As the local history museum for the boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow the collections at Gunnersbury include a wide range of material reflecting all aspects of life and work in the area.

The main categories include:

Archaeology
Clothing
Toys and Games

Transport

Photographs of People and Places
Prints and Paintings of Local Scenes
Recorded Memories of Local People
Domestic Equipment (eg , irons, needlework tools)
Communications (eg telephones, radios)
Maps
Products, Equipment or Advertising Material from Local Businesses

(eg Hoovers, equipment from Acton laundries, posters from Ealing Film Studios, Gillette razors, Trico car products, Firestone tyres, packaging from a Noon curry)
Wartime Material (eg ration cards, gas masks)

Favourite local treasures include:

A Stanhope Printing Press of 1804
A Group of Seventeenth Century Hounslow Swords
Two Carriages of around 1800, previously owned by the Rothschild family

South Asian Archive

The collections at Gunnersbury Park Museum now include a South Asian Archive, set up with the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The archive consists of 70 recorded interviews with South Asian residents of Ealing and Hounslow, together with photographs, documents, clothing and other material. It also includes the collection of 90 photographs of South Asians in Southall in the 1970s, taken by Dennis Morris and bought by the museum with the aid of the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The recorded interviews describe the journeys made by South Asians to establish themselves in the West London community. They include memories of World War II, Partition, emigration from Kenya, race relations in Southall, bussing, the founding of the Indian Workers' Association and the establishment of religious centres, work and entertainment in the area.

The archive is available by appointment. Please contact Vanda Foster at Gunnersbury Park Museum.