Built on the site of Mary Anning’s home, Lyme Regis Museum stands in the heart of the town, just where the beautiful coastlines of Dorset and Devon meet on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. The sea views from the museum’s new Mary Anning Wing are stunning, and the extra space has provided all the facilities you’d expect in a modern museum including the purpose-built Fine Foundation Learning Centre – the perfect space for families and schools. The building has great idiosyncratic charm. Built in 1902, it was commissioned by Thomas Philpot, a relative of fossil hunter Elizabeth Philpot who had worked with Mary Anning. The architect was George Vialls, who also designed the Town Hall next door. Following a chequered history, by 1991 the building was badly in need of repair. Largely thanks to a team of committed volunteers, a major refurbishment of the building and displays was carried out in the late 1990s. This has been followed by the construction of the Mary Anning Wing in 2017, with its new geology gallery and Learning Centre.
