Kapenguria Museum, Western Kenya

The cells where six of the founding fathers of African nationalism, including Jomo Kenyatta, were imprisond now form a tiny museum dedicated to Kenya’s nationalist struggle, along with displays on the Pokot people and slavery.

The Kapenguria museum was opened in 1993. It is located in Kapenguria town, at the site where the six most influential leaders in the struggle for independence were detained. To preserve the history of the struggle for independence, the National Museums of Kenya with financial support from the Dutch funded Arid and Semi-Arid Lands project in West Pokot preserved and rehabilitated the prison.

The Kapenguria six were the founding fathers of the Kenyan Nation – Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, Kungu Karumba, Mr. Fred Kubai, Mr. Paul Ngei, Bildad Kaggia and the Hon. Ramogi Achieng Oneko. All of them have passed on although their legacy will always remain alive.

Displays in the Museum include books and documents in a memorial library in honour of all heroes who participated in the struggle for independence.

The cells, the ethnographic galleries and the Pokot homestead provide the foundation of Kapenguria museum. The Pokot gallery houses artifacts and photographic collections on the Pokot people. The creation and establishment of this gallery is credited to Mrs. Anny Mulder, an anthropologist who carried out work in this area among the Pokot people.

Other sections of the museum are the political development exhibits, a section containing exhibits revealing pre-colonial Kenya, slavery, the arrival of Europeans, African resistance to colonial rule and activities of pioneer nationalists.