Lancaster City Museum

Lancaster City Museum is a museum in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is housed in the former Lancaster Town Hall building in Market Square.

1. History

The Old Town Hall building in which the museum is housed is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It was designed by Major Thomas Jarrett and built between 1781 and 1783, with a cupola added in 1782 to a design by Thomas Harrison. It was extended in 1871 and 1886. In 1910 the functions of the Town Hall were transferred to a new building in nearby Dalton Square. The old Town Hall was converted into a museum in 1923.

The building is a two-storey structure built from sandstone ashlar, fronted by a projecting tetrastyle Tuscan portico. The façade presents five bays with round-arched windows and, in the centre under the portico, a round-arched door at the top of a set of four steps. The cupola surmounting the building has a square base with a second octagonal stage on the side of which is a clock face. Above is a round drum surrounded by a rotunda of Ionic columns, capped by a dome. The hour-striking turret clock dates from 1851 and is still hand wound each week; its maker's plate reads 'Wm Poulton, Lancaster, 1851' and a separate plate records it as 'The Gift of Henry Gregson Esq, Mayor, 1851'. The ground floor was originally open and contained an arcade housing a market for grain and butter. The openings to the arcade were later filled with the current ground-floor windows. The building has served a number of purposes over the years; as well as housing Lancaster's Council Chamber and subsequently the City Museum, it also housed the town court (complete with lock-ups) and branches of Barclays Bank (until 1969) and the National Westminster Bank (until 1977).

1. Collections

The museum was founded in 1923, and its collections illustrate the archaeology and history of the city and surrounding areas. Among its highlights is the Lancaster Roman Tombstone, a memorial dating from c. 100 AD which was found locally in 2005. It depicts a Roman soldier on horseback with a decapitated opponent at his feet, and is described as "an iconic piece of Lancaster's dramatic past [giving] a crucial insight into the history of the county." The museum was also successful in acquiring the Viking-era Silverdale Hoard, discovered in the City of Lancaster district in 2011, for its collection. The collections also include the King's Own Royal Regiment Museum. The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council granted the museum "Accredited" status; since 1 October 2011 accreditation is a responsibility of Arts Council England.

1. Gallery


1. See also

Grade II* listed buildings in Lancashire Listed buildings in Lancaster, Lancashire List of works by Thomas Harrison

1. References


1. External links

Lancaster City Museum website King's Own Royal Regiment Museum official website

Nearby Places View Menu

Lancaster, Lancashire

Lancaster ( LANG-kə-stər or LANG-kast-ər) is a city in Lancashire, England, and the main cultural hub, economic and commercial centre of City of Lancaster district. The city is on the River Lune, directly inland from Morecambe Bay. Lancaster is the county town, although Lancashire County Council has been based at County Hall in Preston since its formation in 1889. The city's long history is marked by Lancaster Roman Fort, Lancaster Castle, Lancaster Priory Church, Lancaster Cathedral and the Ashton Memorial. It is the seat of Lancaster University and has a campus of the University of Cumbria. It had a population of 52,234 in the 2011 census, compared to the district, which had a population of 138,375. The House of Lancaster was a branch of the English royal family. The Duchy of Lancaster still holds large estates on behalf of Charles III, who is the Duke of Lancaster. The Port of Lancaster and the 18th-century Lancaster slave trade played a major role in the city's growth, but for many years the outport of Glasson Dock, downstream, has been the main shipping facility.

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Market Square, Lancaster

Market Square is an historic public square in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is located on Market Street, a few hundred feet east of New Street. It is believed the square was founded around 1193, when a borough charter was granted to the town, allowing it to hold a market. Lancaster City Museum stands on the western side of the square, in the building formerly occupied by Lancaster Town Hall, which moved to Dalton Square in 1910. The museum building was completed in 1783 and is a designated Grade II* listed building. Lancaster Central Library adjoins the museum building in the northwestern corner of the square. Two arcades (a colloquial name for a alleyway or ginnel) open out on the square from the south. One from St Nicholas Arcades and one that originates on King Street. Bonnie Prince Charlie was proclaimed regent in the square by the Jacobite Army on 24 November 1745.

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Gillows of Lancaster and London

Gillows of Lancaster and London, also known as Gillow & Co., was an English furniture making firm based in Lancaster, Lancashire, and in London. It was founded in Lancaster in about 1730 by Robert Gillow (1704–1772). Gillows was owned by the family until 1814 when it was taken over by Redmayne, Whiteside, and Ferguson; they continued to use the Gillow name. Gillows furniture was a byword for quality, and other designers used Gillows to manufacture their furniture. Gillows furniture is referred to by Thackeray and the first Lord Lytton, and in one of Gilbert and Sullivan's comic operas. In 1903 Gillows merged with Warings of Liverpool to become Waring and Gillow and although the furniture remained of a high quality it was not as prestigious.

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The Storey

The Storey, formerly the Storey Institute, is a multi-purpose building located at the corner of Meeting House Lane and Castle Hill in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Its main part is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building, with its back entrance being listed separately, also at Grade II.

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