Judges' Lodgings

About the museum

The house stands on Castle Hill next to Lancaster Castle and is the oldest surviving town house in the city. The present building dates from about 1625 and replaced earlier houses on the site. By 1639 it belonged to Thomas Covell, Keeper of Lancaster Castle and several times mayor, who is remembered for holding the Pendle witches in the castle's underground cell before their trial in 1612.

For almost two centuries the building served as lodgings for the High Court judges who came to Lancaster to hear serious criminal cases at the castle assizes. Lancaster became known as a place where many death sentences were passed. The assizes were abolished in 1971 and the last judges stayed here in 1975. Lancashire County Council then turned the house into a museum. After the council planned to end its funding, volunteers and the Friends of the museum worked to keep it open, and it now opens on four days a week.

The principal rooms are furnished in Regency and Victorian styles and show what the museum describes as the largest collection of furniture by Gillows of Lancaster on public display anywhere. A newer gallery tells the story of the cabinet-making firm, including its links to the Caribbean slave economy. Upstairs, the Museum of Childhood presents nurseries, a Victorian schoolroom and dolls and toys from the eighteenth century onwards.

Highlights

• Largest collection of Gillows of Lancaster furniture on public display, according to the museum
• Regency and Victorian period rooms
• Museum of Childhood with nurseries, a schoolroom and the Barry Elder dolls collection
• Exhibition on the house, the assize judges and the law
• Connection with the Pendle witches through Thomas Covell

Permanent exhibitions

• Gillows of Lancaster – A gallery on the Lancaster and London furniture makers Gillows, covering the family, customers, apprentices and workers, with pieces such as a lady's workbox, a worktable and a clock.
• The Judges' Lodgings and the Law – Rooms and displays about the house as lodgings for visiting assize judges, its early owner Thomas Covell and the Pendle witches.
• The Museum of Childhood – Day and night nurseries, a Victorian schoolroom and a collection of dolls and toys showing how children lived, played and worked.

Operated by

Friends of Lancaster Judges' Lodgings Museum

Admission & discounts

Members of the Friends of the museum enter free.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: not available
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The house is a 17th-century building without a lift. Visitors with limited mobility can use the side entrance, which is reached by a steep slope and has one step, to see the ground floor. There is no parking on site. Large print information is available on request, and many staff and volunteers have completed disability, deaf and dementia awareness training.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Hands-on stations
• Stroller-friendly: not available
• Baby changing facilities

Children under 18 enter free. Family craft workshops and seasonal trails run during the year. Children can try hands-on tasks such as cleaning in the Victorian kitchen, dressing up in the schoolroom and playing with traditional toys. The house is not suitable for pushchairs, but buggies can be left on the ground floor. All toilets have baby changing facilities, high chairs are available, and visitors may picnic in the garden and courtyard, or indoors on wet days if they ask staff.

Getting there & parking

The house is just off China Street on the one-way system (A6) in the town centre. Leave the M6 at junction 34 when coming from the north and junction 33 from the south, then follow signs for the castle.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

A Victorian pop-up café operates on the first Saturday of each month in the education room and courtyard, and tearooms are held at some special events. The shop sells locally made gifts, traditional toys and souvenirs.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit