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Overview of collections

Tameside Museums and Galleries Service manage several collections. A Social History Collection, the Manchester Regimental Collection and the Astley Cheetham Art Collection.
The Astley Cheetham Art Collection was bequeathed to the town of Stalybridge by the Victorian industrialist and mill owner, John Frederick Cheetham, after his death in 1932.

The collection comprises of over three hundred paintings and drawings. The collection has grown with gifts from the National Art Collections Fund, and purchases by the gallery throughout the twentieth century. The collection is a public collection, owned and managed by Tameside Council.

Overview of how collections are displayed

Astley Cheetham Art Gallery was built in 1901 as a gift to the town of Stalybridge by John Frederick Cheetham and his wife Beatrice Astley. Originally built as a lecture hall, the Astley Cheetham Art Gallery now hosts the Astley Cheetham Art Collection gifted to the borough by John Frederic Cheetham and his wife.
Central Art Gallery hosts a varied programme of temporary exhibitions.
The Rutherford Gallery is dedicated to to displaying the work of local artist Harry Rutherford.
At Portland Basin Museum you can experience the sights and sounds of a 1920s street and explore industrial history gallery with displays on the local cotton industry, agriculture and Jones sewing manchines.
Setantii Museum traces the history of Tameside from Celtic times to the present day.
The Manchester Regiment explores the experiences of the generations of soldiers who have served with the Regiment.

Star Objects at this location

It is well known as an excellent small regional collection and includes works from the fourteenth and fifteenth century, as well as nineteenth century British painters such as David Cox and Burne-Jones.