Penrith and Eden Museum

About the museum

Penrith and Eden Museum is housed in Robinson’s School on Middlegate, a building founded in 1670 to educate poor girls. It served as a school for about 300 years and celebrated its 350th anniversary in 2020. Penrith’s first museum was founded in 1883, and the collections date back to that time.

The museum covers the archaeology, art, social history, natural history and geology of Penrith and the surrounding Eden Valley. Highlights include a fossil footprint of a creature older than the dinosaurs, Stone Age tools and Roman finds such as a hoard of coins from Newby and gold jewellery from Brougham, as well as the medieval seal of Penrith and old market toll measures. There are also personal items connected with local figures, including the wrestler William Jameson and Percy Toplis, known as the Monocled Mutineer, and paintings by the Victorian Penrith artist Jacob Thompson.

The museum is owned and run by Westmorland and Furness Council and is an Accredited Museum under the Arts Council England scheme. Penrith Tourist Information Centre is in the same building. A programme of events includes finds days, when a Portable Antiquities Officer identifies objects brought in by visitors, and education workshops for local schools.

Highlights

• Fossil footprint of a creature that lived before the dinosaurs
• Roman coin hoard from Newby and Roman gold jewellery from Brougham
• Neolithic gallery with the film Stones from the Sky about Cumbrian stone axes
• Geology gallery with local minerals, fossils and mine tools
• Paintings by the Victorian artist Jacob Thompson

Permanent exhibitions

• Neolithic gallery – Stone Age life in the Eden Valley, including the short film Stones from the Sky about Cumbrian stone axes.
• Geology gallery – Local minerals, fossils, a spar box and mine tools, including the fossil footprint of a creature older than the dinosaurs.
• Local history and art – Roman finds, the medieval seal of Penrith, local characters and paintings by Jacob Thompson and other Penrith artists.

Founded

1985

Operated by

Westmorland and Furness Council

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• 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

All ground floor galleries are accessible. The upper floor geology display (Ages of Eden) can be viewed on a computer kiosk on the ground floor. An illustrated, descriptive printed guide is available and a hearing induction loop is installed in the galleries.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

Penrith Tourist Information Centre is housed in the same building.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit