History of the Uganda Museum

Uganda Museum

The Uganda Museum is the oldest Museum in East Africa. The museum was began in the late 1908’s. It is located in Kampala the capital city of Uganda at Kira road. The museum displays and exhibits nature, ethnological, historical and traditional life collections of Uganda’s culture heritage. Governor George Wilson ordered all articles of interests on Uganda. These items were procured and used to start the museum.

Location Details.

The Uganda Museum is 5 kilometres away from Kampala city centre on plot 5 along Kira road. If you are coming from Kampala you can simply pass via Wandegeya trading Centre proceeding to Mulago hospital before Kamwokya town. Then u will be able to see a huge sign post reading Uganda Museum. 

Collections.

The range of the collections exists from the late 1960’s to present day life. Specimens are displayed in the palaeontology or nature history gallery. The collections are always available to researchers upon student’s request.

Architecture.

A German architect called Ernst May historically landmarked and designed the Uganda museum. To ensure proper preservation of specimens, the museum was well decorated and designed with ample nature lighting and well aerated.

Educational Services.

At the museum, there are different facilities such as canteens, internet café and these offer a lot traditional food of Uganda, Gift shops which help in show casing crafts. Uganda Museum carries out domestic and student tours that give aids, films and slides.

Since the Museum has available specimens, it goes on and arranges a lot of tropical lessons that are related to school curriculum. Sometimes, the museum hosts public talks, workshops and lectures on relevant topics to the public in the auditorium. It also offers Educational lessons in form of demonstration lessons. There are guides at the museum for tourists and students who helps them understand and guides them within the museum.

History.

The British Protectorate government officially established the Uganda Museum in 1908 with ethnographic material. Later on, the Museum started in a small Sikh temple at fort Lugard at Old Kampala hill.

When the collections had multiplied, the museum became too small to hold the specimens. In 1941, the museum was moved to the Margret Towel school of fine Art at Makerere University college. The museum got a permanent home in 1954 After raising funds for it. The Museum moved to its current location at Kira road. By then they Museum had turned 100 years old.

Visiting the Uganda Museum will give you good experience with Uganda’s many cultures filled with great and colourful memories. This will also give you chance to relieve those wonderful moments. The Uganda Museum has lot of sections in side for visit, some of them include:

Traditional Musical section.

This music sector comprises of traditional music equipment’s. Visitors can play the instruments for free. This section of the museum is called the music gallery. It shows and teaches tourists different music instruments from different parts of Uganda and played by different tribal groups. For example; Drums of the Baganda, percussion, wind and string instruments such as xylophone, harps, lyres and tube-fiddles.