About
Turton Tower is a fascinating and atmospheric historic house in which five centuries of architectural development can be read in the fabric of a single building — from a 15th-century stone defensive tower through Elizabethan and Jacobean extensions to Victorian alterations, each generation leaving its mark on a structure of considerable historic interest and domestic charm.
The tower that gives the building its name dates from the 15th century, built as a defensive structure during the troubled period of the Wars of the Roses when the Lancashire gentry felt vulnerable enough to invest in stone defensive towers known as pele towers. The original tower was subsequently incorporated into an expanding manor house as the need for defence gave way to the desire for comfort. In the 16th and 17th centuries a series of timber-framed and stone additions were made by the Orrell, Chetham and Kay families who successively owned the property, creating an increasingly complex and comfortable domestic establishment.
The tower and its early extensions passed through several families before reaching the Chetham family in the early 17th century. Humphrey Chetham — the famous Manchester merchant, banker and philanthropist who endowed Chetham's Library and School — was connected to the Turton Cheathams, and this connection gives the house a broader historical significance within Lancashire's rich mercantile and intellectual traditions.
In the 19th century the property was acquired by the industrialist James Kay, who carried out extensive Victorian restoration and remodelling of the house in the Elizabethan Revival style fashionable at the time. Kay's alterations, while extensive, respected the character of the earlier building and added considerable comfort, creating the house that visitors largely see today.
Today the house is managed by Lancashire County Council as a museum, with displays of furniture, household artefacts, arms, armour and local history spanning 500 years of domestic life in this corner of industrial Lancashire. The woodland grounds provide a beautiful and tranquil setting for what is one of the North West's least-known but most rewarding historic properties.
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Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
📅 Best Times to Visit
💡 Visitor Tips
- Bromley Cross station on the Manchester to Clitheroe line is only a 15-minute walk from the tower — arriving by train through the Bradshaw Valley is a particularly pleasant way to visit.
- The tower interior is the main reason to visit — the progression from the rough medieval stone of the pele tower to the comfortable Victorian rooms is genuinely fascinating.
- Ask staff to point out the different building phases as you go round — the architectural development of the house from defensive tower to country house is one of the most interesting things about it.
- The woodland grounds are excellent for a walk before or after the house tour — the Bradshaw Brook is nearby and the surrounding woodland is managed for wildlife.
- Combine a visit with Jumbles Country Park, a short walk away, for a full day out with children.
- The admission price is excellent value — this is one of Lancashire's hidden gems, far less visited than it deserves.
- Bolton Museum in the town centre, 4 miles away, complements a visit to Turton very well — together they give a comprehensive picture of Bolton and Lancashire history.
- Check the events programme for special evenings and seasonal events — the tower is particularly atmospheric by candlelight at Halloween and Christmas.
Highlights
Discover the unique exhibits and collections at this museum.
Collections
The collection comprises approximately 2,500 objects including arms and armour (Tudor and Stuart period), domestic furniture spanning five centuries, household artefacts, agricultural equipment, textiles and an archive of local history material relating to Turton and the surrounding area. The building fabric — tower, timber-frame extensions and Victorian additions — is itself the primary collection.
Five Centuries of Turton Tower
Displays throughout the house tracing the architectural and social history of the tower from its 15th-century origins through Tudor, Jacobean and Victorian development.
Arms, Armour and Domestic Life
Collections of arms and armour from the Tudor and Stuart periods displayed alongside domestic furniture and household objects in the historic rooms.
Lancashire Social History
Local history displays relating to Turton and the Bolton hinterland, documenting life in the area from the medieval period to the industrial era.
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.