Words: David Lillywhite | Photography: Morgan Motor Company
The Morgan Motor Company has completed the revamp of its Morgan Experience Centre with the opening of its all-new interactive museum experience, The Archive Room. The facility at its historic Malvern, UK factory is now open to all visitors to Morgan, throughout the week and every Saturday.
As the name suggests, The Archive Room now contains the full company archives: artefacts, documents, photographs and footage that chart the history and heritage of Morgan over more than 100 years. The centrepiece is a full-length cabinet that houses individual items of historical significance, each with their own story. Next to each item is a button that allows visitors to bring the artefact to life as part of an audio-visual installation.
The items include a 1930s Leica camera that belonged to the company’s founder, HFS Morgan, thousands of original press cuttings in scrapbooks dating back to 1910 compiled by George Morgan (father of HFS), and original blueprints and historical parts from the early days of the company.
The backdrop to the room is provided by five projectors displaying rotating content on all aspects of company history. Seven cars are displayed to represent all eras and models, with a mixture of company heritage fleet and vehicles loaned by private owners. These currently include a 1910 Runabout, 1938 4-4 previously owned by HFS Morgan, a 1977 Plus 8 race car owned by Graham and Oliver Bryant, a one of 100 Aeromax and an EV3 concept car.
Visitors can also try the Design Your Morgan area, which shows the basic principles of drawing a Morgan car and also how the design and development process works, with added insight from Morgan’s designers and engineers. It includes a lightbox drawing board, tracing-paper templates and pencils for budding designers to take home their designs or share them on social media.
The opening of The Archive Room is the latest addition to the popular Morgan Experience, which offers factory tours, sports car hire and experience drives. The Morgan Experience Centre itself was refurbished in 2020, and includes a retail showroom for the Morgan Works Malvern on-site dealership, the new Canteen restaurant, and a gift and lifestyle shop.
“As one of the longest-established automotive manufacturers in Britain, the history of Morgan is both fascinating and extensive,” says chairman and CEO Steve Morris. “From trials victories that helped to propel the company in its early years, through to the incredible history of our Pickersleigh Road factory and our more recent post-millennium advances, The Archive Room enables us to tell the story of Morgan like never before.
“The interactive installations and activities offer something for all ages and interests. Whether you are a lifelong Morgan aficionado, or on your first visit to the factory, we have curated The Archive Room to remain relevant for all. And most importantly, as with the company itself, it will continue to evolve.”
You can book experiences and visits on the Morgan website.
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