The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft is a transport museum which specialises in the preservation of trolleybuses. It is located by the village of Sandtoft, near Belton on the Isle of Axholme in the English county of Lincolnshire. Description The museum occupies part of the former RAF Sandtoft, an operational bomber airfield during the Second World War. RAF Sandtoft was disposed of by the RAF in 1958 and the site was acquired for the museum in November 1969. Since that time, volunteers have transformed a barren site into a museum with the addition of workshop, vehicle depot and exhibition building. The first event held was the Sandtoft Gathering in 1971, an event which is still held annually. The museum is recognised as having the largest collection of preserved trolleybuses in Europe, if not the world, with over 60 examples. Whilst the exhibits are predominantly from the UK, a collection of international examples is growing at the museum. Apart from trolleybuses and transport, the museum also features a collection of 1950s/60s memorabilia. Over the years, many items related to the trolleybus era have been donated. A 1950s/1960s street scene features shop windows, complete with displays, whilst the prefab utility bungalow, previously used as the museum's souvenir shop, has now been fitted out as a home to show even more of these period artefacts. In 2011, the museum was the largest trolleybus museum in Britain, housing some 50 vehicles, including some imported from abroad, and about half of this number could be used to give rides to the public over an oval two-way circuit. By 2019, the number of vehicles had increased to over 60. The museum is open on selected days only, as detailed on its website. History Conception The history of the museum really began in 1961, when a group of 14 people decided they would try to preserve one of Reading's pre-war AEC trolleybuses, which was soon to be withdrawn. They formed the Reading Transport Society in April, and when they acquired Reading No.113 in September, it was the first trolleybus to be privately preserved in Britain, and started the preservation movement. What was expected to be a purely local affair escalated, as members signed up from around Britain, and by 1964 they were custodians of three more trolleybuses from other British systems. The storage facilities they had for the vehicles were inadequate, and they started to look around for