From the Mid Sussex Times: August 22, 1980

Cuckfield’s Dinosaur and the Birth of a Museum

If Loch Ness is famed for its monster, then Cuckfield has something even more remarkable—a dinosaur. Soon, that prehistoric giant will once again be celebrated when the long-awaited Cuckfield Museum opens its doors.

A Prehistoric Discovery

The story goes back to the early 1800s, when Gideon Mantell, the pioneering Sussex geologist, identified a new dinosaur species from fossil bones uncovered in the Cuckfield area. Those ancient remains had already waited millions of years beneath the Sussex soil before discovery, and while they have been kept in safe storage ever since, the people behind the museum project have been rather less patient about delays.

Stone Age Treasures

The museum will display not only dinosaur bones but also a wealth of Stone Age artefacts discovered in and around the village. These finds show that the Cuckfield area was occupied as early as 4000–6000 B.C. Among them are flint axes, knives, saws, and even a remarkable multi-purpose tool—an early ancestor of the Swiss Army knife. Many of these items were studied and identified by Bill Newnham of Warninglid, a keen amateur archaeologist who later donated his exceptional collection of flints to the British Museum.

Relics of More Recent Times

History in Cuckfield doesn’t stop at the Stone Age. Returning missionaries brought back African spears and arrows from West Africa, echoes of a time when local people too relied on hunting in dense forests. Meanwhile, objects from the village’s more turbulent past include a 17th-century man trap, once used to catch poachers, and the old Cuckfield whipping post, where offenders were tied and flogged in public as punishment.

Preserving the Past

Until the museum was ready, these treasures were safeguarded by Mid Sussex District Council and the county council. Now, at last, they are being prepared for public display, offering residents and visitors a fascinating journey through millions of years of local history—from the age of dinosaurs, to Stone Age settlers, to the darker corners of village life in the 17th century.

Cuckfield’s museum promises not only to tell the story of a community but also to place it firmly on the map of Britain’s rich historical landscape.