The house remained as a private dwelling owned by several different families throughout the years into the 1930s, then in 1937, after a failed attempt by Cockermouth library to raise enough money to buy it, the local bus company bought it with the intention of demolishing it to build a bus station. After much national press and radio attention enough money was donated for the town to buy the house back and it was handed over to the National Trust in 1938, opening as a Wordsworth memorial in 1939 and also becoming a Grade I listed building. Fast forward to the present day and the house is now furnished and presented as it would have been at the time the Wordsworth family lived there in the 1700s.
Although it was interesting seeing all the different rooms I found many of them, especially some of the bedrooms, were small and quite dark. In the whole of the house the only genuine item belonging to the Wordsworth family was William's father's desk, everything else was period or replica, and because William himself had only lived there until he was eight and had never actually written anything there I felt that the house could have belonged to anyone. However, it was the garden which interested me more and by the time I'd looked round the house and gone outside the sun was shining again and I managed to get some really nice photos.
As I walked back to the van I pondered on my visit to the Wordsworth House. With a small 'library' of modern books in one of the basement rooms and a modern exhibition room upstairs it seemed to be a bit of a mish-mash of styles, and unless I'd missed something there was very little mention of any of William's actual writing in later life. It had only taken me 45 minutes to go round the whole house and garden so I was glad I'm an NT member as personally I don't think the place is worth the £8.30 entrance fee. Would I go there again? Maybe, but only for the garden.
Even though it felt disappointing to you thank goodness the bus company's bid to buy and demolish it failed!
ReplyDeleteQuite true Eileen. Regardless of who lived there in the past it's a very attractive old house with a lovely garden overlooking the river, definitely one worth saving.
ReplyDeleteIt is a beautiful garden! Fairly sure I have been here, but way back in the early 80s.
ReplyDeleteThere's more to the garden than one would think. It looks long and narrow but down at the bottom it turns a corner and widens out, also there are steps up to a grassy terrace overlooking the river. It's a lovely garden and the flowers are beautiful.
DeleteThe garden is lovely, yet I'm always fascinated by the kitchens in these old houses. Thank goodness it was saved from demolition. X
ReplyDeleteThe garden was destroyed in the devastating flood of 2OO9 - the water level was nearly 4ft deep in the basement of the house - but it's so lovely now that no-one would know that it had been so badly wrecked.
ReplyDeleteLovely to see your photos of house and garden, and despite most pieces in the home not belonging to the Wordsworth family it looks a fascinating reperestation of the period. Like other commenters I am glad it was saved from demolition.
ReplyDeletePlaces like this are our country's historical heritage - too many these days are left to deteriorate or worse still are demolished so its good that this house, and other places like it, are saved and listed. I would go to this one again but more for the garden as it really is very pretty :)
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