Stourbridge Glass Museum

In 2010, the British Glass Foundation was formed and campaigned for the creation of a new glass museum in the Stourbridge area. A site was selected in Camp Hill, Wordsley, previously the White House Glassworks which had been acquired by Stuart Crystal in 1914. The museum opened to the public in April 2022,^[1] although the official opening by The Duke of Gloucester was delayed until 19 April 2023. The Duke signed a plaque made by resident glassmaker, Allister Malcolm, and engraved by cameo glass maker Terri-Louise Colledge.^[2][3]

The Stuart Crystal factory was housed in a grade II listed building but this had closed in 2001 and been vandalised. The design by the architects, Bryant Priest Newman, uses the previous Newhouse Building for the museum, over two floors, and the Mill Buildings have been converted into commercial units and apartments. The rebuild was funded by the European Regional Development Fund, with the National Heritage Lottery Fund financing the interior. The location of the original White House glass cone, a brick structure,^[4] is now marked by a glass pyramid in the forecourt of the museum.^{[3]: 16, 37–48 [5]}

The Stourbridge area has been a centre of glass-making in England for about 400 years, based on its ample supply of coal.^[12][13][14] The museum displays pieces from the Stourbridge Collection of over 10,000 glass objects, which is owned by Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council and has been leased to the museum. It was previously housed in the Broadfield House Glass Museum, which closed in 2015.^[15][16] The upper floor of the museum displays contemporary pieces, for example After the Darkness, the Light by Chris Day, which is a boat sculpture intended to illustrate immigration into the UK.^[17] It won a Contemporary Glass Society prize in 2022.^[3]: 33

2012 Portland Vase project

The Portland Vase is a Roman piece of cameo glass now held by the British Museum. Glass makers in the Stourbridge area have crafted several replicas, including one 19th-century version by Philip Pargeter engraved by John Northwood. This copy is in the Corning Museum of Glass.^[18] In 2012, Richard Golding blew glass blanks to which Terri-Louise Colledge added the cameo work. There are now four flat-bottomed vases, one amphora and an Auldjo jug,^[19] all of which are on display in the museum.^{[3]: 25 [20]}