HERITAGE OPEN DAYS
Free entry to The Armitt and tours of the museum storeroom on Friday 13th September as part of Heritage Open Days
Visitors to Ambleside will get free entry to The Armitt on Friday 13th September, and the chance to explore the museum storeroom, as part of Heritage Open Days in the UK.
Throughout the day on Friday, September 13th, The Armitt will run free 30-minute tours of the storeroom, allowing you to see objects not currently on display and learn about how the museum archives and stores the collection. Visitors can explore the galleries with lots of trails and activities and see our current exhibition, “Running Int’ Fells” on the history of fell running, Cumbria’s favourite sport.
Faye Morrissey, Manager and Curator at The Armitt, says: “It is great to be a part of Heritage Open Days once again in 2024. This time, we’re providing a special behind-the-scenes peek into our museum stores – somewhere not often open to visitors. You’ll be able to find out a bit more about the unique objects in the collection and how they relate to the local people, places and industry of Ambleside and the wider community. In addition, throughout the day our team will be doing some active work checking, marking and re-packaging collection objects. Maybe you can have a go too!”
The Armitt is a museum, gallery and library situated in one of the most picturesque villages in Cumbria – Ambleside. It has been an Ambleside institution since 1912, and its remarkable collection includes Beatrix Potter’s original fungi watercolours, the Charlotte Mason college archive, and archaeological remains from the Ambleside Roman Fort.
The Heritage Open Day theme for 2024 is “Roots, Networks, Connections” which celebrates how people and ideas have moved around and come together throughout history. Visitors have shaped the Lake District into its current form, arriving by carriage in the eighteenth century, train in the nineteenth century, and cars and buses today, to bask in the natural beauty of its stunning landscapes. Incomers like Beatrix Potter and Alfred Wainwright have left a lasting impact on the Lake District, with runners, climbers and walkers carving footpaths across the fellsides over the course of hundreds of years. The Armitt aims to show this through object stories in the storeroom tours.
Liam Montgomery, Heritage Open Days Marketing & Projects Manager, says: “The scale and diversity of Heritage Open Days is just incredible – every year thousands of passionate people help visitors to make doorstep discoveries and connect with history and heritage in every part of England. This year though, it will be extra special as we celebrate three decades worth of stories and all the brilliant people and places that have made it, and continue to make it, all possible!”
The Armitt’s Heritage Open Day will be on Friday, 13th September 2024. The museum will be open from 10am-5pm and walks and tours of the storeroom will be at 11am, 12pm, 2pm, 3pm and 4pm. You can pre-book online at: www.armitt.com, by phone on 015394 31212 or email events@armitt.com