On Thursday afternoon, ahead of the Museum of Science and Industry evening reception, MOSI offers a relaxed and informal opportunity to look behind the scenes.  Explore the archives, galleries and reserve collections with an expert guide, find out what we can do to help your research, or just enjoy the experience of exploring the museum in depth and sharing ideas with colleagues and MOSI’s curators and archivists and curators from the Science Museum in London as we tour together.

All tours start in the Collections Centre in the basement of the Great Western Warehouse.

Introduction to the MOSI Archive

Sessions begin at 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00 Maximum 15 people per session.

Come along to the Study Area to find out about MOSI’s archive collections. Our extensive holdings demonstrate the relationship between scientific knowledge and industrial production and how this relationship put Manchester on the map as a place where science, innovation and industry created modern society. A selection of archives will be on display in the Study Area, and you’ll have the chance to talk to the archives team in depth to see how we can help meet your research needs.

For more information, see the website: www.mosi.org.uk/collections/using-the-collections/using-the-archives.aspx
or contact MOSI directly: collections@mosi.org.uk

Scientific instruments and Collections Centre tours

Sessions begin at 14:00 and 15:30. Maximum 15 people per session.

Explore MOSI’s Collections Centre on a guided tour of the object cabinets and stores.  Explore our scientific instrument collections, see equipment used by famous scientists James Joule and John Dalton, and learn their stories.

For more information, see the website: www.mosi.org.uk/collections/using-the-collections/collections-centre.aspx

Energy galleries tour

A technological age needs a complex energy system.  This curator-led tour takes in MOSI’s wide-ranging electricity and gas collections to tell the story of how engineers built energy systems and how consumers responded to innovation and drove demand.

For more information, see the website:
www.mosi.org.uk/explore-mosi/explore-galleries/electricity-gallery.aspx
www.mosi.org.uk/explore-mosi/explore-galleries/gas-gallery.aspx

Industry and Cotton gallery tour

Manchester was Cottonopolis: the world’s first industrial city, and at the centre of the global textile trade.  Find out how it rose and fell, see fascinating cotton making machines at work, and discover how Manchester’s ambitions founded the first modern industrial estate at Trafford Park, and the engineering trades that went on there.

For more information, see the website: www.mosi.org.uk/explore-mosi/explore-galleries/textiles-gallery.aspx

Transport gallery tour

Find out the stories behind magnificent aircraft and motor cars in MOSI’s Air and Space Hall and learn about the fascinating history of aviation in the north-west, and how the region has helped the United Kingdom defend itself in war, take holidays, and even reach into space.

For more information, see the website: www.mosi.org.uk/explore-mosi/explore-galleries/air-space-gallery.aspx

There is no charge for any of these tours and events. As numbers are limited, please register in advance. You can do this at any time before the Congress by emailing tours@ichstm2013.com with your details; or you can sign up in person at the Congress Events Desk.