Activities in Kendal

This award winning Museum takes you and your family 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 special traditions. In the museum, recreated period Lakeland rooms and workshops reveal how rural people lived and worked, how children played and how different life was before the introduction of machinery. Lifelike displays narrate the stories of individuals who left their mark in 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.

Housed in a Georgian villa on the banks of the river Kent in the market town of Kendal, the galleries offer two floors of light-filled spaces in which to see art. The intimate rooms and tranquil setting are used to show British painting and sculpture, without pretention or overload, to uplift the spirits in an enjoyable and relaxed atmosphere. As well as the fine permanent collection, Abbot Hall is widely acknowledged as having one of the most important and independently minded exhibition programmes outside London. “Given its location, it would have been easy for such a gallery to have rested on its laurels, simply showcasing historic works with links to the area. But what has put Abbot Hall on the map has been its bullish policy of showing and collecting modern British art.” Sue Hubbard, The Independent, July 2007.