Museum of Lakeland Life and Industry

This award winning Museum takes you back through time to explore the story of the Lake District and its inhabitants. Isolated before the arrival of the railway and motorcar, this area developed its own unique customs and traditions.

Recreated period rooms and workshops reveal how rural people lived and worked and played and how different life was before the introduction of machinery. Discover a Lake District kitchen, complete with traditional recipes and utensils, a bedroom full of vernacular furniture and furnishings – including a magnificent 17th century four-poster bed, a farmhouse parlour with a working phonograph and rare 18th century oak panelling.

Lifelike displays narrate the stories of individuals who left their mark on the history of the Lake District, providing a rare insight into now lost trades and professions. See the tools of Victorian farmers and miners who made their living working the land in this area of exceptional natural beauty.

Arthur Ransome and ‘Swallows and Amazons’

Admire the original sketches for the illustration of the popular children’s series and the author’s manuscripts. The museum has a wealth of souvenirs and mementoes of his sailing adventures, all complemented by photographs from the author’s collection.

Lakeland Photographers

Discover nostalgic images of the 1940s and 50s taken by the Westmorland Gazette photographer Joseph Hardman, and a selection of Victorian photography.

The Arts & Crafts Movement in the Lake District

The spectacular scenery and peaceful atmosphere of the area had been attracting great artists and writers and inspired local people long before its “discovery” by the masses. The beauty of the surroundings, the wealth of natural resources – wool, leather, linen, copper, wood and minerals – and the knowledge of how to work them, inspired local craftspeople to establish cottage industries along the Arts and Crafts principles of fine craftsmanship and design drawing inspiration from nature.

A special display traces the development of the Arts and Crafts Movement locally, with examples of metalwork by the Keswick School of Industrial Art, woodwork by Simpsons of Kendal and Stanley Webb Davies, exquisite textiles from Annie Garnett’s famous workshop, The Spinnery, and samples of Langdale Linen and Ruskin lace.

Discover nostalgic images of the 1940s and 50s taken by the Westmorland Gazette photographer Joseph Hardman, and a selection of Victorian photography.

The Arts & Crafts Movement in the Lake District

The spectacular scenery and peaceful atmosphere of the area had been attracting great artists and writers and inspired local people long before its “discovery” by the masses. The beauty of the surroundings, the wealth of natural resources – wool, leather, linen, copper, wood and minerals – and the knowledge of how to work them, inspired local craftspeople to establish cottage industries along the Arts and Crafts principles of fine craftsmanship and design drawing inspiration from nature.

A special display traces the development of the Arts and Crafts Movement locally, with examples of metalwork by the Keswick School of Industrial Art, woodwork by Simpsons of Kendal and Stanley Webb Davies, exquisite textiles from Annie Garnett’s famous workshop, The Spinnery, and samples of Langdale Linen and Ruskin lace.

The museum is located opposite Abbot Hall Art Gallery and visits can be coordinated between the two venues.