About - Spalding Gentlemen's Society
Source: https://www.sgsoc.org/about
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:09
About - Spalding Gentlemen's Society
About
About
SGSocAdmin
2026-02-24T19:46:30+00:00
Founded in 1710, Spalding Gentlemen’s Society is Britain’s oldest surviving provincial learned society. Since 1955, its charitable purpose has been: ‘To promote and foster among the public knowledge, appreciation and the study of …’ what we now call the Arts, Sciences and Humanities. It is a membership society that welcomes anyone aged 18 or over, including women, notwithstanding its history and name.
Our Beginnings
Early in the 18th century, lawyer Maurice Johnson came back to Spalding, having completed his training in London. Coffeehouses flourished in London as meeting places where a vibrant social circle eagerly discussed the news, discoveries, inventions, and publications. Johnson wanted to replicate this stimulating circle in his home town and gathered a group of men to meet in a newly opened coffeehouse.
Over the ensuing decades, the Society attracted eminent locals and also men of national stature (as corresponding members) such as Sir Isaac Newton. Johnson and his friend William Stukeley were instrumental in re-founding the Antiquarian Society in London, and Stukeley was a member of the Royal Society’s governing body.
From its early days, the Society has collected ‘curious’ things, and established an important library and archive holding. It was through donations by members and specific purchases that enabled the accumulation of many items representing our rich local heritage, as well as artefacts of national and international importance. As a museum collection in Britain, only the Ashmolean’s in Oxford has a longer history. Read more about
Our Story
.
With the changes wrought by the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th century onwards, the role of the Society changed. It became little more than a lending library, guarding its possessions but no longer at the forefront of learning. Its members enabled the Society to survive through the 20th century, but it was not fully living up to its purpose as declared in 1955. Now, in the 21st century, serious effort is being made to make the Society and its collections more accessible to the public – both in-person and digitally.
Who We Are
The Society has survived for over 300 years due to the much-needed support of its
members
. Some become involved with maintaining the collections, act as guides for visitors, help at events, or provide administrative assistance. Overall management is vested in the
Council
, whose members are elected by the membership at Annual General Meetings. His Grace the 10th Duke of Buccleuch is the Society’s Patron.
The Society’s home is the Grade II listed building on Broad Street, which was constructed to house the Society’s collections. The intent in 1911 was to store and display the holdings, primarily for the benefit of members, and a lecture room provided space for member events. However, the collections soon outgrew the space provided. New accessions usually number between 60-80 items annually and the building is no longer big enough to store, curate, and display the entire collection. To ensure a viable future for the Society, some
major changes will be necessary
.
The Future
Our Vision
For more than 300 years, the Society has been a beacon of Enlightenment ideals. It is Britain’s
oldest surviving provincial learned society and second oldest museum. Today, we aim to
connect members, visitors and the wider public with the world through interactive
engagement with our collections on-site, virtually and through outreach. We believe that
curiosity, discovery and the search for knowledge can and should be nurtured and open to all.
Our Mission
Our mission is to support the creation and sharing of knowledge by providing access to those
collections and by offering innovative social and educational projects for all people.
We aim
to:
Tell the unique story of the Society, its collections and its members
Maintain and develop a range of public programmes that reflect the range and
diversity of our collections, our members, our community and society more broadly,
and that are accessible to all
Safeguard, develop and display our collections to ensure their continued improvement
and benefit for future generations
Provide opportunities for members, volunteers and visitors of all backgrounds, living
locally or further afield, to enjoy and engage with our remarkable collections through
participation in lifelong learning and creative expression
Provide volunteers and students with opportunities to learn new skills in collections
care, research, management and conservation
Our Values
As a Society, we believe that:
The
pursuit of knowledge should be free and open to all
Openness, honesty and respectful dialogue are at the foundation of knowledge making
and knowledge sharing
Inclusivity and accessibility must guide
all of
our working practices
Lifelong learning, personal development and self-discovery are fundamental parts of
being human
As
custodians of the Society’s collections, we have a responsibility to research and
interpret our collections and their provenance honestly and transparently, including
where that provenance may be sensitive or difficult
Get in Touch
Spalding Gentlemen’s Society,
9 Broad Street,
Spalding,
PE11 1TB
SGS is a Registered Charity, no. 216131
Sign up to our email newsletter
Recent News
Medieval ring discovered by local metal detectorists donated to SGS
20/04/2026
My time as Heritage Associate
15/04/2026
Exciting new exhibitions exploring the history of ‘Science’ and ‘Navigation’ to open in Spalding
23/03/2026
Don’t miss our March 2026 Lectures
05/03/2026
Musings from the Museum 36: William Dodd
23/02/2026
Spalding Gentlemen's Society. © 2024. All Rights Reserved
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About
About
SGSocAdmin
2026-02-24T19:46:30+00:00
Founded in 1710, Spalding Gentlemen’s Society is Britain’s oldest surviving provincial learned society. Since 1955, its charitable purpose has been: ‘To promote and foster among the public knowledge, appreciation and the study of …’ what we now call the Arts, Sciences and Humanities. It is a membership society that welcomes anyone aged 18 or over, including women, notwithstanding its history and name.
Our Beginnings
Early in the 18th century, lawyer Maurice Johnson came back to Spalding, having completed his training in London. Coffeehouses flourished in London as meeting places where a vibrant social circle eagerly discussed the news, discoveries, inventions, and publications. Johnson wanted to replicate this stimulating circle in his home town and gathered a group of men to meet in a newly opened coffeehouse.
Over the ensuing decades, the Society attracted eminent locals and also men of national stature (as corresponding members) such as Sir Isaac Newton. Johnson and his friend William Stukeley were instrumental in re-founding the Antiquarian Society in London, and Stukeley was a member of the Royal Society’s governing body.
From its early days, the Society has collected ‘curious’ things, and established an important library and archive holding. It was through donations by members and specific purchases that enabled the accumulation of many items representing our rich local heritage, as well as artefacts of national and international importance. As a museum collection in Britain, only the Ashmolean’s in Oxford has a longer history. Read more about
Our Story
.
With the changes wrought by the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th century onwards, the role of the Society changed. It became little more than a lending library, guarding its possessions but no longer at the forefront of learning. Its members enabled the Society to survive through the 20th century, but it was not fully living up to its purpose as declared in 1955. Now, in the 21st century, serious effort is being made to make the Society and its collections more accessible to the public – both in-person and digitally.
Who We Are
The Society has survived for over 300 years due to the much-needed support of its
members
. Some become involved with maintaining the collections, act as guides for visitors, help at events, or provide administrative assistance. Overall management is vested in the
Council
, whose members are elected by the membership at Annual General Meetings. His Grace the 10th Duke of Buccleuch is the Society’s Patron.
The Society’s home is the Grade II listed building on Broad Street, which was constructed to house the Society’s collections. The intent in 1911 was to store and display the holdings, primarily for the benefit of members, and a lecture room provided space for member events. However, the collections soon outgrew the space provided. New accessions usually number between 60-80 items annually and the building is no longer big enough to store, curate, and display the entire collection. To ensure a viable future for the Society, some
major changes will be necessary
.
The Future
Our Vision
For more than 300 years, the Society has been a beacon of Enlightenment ideals. It is Britain’s
oldest surviving provincial learned society and second oldest museum. Today, we aim to
connect members, visitors and the wider public with the world through interactive
engagement with our collections on-site, virtually and through outreach. We believe that
curiosity, discovery and the search for knowledge can and should be nurtured and open to all.
Our Mission
Our mission is to support the creation and sharing of knowledge by providing access to those
collections and by offering innovative social and educational projects for all people.
We aim
to:
Tell the unique story of the Society, its collections and its members
Maintain and develop a range of public programmes that reflect the range and
diversity of our collections, our members, our community and society more broadly,
and that are accessible to all
Safeguard, develop and display our collections to ensure their continued improvement
and benefit for future generations
Provide opportunities for members, volunteers and visitors of all backgrounds, living
locally or further afield, to enjoy and engage with our remarkable collections through
participation in lifelong learning and creative expression
Provide volunteers and students with opportunities to learn new skills in collections
care, research, management and conservation
Our Values
As a Society, we believe that:
The
pursuit of knowledge should be free and open to all
Openness, honesty and respectful dialogue are at the foundation of knowledge making
and knowledge sharing
Inclusivity and accessibility must guide
all of
our working practices
Lifelong learning, personal development and self-discovery are fundamental parts of
being human
As
custodians of the Society’s collections, we have a responsibility to research and
interpret our collections and their provenance honestly and transparently, including
where that provenance may be sensitive or difficult
Get in Touch
Spalding Gentlemen’s Society,
9 Broad Street,
Spalding,
PE11 1TB
SGS is a Registered Charity, no. 216131
Sign up to our email newsletter
Recent News
Medieval ring discovered by local metal detectorists donated to SGS
20/04/2026
My time as Heritage Associate
15/04/2026
Exciting new exhibitions exploring the history of ‘Science’ and ‘Navigation’ to open in Spalding
23/03/2026
Don’t miss our March 2026 Lectures
05/03/2026
Musings from the Museum 36: William Dodd
23/02/2026
Spalding Gentlemen's Society. © 2024. All Rights Reserved
Website by
79DESIGN: Website Design Lincolnshire
Manage Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
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