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History 

The name of Valence

In 1291 Agnes de Valence retired to Dagenham following the death of her third husband. She was related to the royal family, her grandmother being Isabella of Angouleme, wife of King John.

Agnes lived here until her death in 1309. Her brother Aylmer (pictured right) then claimed the estate, and when he died in 1342 he was buried in Westminster Abbey as the Earl of Pembroke.

Although the de Valence family were only associated with Dagenham for half a century, local roads, a public park, school, library and museum all still bear their name.

The building

No part of the house that Agnes de Valence lived in now remains. The earliest surviving part was built in the 1400s. Unlike the present house, it faced north towards Green Lane. The corridor outside the present Cinema Room represents the front of this house. A newly-discovered wall painting has been dated to c.1600.

A survey of 1649 reveals a house much larger than today with parlours, dining-room, bedchambers and a variety of domestic offices. The 1662 Hearth Tax reveals Valence House had 15 hearths.

Most of Valence House is timber framed, the frames filled in with Lath and plaster work. Two rooms have wooden panelling dating from the late 16th century.

Visit the Valence House gallery for more details.
Ghosts of Valence House
Residents of Valence House

 

After World War One the Valence estate was compulsorily purchased by the London County Council for their Becontree Estate, but fortunately the house was not demolished as happened to many local farmhouses.

When Dagenham Urban District Council was formed in 1926 it purchased Valence House from the LCC for use as offices. The building was extended to the west to provide space for a Council chamber on the upper floor.

Much of the medieval moat was now filled in. A public library, council works depot and swimming pool were built near Valence House, and its grounds became a public park.

Valence House remained the council headquarters until the opening of the Civic Centre in 1937. The house then became the headquarters of Dagenham Public Libraries. Part of it was then used as a local history museum, following the interests of Dagenham's Chief Librarian John Gerard O'Leary.

 

The small museum enjoyed considerable success, particularly with a series of exhibitions of life in Essex during various historical periods. The high point of Mr O'Leary's career was the acquisition of the Fanshawe family's collection of portraits, archives and books in 1963.

In 1965, when the boroughs of Barking and Dagenham merged, the museum also became responsible for the history of Barking. In 1974 the library headquarters were transferred from Valence House to the new Barking Central Library, meaning that the entire building could now be used as a museum.

It was open by appointment until 1988, when regular opening hours were introduced. In the early 1990s it benefited from a refurbishment programme including new displays. In July 1991 the O'Leary Gallery, named after the charismatic librarian, was officially opened by Dagenham's MP Bryan Gould.

In 2002 the Barking and Dagenham Archives and Local Studies Centre opened in Valence House. In December 2007 Valence House closed for a major refurbishment programme, and reopened in June 2010.
 
Aylmer de Valence, from his tomb in Westminster Abbey

Contact

Valence House Museum

Becontree Avenue

Dagenham

RM8 3HT

 

Phone: 020 8227 5222

Fax: 020 8593 6177

Email: valencehousemuseum@lbbd.gov.uk