Museum of Castleford pottery and antiques opens near Pontefract Castle
A collection of antiques that delve into our towns’ histories has gone on display at a new museum in Pontefract.
The former guardhouse by Pontefract Castle is now home to the Elizabeth Love Museum.
It contains an extensive collection of antiques collected by Elizabeth and her brother Joe that have been left for the enjoyment of future generations.
It includes one of the finest collections of Castleford pottery to be found in the UK, a display of longcase clocks, antique furniture and other items.
Elizabeth was born in Barkisland near Halifax in 1929. She worked as a nurse for most of her life, becoming a ward sister.
She and her brother collected antiques throughout their lives.
The museum’s website says: “Just before he died, Joe expressed a wish to his sister that their collection be in some way preserved for the nation.
"Elizabeth was in full agreement, and aware of her own mortality began investigating possible solutions.
"Elizabeth eventually decided to leave her house and it’s contents in trust, in the hope that one day it may be turned into a museum for the people of Pontefract. She also left a substantial amount of money to help achieve this.”
She died in 2017.
It took around six years to get the museum, which was a former antiques shop converted into Elizabeth’s home, up and running.
Treasurer Jeanette England said it had been a difficult process and the museum was looking for support for repair projects and to thrive.
She said: “It's been a long struggle but now we hope we will get more help to keep it open.
"There’s an awful lot of very local history. The pottery collection is largely from Castleford and Ferrybridge. A lot of the clocks were manufactured by Pontefract clockmakers.
“All the feedback we are getting is that it's amazing and Elizabeth must have been an amazing lady.
"We have had visits from people who knew her and were impressed we kept it as she had it.
“The building is beautiful and we have to make sure the building doesn't fall into disrepair.
“Elizabeth left instructions for what to do with the collection if we can't keep it open, but it would be a big loss for local history.”
Visit elizabethlovemuseum.com to book a visit.