Pendle Heritage Centre — Attraction in Borough of Pendle

This is a really thoroughly interesting, informative and brilliant place to visit and is situated in the quaint town of Barrowford, Lancashire. The Heritage Centre is situated in an old stone building called Park Hill which was originally owned by the Bannister Family who have links to the famous runner Roger Bannister before being owned by the Swinglehursts and is a great place to house the museum and the exhibitions that subsequently follow. The museum carries a small charge of £5, which is very reasonable for what you see and also there is a car park which is free for the first hour but £1 per hour after that which is again affordable and reasonable. The museum itself houses some interesting exhibitions about the building itself, how it was built and its architecture, The Building's original owners The Bannisters and then the later owners The Swinglehursts. The other exhibitions are about the local monasteries called Sawley Abbey, how it started and dissolved in the Tudor Times, How the area of Pendle came into being and who controlled it during the Norman Times and the Story of Pendle Witches. The Story of the Pendle Witches is the most interesting and thought provoking exhibition of all and details the story of how the Witches were discovered, their rituals and beliefs which people thought was evil magic and how they were brutally convicted for the crime of witchcraft. The story of the Pendle Witches highlights of issues of misogyny, prejudice and persecution very informatively and leaves you with the impression that the Pendle Witches were awfully persecuted for their crimes and that there was horrific misogyny and prejudice that played a part in their demise. In the Pendle Witches exhibition you can watch a very informative and interesting video about the Pendle Witches. The exhibition about Park Hill is very interesting detailing its full history how it's made and structured architecturally and how it's changed through the time and how the Bannister came to own the building and how the building changed to the Swinglehursts. There is also an interesting garden museum detailing how the garden has been laid out over time and also there some interesting borders to see in the garden and there is a lovely easy walk up to the Cruck Barn and marvellous at is magnificent architecture internally and externally. There is a cafe selling a wonderful range of food and drink at reasonable prices and there is a small shop selling a lovely range of gifts and souvenirs at affordable reasonable prices. Overall this is an absolutely gem of a place to visit and learn about some interesting thought provoking exhibitions and makes for a great day out. Well worth a visit whilst...

Pendle Heritage Centre is a gem. Sitting on the edge of Barrowford Park, the Heritage Centre is an excellent place to start or finish a day exploring and walking round Pendle.

The cafe is superb. Generous portions of home cooked food that is delicious. On a hot day there will be queues for the tasty ice cream.

Them there is the museum where toy will learn all about the history of the Pendle Witches with excellent exhibits and information supported by enthusiastic volunteers who are happy to furnish you with further information.

Then there is the museum bookshop. This is much more than a museum bookshop though. It has a comprehensive selection of historical text books and biographies add well as specialist books on local history. You can also find a wide range of fictional works about the Pendle Witches.

There is a walked garden open for viewing and only a short walk away is Barrowford Mill which houses a range of arts and craft shops which are well worth a visit.

You will not be disappointed with your time here which is why so many tours stop here along with Boundary Mill which is just up the road. I'd recommend walking boots and a tell along the river path towards the Water...

It was pretty difficult to find, it's not clearly sign posted. I actually drove past it about 4 times.

The information about the building and the family who lived there was quite interesting but its a very small museum.

The gardens were beautiful though, and the coffee shop was lovely.

I was very disappointed at the information (or lack of) about the pendle witch trials though, it didn't feel cohesive with the other rooms and didn't feel sympathetic to the victims of the trials in how it was presented. Understandably, there is an awful lot more to the story of the pendle witches than can be presented in a pretty small space, unfortunately, for me (as someone who has a keen interest in witchcraft, specifically in the uk) the information which was picked to be presented left me feeling very conflicted and rather uncomfortable.

If you're looking for information and places to visit specifically for the pendle witch trials, I'd give this place a miss, however, if you're down pendle for a while and have a spare couple of hours, it's a nice...