Havering Museum

#169

Local-history museum for the London Borough of Havering, connecting Romford, Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham through archaeology, market-town life, industries and military heritage. Expect hands-on displays that move from prehistoric Thames terraces and Roman finds to the medieval Liberty of Havering, the 1247 chartered market at Romford, and 20th-century chapters such as RAF Hornchurch.

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Opening Hours

Wednesday: 11:00 – 17:00

Thursday: 11:00 – 17:00

Friday: 11:00 – 17:00

What's not to miss inside?

Liberty of Havering & Royal Connections

Explains how Havering enjoyed special legal status as a royal liberty for centuries, shaping local governance and identity.

Charter facsimiles and court documents show a district that ran its own affairs under the Crown—an unusual civic story within Greater London.

Match a liberty court record to the parish it governed, then trace that parish on a modern borough map.

📍 Introductory gallery run

Romford Market & Coaching Town

Romford’s market (chartered in 1247) and Great North Road coaching traffic powered local trade into the railway age.

Scales, tokens and traders’ ledgers sit beside coach travel ephemera to show how people, animals and goods flowed through the town.

Spot one price in an old ledger and convert it to shillings/pounds on the gallery guide to feel the day-to-day economy.

📍 Town-life cases

From Prehistory to Rome

Finds from the Thames floodplain and local digs anchor Havering in deep time and the Roman occupation.

Pottery, coins and domestic tools reveal everyday habits on the east London fringe long before ‘Havering’ was a borough.

Follow one object label from findspot to the map pins to understand how the river shaped settlement.

📍 Archaeology wall

RAF Hornchurch & the Home Front

Hornchurch’s fighter station and associated sites tied Havering into both World Wars and the Battle of Britain.

Uniform pieces, squadron photographs and local ARP material connect global conflict to local streets and fields.

Line up a squadron photo with the station plan to see where the camera stood.

📍 20th-century gallery

🤓 Fun Facts

Romford’s market rights trace to a 1247 royal charter—one reason the town became a major livestock and produce hub for centuries.

The ‘Royal Liberty of Havering’ maintained its own quarter sessions and administrative apparatus into the 19th century, a rarity in the capital’s hinterland.

RAF Hornchurch’s squadrons—flying from a grass airfield only a few miles from Romford—played front-line roles in 1940; local streets still echo station names.