Touchstones Rochdale

Touchstones Rochdale is the town's combined art gallery, local history museum, heritage centre and archives — housed in a magnificent Grade II* listed Victorian building on The Esplanade in the heart of Rochdale town centre. With free entry and a diverse programme of exhibitions, events and community activities, Touchstones is the cultural heart of Rochdale and one of the most distinctive civic cultural institutions in Greater Manchester.

The building, a confident late Victorian Baroque structure with an ornate facade, was opened in 1903 as Rochdale's public library and art gallery — a civic gift to a town that had prospered greatly from the textile industry and its co-operative movement. The quality of the architecture reflects Rochdale's Victorian self-confidence: this is a building that proclaims its town's cultural ambitions in stone and terracotta, its elaborate exterior demanding attention from passers-by on The Esplanade.

The name Touchstones — chosen to reflect the multiple heritage 'gems' of the town — encapsulates the institution's diverse mission. The art collection includes fine and decorative arts spanning several centuries, with particular strengths in Victorian and Edwardian painting and in works by artists with Rochdale connections. The local history collections are rich and wide-ranging, covering the full breadth of Rochdale's history from pre-industrial textile production through the Victorian boom years of the cotton trade to the 20th century.

Rochdale's most famous daughter is Gracie Fields — the singer, comedian and actress who was born Grace Stansfield in a small house on Molesworth Street in 1898 and went on to become one of the most celebrated entertainers in the world. Gracie Fields' Rochdale origins and her extraordinary career are celebrated at Touchstones, whose collections include memorabilia, photographs and recordings that document her rise from the mills and theatres of Lancashire to international stardom.

The archives and local studies centre at Touchstones provides access to documentary and photographic records of Rochdale's history, serving researchers, family historians and schools throughout the region.