The American Museum and Gardens was founded by Dallas Pratt, an American psychiatrist, and his partner John Judkyn, a British-born antiques dealer, who bought Claverton Manor and its 60 acres of grounds in 1958. The pair spent two years travelling the United States sourcing furniture and folk art before opening the collection to the public on 1 July 1961, the only museum devoted to American decorative arts outside the United States. Housed in a single Grade I listed manor house overlooking the Avon valley, the museum displays period rooms, quilts and folk art alongside gardens that include a recreation of George Washington's Mount Vernon garden. It operates as an independent charitable trust from the one Claverton site, open Tuesday to Sunday from mid-February to early January.
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