Museum of the Order of St John

https://museumstjohn.org.uk/

The Museum of the Order of St John at St John’s Gate has been welcoming visitors for over a hundred years, and contains extensive Museum, Library, and Archive collections which document the creation and progress of the modern Order of St John in England and the Islands, and its charitable arm, St John Ambulance. The collections include historic first aid and medical equipment, documentary evidence of the work of the Order and St John Ambulance, paintings and illuminated manuscripts, rare armour, a bronze cannon given by Henry VIII, ancient coins, decorative furniture, ceramics, silverware, and textiles. Over the road from the Gate is the Priory Church, with its twelfth century Crypt, open to visitors by appointment. The Church’s Priory Gallery features an exhibition on life in the medieval priory and Clerkenwell through the ages. The Church Cloister Garden provides a tranquil space for members of the public to enjoy, and its range of herbs gives an idea of the medicinal gardens that would have been cultivated by the Knights Hospitaller during Medieval times.

(Image: Courtesy of the Museum of the Order of St John, London)

History Day 2023 contributions

Digitised content:

• Annual Reports (These records tell us about the Order of St John’s members, their roles and ranks, promotions, admissions, and obituaries. They tell us about the work of the Order overseas, the insignia, statutes, and reports on the Chapter. The Annual Reports also play a key part in telling the history of St John Ambulance by providing information on medical training, reports on the health of the nation, information about technological advances in healthcare, and details of the formation and disbanding of various nursing and ambulance units over time. They tell us how important the work of our first aid volunteers is, how it was done, and where it took place): https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/9d9cc2159f9e4f04b3b02055b827edd0
• First Aid (the independent monthly magazine for the ambulance and nursing services, including St John Ambulance, the British Red Cross Society, and St Andrew’s Association): https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/3d6fe46e10ce42f0925205e64fcbad26
• The St. John Cadet (the first magazine for St John Cadets, from 1946-1955): https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/3aa29d3d1a024502916a9517cb4bd90a
• The St. John Camp Cadet (a special collection of issues of The St. John Cadet magazine, published during the 7-day Cadet Coronation Camp in August 1953): https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/200fdd9c21eb452bb7fcffe58c0ca725

Video links:

• Our organisational YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@museumoftheorderofstjohn6544/featured
• A virtual tour of the Museum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kH8-eV_z2HU
• Our British sign language introduction to the Museum of the Order of St John: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alr9Lt4BZE0
• The story of the Order of St John: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd7W6JgeuAE
• The story of St John Ambulance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3xrZTeLCjQ
• A talk ‘A Short History of Diabetic Healthcare’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO9a7Joufng
• A talk on the Rhodes Missal ‘Missal-aneous Facts’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBeEabdz8wg
• A talk for International Nurses Day about nursing with St John: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddWPEbn01V8
• A talk ‘Mine’s a Pint of Ale: The History of Drinking at St John’s Gate’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQYK3c-Li1M
• A talk ‘Trowel and Error – The Archaeology of the Priory of St John & St John’s Gate’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJCPV2lVOz8

History Day 2022 contributions

Videos from the Museum’s YouTube channel

• The Early Hospital: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz5WNyrqPmM
• The Story of St John Ambulance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5ZYTrvnK5A
• The Story of a VAD Nurse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL7RVrBjWvw

Blog posts from the Museum’s website

• Snakes and Ladders – Mythology and Pharmacy Jars: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/10-minute-talk-tea-snakes-and-ladders-mythology-and-pharmacy-jars/
• Celebrating 100 Years of Young Lifesavers: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/10-minute-talk-and-tea-celebrating-100-years-of-young-lifesavers/
• The King’s Stretcher Bearers: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/the-kings-stretcher-bearers%e2%80%af/
• Doing Your Duty: St John Ambulance at Royal Ceremonies: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/doing-your-duty-st-john-ambulance-at-royal-ceremonies-and-celebrations/
• Sir John Furley and St John Ambulance: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/sir-john-furley-and-st-john-ambulance/
• Disease and Dissection: A History of Surgery in Malta: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/disease-and-dissection-a-history-of-surgery-in-malta/
• Anyone for a corneal tattoo?: https://museumstjohn.org.uk/anyone-corneal-tattoo/

Links to collections for research into science and technology

First Aid: The Independent Journal for the Ambulance and Nursing Services

• First Aid began in 1895 and was an independent monthly magazine for the ambulance and nursing services (comprised of members of St John Ambulance, the British Red Cross Society, and St Andrew’s Association).
• Issues published during the First and Second World War have been digitised and are freely and publicly accessible online here: https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/3d6fe46e10ce42f0925205e64fcbad26
• Issues published before, between, and after the Wars are available for research visits in-person at the Museum.

Order of St John Annual Reports

• The modern Order of St John’s Annual Reports were produced from the very early days of the modern Order’s inception. These records tell us about the Order’s members, their roles and ranks, promotions, admissions, and obituaries. They tell us about the work of the Order overseas, the insignia, statutes, and reports on the Chapter. The Annual Reports also play a key part in telling the history of St John Ambulance by providing information on medical training, reports on the health of the nation, information about technological advances in healthcare, and details of the formation and disbanding of various nursing and ambulance units over time. They tell us how important the work of our first aid volunteers is, how it was done, and where it took place.
• Issues published from 1868-1970 have been digitised and are freely and publicly accessible online here (please note that the years 1890, 1891, 1893, and 1913 are missing): https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/9d9cc2159f9e4f04b3b02055b827edd0
• Issues published after 1970 are available for research visits in-person at the Museum.