Keswick Museum and Art Gallery
Where is it?
Fitz Park, Station Road, Keswick, Cumbria, CA12
4NF
You can view a
location map.
Links to local transport
and roads information are also available.
Keswick Museum has
been ranked third as one of 'The World's Strangest
Museums' on a knowledge website called helium.com.
When is it open?
The museum and art galllery are currently closed to the general
public until 1 April 2009.
However, staff are still on hand to arrange research or group
visits. If you would like to set up a research or group visit
please contact the museum on 017687 73263 or e-mail the Curator on
jamie.barnes@keswickmuseum.co.uk
How much does it cost?
Admission is still FREE.
The Museum
The Museum
tells the story of Keswick and the surrounding area. Keswick has a
unique history, with lots of 'firsts', including the first pencils,
some very famous residents, and lots of beautiful scenery so awe
inspiring that early tourists were left terrified.
The Museum was purpose built in 1897, is made of local green
volcanic 'slate' and St. Bees sandstone. It is set in the beautiful
Fitz Park, with tennis, putting, bowls and large children's
playground nearby, riverside walks and picnic area.
It is the only purpose built museum in the Lake District, and it
still retains its Victorian feel. There is a lot to see in the
Museum and children love it. Some of the stories in the Museum
include:
- The Discovery of the Lake District as a
tourist destination over 200 years ago
- The honeycombing of the area by mining for
precious metals by order of Queen Elizabeth I
- The first recreational use of the fells as the
sport of Rock Climbing was invented, and the amazing photographs
taken by the mountaineering Abraham brothers.
- The discovery of Lakeland's beauty by the
romantic writers and poets of the 1800s.
- The development of the environmental movement
with the founding of The National Trust, principally by one of
Keswick's leading citizens, Canon Hardwicke Rawnsley.
In addition the Museum exhibits:
- A stunning collection of crystals and
minerals
- Flintoft's amazing 4m Scale Model of the Lake
District
- Original letters by Southey, Wordsworth and
Walpole
- The famous 664 year old cat
- The remarkable Musical Stones, played by Royal
Command for Queen Victoria.
- Napoleon's Teacup!
- Britain's rarest fish
- The skin of a giant cobra
- A mantrap
Facilities
The museum has access for Wheelchair users and is level through
out. The museum does not have toilet facilities, the nearest public
toilets including a RADAR toilet are on the old Railway Station
platform. This is about 300 meters away at the top of Station Road.
There are other public toilets in the area and the Museum will give
you directions to these.
How to find us
On foot: From the Town Centre follow the pedestrian finger post
signs for "Museum & Art Gallery". Walk down Station Road, over
the bridge over the River Greta, with Fitz Park on either side of
the road. The Museum is about 200m on the left, the large stone
building on its own at the edge of the Park.
By car: The Museum is signed on the large brown and white signs
as "Museum & Art Gallery" from the main routes into the Town.
Parking is available in front of the Museum on Station Road. Free
off road parking is available at the rear of Keswick Leisure Pool,
approximately 200m from the Museum.
By public transport: By rail to either Windermere Rail Station,
then catch the 555 bus outside to Keswick or by train to Penrith
and then catch the X4/X5 bus outside to Workington. Both buses stop
at the 'County corner' stop at the end of Station Road, a 2 minute
walk away, with the YHA close by, at the edge of the river.
By cycle routes: Keswick Museum lies on the C2C (Sea to Sea)
Cycle route, number 71. For more information contact the
museum.
You can download a history of the Keswick School of Industrial
Art below: