A school for twelve boys
The small building just south of St Mary’s church was built in 1617 as a school, paid for by Thomas Saunders, a well-off merchant from neighbouring Woolstone. His endowment provided places for eight poor boys from Uffington and four from Woolstone. The date 1617 is set in lead figures in a round panel over the west door, a second panel on the south side is dated 1634, and a partly worn inscription on the north wall carries the date 1637.
It is a plain, rectangular building of squared chalk blocks on a base of sarsen stone, with a moulded limestone plinth between them, under a steep stone-slate roof. The windows have chalk mullions, and inside, a three-bay roof with tie-beams and wind braces survives above a modern ceiling. The Victoria County History measured it at about 30 feet by 21 feet 8 inches.
From school to museum
The building remained the boys’ school for some 250 years, until 1872, when it had become too dilapidated. For more than a century afterwards it served as the village meeting room; in 1924 it was in use as a reading room and club. In 1953 the Countess of Craven gave it to the parish council. In 1984 it opened as Tom Brown’s School Museum, named after the novel by Thomas Hughes, who was born in Uffington in 1822 and spent his early boyhood here while his grandfather was vicar. The opening chapters of Tom Brown’s School Days (1857) draw on Uffington and the Vale. In 2024, after comments from visitors, the museum changed its name to Uffington Museum.
What is on show
The museum tells the story of the Uffington area. A permanent display covers the White Horse and its landscape, including Wayland’s Smithy, the Manger and the Ridgeway. There are displays on Thomas Hughes and on John Betjeman and Penelope Chetwode, who lived in the village from 1934 to 1945, and each year brings a new exhibition; the 2026 exhibition, ‘Myths, Monuments and Memory’, looked at the legends of the White Horse landscape. The museum also collects photographs, recordings and records of village life and runs a monthly programme of talks.
It is run entirely by volunteers, with no paid staff, and is funded by donations, grants and membership. It was first accredited in 2008 and is now accredited by Arts Council England.
Visiting
The museum stands beside the churchyard in the middle of the village. At the time of writing it opens on weekend afternoons from spring to the start of November, and entry is free. Opening times change, so check the museum’s website before travelling.