20 Years of Caravan and Motorhome Club Collection

24 July 2026

This year, the Caravan and Motorhome Club Collection celebrates 20 years at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, marking two decades of preserving and sharing over a century of caravanning history.

In the years leading up to the Club’s Centenary in 2007, the Club Archive was actively developed as historic material was gathered and stored across Caravan and Motorhome Club sites in East Grinstead. It soon became clear that additional resources, including a dedicated member of staff, were needed to manage it effectively, improve access, support research and ensure its long-term preservation.

Lord Montagu of Beaulieu and Caravan Club Chairman Robert Black

In May 2006, former Club Chairman Bob Black and the late Lord Montagu of Beaulieu signed the agreement that established the Collection in its current home. Fittingly, the signing took place inside the National Motor Museum’s 1926 Eccles caravan.

Created to preserve and promote the history of the Club for current and future members, the Collection has grown far beyond its original remit. Today, it is the most significant collection dedicated to leisure caravanning and motorhome holidays in the United Kingdom.

Over the past two decades, the Collection has flourished through its partnership with the National Motor Museum, featuring in exhibitions, education programmes, publications and digital projects that have brought caravanning history to new audiences.

Spanning the 1880s to the present day, the Collection now contains almost 14,000 objects. These include historic photographs, publications, film footage, trophies, rally plaques, textiles, oral history recordings and the earliest known leisure caravan.