houses displays, models and memorabilia which depict and engrossing chronicle of W H Smith from its beginnings as a humble news walk (paper round) started by Henry Walton Smith and Anna Smith in 1792, to the present day. The history tells how a small family-run business flourished over two centuries to become one of today's biggest British companies and a household name. The oak furniture in the museum all originated in W H Smith libraries. A stained and painted window, originally in the library at Worcester branch, depicts the arms of the See of Worcester, bordered by the images of Shakespeare and Bacon. This type of window was once a common feature in W H Smith shops, often portraying local coats of arms and literary figures.

The shop was restored to its original condition in 1975. Architects worked from the old blueprints and drawings and specialist craftsmen were engaged to recreate long-varnished fixtures and fittings. Modern peg-boarding and hessian was ripped from the walls to reveal beneath all the original mirrors and decorations which, miraculously, were in good condition.

The museum is open to the public during the shop's business hours; 9am - 5.30pm

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