The Museum of the Horse in Tuxford has a wonderful original mail coach which reminds us of the pictures of coaches at Christmas. Together with the Walks of Life Museum, the volunteers have tried to create a glimpse of Christmas past.
It must have been a joyful sight to see the mail coach outside the Newcastle Arms on the Great North Road. Although it was a harsh journey. The candle lights on the coach would have seemed bright against the dark night ,and even a glow from a small interior light inside the coach would have caught the eye. The coach would have been hung with game pheasants and rabbits being sent as gifts. People with colourful parcels on top of the coach and maybe an excited child on his first journey to see his relations. The guards horn, glinting in the light from the doorway of the inn as he blew ‘time to leave’. If passengers didn’t hurry and get back on the coach it would go without them. The guard was responsible for getting the mail through on time and no one could hold him up. The clank of the chains and grinding of the wheels as it pulled away almost drowned the clatter of the horse’s hooves as they plunged off into the night.
Sense a little of this excitement with all the coaching clothes and equipment on show at the museum. As well as the coach itself, one of only three left in the country, imagine the excitement of getting Christmas mail. The two museums have combined to create a display of the Christmas traditions, luggage, presents and their history. This is on display at the Museum of the Horse which is open from 9.30am to 4.00pm Monday to Friday and on a Saturday from 10.00am to 4.00pm, contact info@horsemuseum.co.uk. The Walks of Life Museum will be open by appointment only in the December due to work with students and future displays
A planned exhibition which volunteers at the museums are working on is the history of Tuxford Railway .If anyone any photos / memories of family members working or traveling on the railway in Tuxford, they would love to hear from you. Contact Diane on 01777 872776 or dianehunt08@btinternet.com. Wishing everyone a happy, heathy and peaceful Christmas from all at the Tuxford Museums.