Bakewell Old House Museum
About
Up the lane behind the church, the museum's own site says this was built as a tithe house in 1534 and is the oldest standing house in Bakewell, with its Tudor wattle and daub, fireplace and windows still in place. It grew into a gentleman's house in the Elizabethan period, complete with a garderobe, was turned into mill workers' cottages by Richard Arkwright, who built a cotton mill at Lumford, and was a condemned row of tenements when the Bakewell and District Historical Society saved it in the 1950s. Eleven rooms hold objects donated by local people over sixty years; through 2026 there is an exhibition of doll's houses and miniatures. Dogs are welcome. The museum asks visitors to take care on the old lane and the cobbled forecourt, and parking there is for Blue Badge holders or by arrangement.
Photos
Highlights
- ✓Tudor wattle and daub and a garderobe
- ✓Arkwright's mill workers' cottages
- ✓2026 doll's house exhibition
- ✓Children's trails
Tips
- →The ticket is valid for a year.
- →Walk up North Church Street from the Rutland Arms; it is about three minutes along Church Lane from the bus stop on South Church Street.
- →Allow at least an hour, the museum suggests, when buying parking.