Ragged School Museum
About This Museum
Tucked away in a converted canalside warehouse on Copperfield Road, the Ragged School Museum is a truly special portal to Victorian London. It stands on the very site where Dr. Thomas Barnardo once ran a free school for the city's poorest children, offering them a lifeline through education. You can almost hear the echoes of long-ago lessons as you walk through its doors. The heart of the museum is its incredible recreated Victorian classroom, where you're not just an observer but can sit at the original desks and handle slate pencils.
Collection Highlights
The star of the show is undoubtedly the authentic replica classroom, complete with cast-iron desks, a roaring coal fire, and stern portraits of Queen Victoria. Don't miss the East End Kitchen exhibit either, which vividly recreates a cramped 1900s dwelling and tells powerful stories of domestic life.
Visitor Information
Check their website for their famous 'lesson' days where a strict schoolmaster in period costume really brings history to life—it's an unforgettable experience! They're open Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, plus the first Sunday of each month.
Architecture & Building
Housed in a robust, three-story Victorian warehouse made of London stock brick that was originally part of the canal's industrial landscape.
Contact & Location
Address: Ragged School Museum, 46-50, Copperfield Road, Mile End, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, London, Greater London, England, E3 4RR, United Kingdom
Phone: +44 20 8980 6405
Website: Visit Website
