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The Rum Story WhitehavenWhitehaven Tourist Information Maritime History Rum Story
Explore the maritime history of Whitehaven at the superb Rum Story in the centre of Whitehaven. Learn all about smuggling, Whitehaven's links with slavery and the slave trade and more!
The Rum Story, Whitehaven
Visit the dark spirit of Whitehaven at this thoughtful and informative collection of exhibitions. Appropriately located in Whitehaven, an area intricately linked with not only rum, but smuggling and the slave trade, this museum takes time to push out from 'rum' with a replica of a slave ship and African villages, learning as you go about the capture of slaves and the horrendous conditions of slave ships.
Whitehaven and it's 'rum and sugar' base was a centre for slave transportation for 10 years, just before the movement for the abolition of slavery began in the UK around 1769. A dark history indeed, which this museum doesn't duck.
Traders from Whitehaven participated in human traffic, transporting slaves to the Caribbean, and those ships would return home loaded with sugar and rum. There was much resistance to slavery within the town of Whitehaven, particularly from Quakers like William Miller (1816-56), who was a supporter of the anti-slavery movement.
Exhibits at the Rum Story Whitehaven
See also exhibitions on prohibition and smuggling, recreations of the Jefferson family office. a Whitehaven family renowned in the Rum trade.
There's a Courtyard Cafe, where you can stare at the rather unusual Kinetic Rum Clock, which graphically depicts the process of rum making every half hour. There's also an education suite and the Vault restaurant on-site. Particular fun is the 18th century replica punch house, inspired by a scene from Hogarth. There's a few the worse for Rum in this exhibit.
Open every day except Christmas day and Boxing Day, from 10am-5pm April to September, from 10am-4pm October to March.
The Rum Story, Lowther Street, Whitehaven, Cumbria CA28 7DN, tel: 01946 592933
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