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Thame Local History
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Thame Museum
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The following press release was issued by Thame Town Council on December 5th 2003:
TOWN TO HAVE A MUSEUM After several months of planning and negotiation, Thame Town Council is pleased to announce the proposed purchase of the old Court House in Thame. The Town Council is to acquire the building from Oxfordshire County Council following the closure of the Magistrates Court last year. Questionnaires to gauge public support for a Museum were recently sent to each household in the town. A return of 14.4% was received with 82% supporting a museum. The Town Council was recently successful in obtaining planning consent for the change of use of the building from a Court House to a Museum and will purchase the Court House from the balance of the money from the sale of Pickenfield. South Oxfordshire District Council have confirmed that this is within the scope of the legal agreement. To celebrate the proposed acquisition, a temporary museum exhibition will be held in the Town Hall on 6 and 7 February 2004 when more information and plans for the museum will be available. A number of the Museum questionnaires asked that a new library for Thame should have higher priority. This request stems from confusion about the responsibilities of the three Local Authorities. Public Libraries being the responsibility of the County Council, Thame Town Council does not have the power to fund a library, whereas it can fund a Museum. It must be stressed that campaigning for a new library for Thame remains a high priority of the Town Council. Dave Bretherton chair of the Museum Working Group / David Laver, Town Mayor said, "This is wonderful news. The Court House will provide an ideal location for the museum and the purchase by the Town Council will keep the building in public ownership." A two day 'Thame History Exhibition' is to be held at Thame Town Hall on February 6th and 7th 2004, presented jointly by Thame Historical Society, Oxford County Council and Thame Town Council. The exhibition is free to all, and will be open from 12 noon to 7.00 pm on Friday 6th and 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday 7th. An inaugral meeting of Thame Museum Trust will take place in the Town Hall on Friday 6th February 2004 at 7 pm. |
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