Townend

About the museum

Townend is a traditional Lake District farmhouse in the Troutbeck valley, built in the seventeenth century and home to twelve generations of the Browne family for around 400 years. The house is full of the objects of the family's daily lives, from farming tools to books.

The interior contains carved oak furniture, much of it made by George Browne, who enjoyed woodcarving, together with farming tools and household items. The family's library is one of the surprises of the house: it holds their well-used books, including 45 volumes that are the only copies still known to exist. Visitors can look into the library but cannot walk through it. Upstairs there is a small display of the most recently conserved volume of documents that George Browne had bound into books.

The house also tells wider stories, including the roles of Ben and George Browne in the Jacobite Risings of 1715 and in the Westmorland militia. A 57-page recipe book compiled by Elizabeth Birkett before her marriage to Ben Browne records food, medicine and cleaning recipes, and volunteers in period costume bring some of these dishes to life on Thursdays.

Outside there is an informal cottage-style garden, and the adjacent bank barn, one of the earliest in Cumbria, can be seen from the garden although it is still in agricultural use. Townend is cared for by the National Trust.

Highlights

• Seventeenth-century farmhouse lived in by one family for about 400 years
• Carved oak furniture, much of it by George Browne
• Library with 45 books that survive in no other copy
• Taste of Townend: 17th-century recipes brought to life on Thursdays
• Cottage-style garden and view of one of Cumbria's earliest bank barns
• Daily guided tour in a small group

Permanent exhibition

• The Browne family farmhouse – Rooms of the seventeenth-century farmhouse with carved furniture, farming objects and the family's library, plus a small display of conserved documents.

Operated by

National Trust

Admission & discounts

Free entry for National Trust members. Guided tours cost the standard admission price for non-members and are free for members; tickets go on sale two weeks in advance.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The house has narrow corridors and many small steps, including a step at the entrance, and the cottage garden is reached by a steep slope. There is an induction loop. A designated accessible space and a drop-off point are at the car park. Only assistance dogs are allowed inside the farmhouse. A full access guide is available on the AccessAble website.

Kids & families

• Baby changing facilities

Baby changing facilities are available in the toilets.

Getting there & parking

Sat nav postcode for the car park: LA23 1LE. From the south, leave the M6 at junction 36 and follow the A590 and A591 to Troutbeck Bridge, then Bridge Lane and Holbeck Lane. National Cycle Network route 6 runs to Windermere.

Amenities & dining

Toilets with baby changing are provided.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit