The latest iteration of the partnership between Roehampton University and Wandsworth Arts & Culture Service has resulted in a fascinating new exhibition now on display at the Roehampton Family Hub.

As a result of this partnership students from the university assisted in designing an exhibition using objects from the Wandsworth Heritage Collection, under the supervision of Dr Dustin M. Frazier Wood, Senior Lecturer in Humanities (University of Roehampton) and Antia Dona Vazquez, Culture and Heritage programmer from Wandsworth Council. This involved taking part in all the activities needed to research and curate an exhibition, such as researching the objects, writing curated descriptions, understanding the condition and conservation needs of the chosen objects, photographing them, and assisting with the installation of the exhibition in the university library in May and June 2024. With the opening of the Roehampton Family Hub the exhibition has found a new space.

This year, the students have chosen ‘Childhood’ as the theme for their exhibition. They have selected objects that reflect different facets of the experiences lived by a child in the Wandsworth borough during different periods of the late 19th and 20th centuries. The collection items selected range from board games like chess to a Womble doll, a popular British children’s franchise.

Womble shaped nightdress case, c, 1970 – 1980.

Leisure time is represented through various objects that children used for play and to spark their imagination. Comics from different eras are on display, including ‘The Magnet’ from 1908, a ‘Charles Chaplin’ comic from 1915, and a ‘Mickey Mouse Holiday Special’ comic from 1937.

The exhibition also features dolls and dollhouses, such as a blinking baby doll c. 1880, stuffed with straw, a well-loved teddy bear from 1920, complete with a little suit and jumper, and a doll with porcelain hands, legs, and face that comes with seven baskets full of crocheted produce and a chicken, ready for the market. A highlight is a dollhouse constructed by Mr. Richard Robinson in the 1950s and donated by Mrs. Edith Robinson in 1993, complete with all its small furniture. The section about childhood in the Wandsworth area is fittingly concluded with a Womble that doubles as a nightdress case.

Dolls’ House, c.1950s.

The leisure activities section is completed with tin toys, a wooden Noah’s Ark with all the animals, wooden building blocks, and board games, including an educational Word Making game and a cards game to learn about the Kings and Quens of England.

School life is also represented in this exhibition, with photos of students posing in their classroom, be it in Victorian times or in the 60-70s, showing their well-earned sports trophies; diplomas and medals for good conduct during the First World War can also be seen in this exhibition. These serve as a reminder that even in dangerous times, children’s lives carried on.

Wandsworth school photographs.

This exhibition offers a unique glimpse into the past, bringing to life the experiences of children from different eras in one common space, the Borough of Wandsworth.

Check out the exhibition at the newly opened Roehampton Family Hub – open weekdays, 9am – 5pm.