Wimborne’s award-winning Museum of East Dorset is proud to present Home: Gypsy and Traveller Lives in Dorset, a major new exhibition that shines a light on the rich, resilient and often overlooked histories of Gypsy and Traveller communities across the county.
This major new exhibition runs 25 July to 23 January 2027 inclusive and is presented in partnership with Dorset History Centre and Kushti Bok – a Dorset-based charity which supports Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities and promotes understanding of Traveller ways of life.
East Dorset has long been shaped by Gypsy and Traveller families whose trades, stopping places and stories are woven into the landscape. Their presence lives on in censuses, church, military, school and medical records, photographs and local newspaper archives yet much of this history has remained hidden from public view. This exhibition brings those stories powerfully to the fore.
Home explores where and how Gypsy and Traveller communities in Dorset have lived over the past century, and how ideas of home differ within and across families. For some, home is rooted in a fixed place; for others, it is defined by movement, kinship and long-standing ties to particular landscapes.
During the twentieth century, many traditional encampments, from New England in the east of the county to Foxholes near Tower Park, were closed, redeveloped or made inaccessible. As a result, many Gypsy and Traveller families were left without secure places to continue traditional ways of life. The exhibition traces these changes and reveals their impact across generations.
Drawing on archival material from Dorset History Centre, contributions from Kushti Bok, and objects reflecting both historic and contemporary experience, the exhibition offers a rich, multi-dimensional view of Gypsy and Traveller life.
Highlights include:
- Wooden scale models of traditional vardos (Gypsy wagons), showcasing the craftsmanship and ingenuity behind travelling homes.
- Soil samples collected from historic stopping places across Dorset, symbolising deep connections between people and place.
- Historic photographs from Dorset History Centre, offering glimpses into everyday life.
- Objects loaned by members of Kushti Bok, representing belongings still found in Gypsy and Traveller homes today.
- Oral histories, allowing visitors to hear directly from people with lived experience, bringing personal memory into the gallery space.
The exhibition also introduces visitors to the many forms that home can take within Gypsy and Traveller life. It highlights the beauty and craftsmanship of traditional vardos – the richly decorated caravans long associated with travelling communities – alongside the reality that many families have also lived in bricks‑and‑mortar homes as traditional stopping places have disappeared. Visitors will also see how modern housing has become increasingly common, even as cultural identity and connection to travelling heritage remain central to family life.
Museum curator Millie Lake said: “Home invites visitors to see Dorset’s history afresh through stories that have often been overlooked. This layered, multi-voiced exhibition explores belonging and identity, highlighting Gypsy and Traveller histories as part of Dorset’s wider cultural heritage.”
Photograph: A Traveller woman smoking a clay pipe with her two children. They’re sitting outside a bender which is a simple tent made of canvas over a framework of bendy wooden poles. The photo was taken in the 1910’s near Shillingstone.
Photo credit: Courtesy of Dorset History Centre. Document Reference: D-DPA/1/SHI/59