heritage of coniston...
Ruskin Museum
"The most thought-provoking museum in the Lakes" (Rough Guide) pays tribute to the life and work of John Ruskin (1819-1900), one of the most influential critics, thinkers and social reformers of his day, who inspired Tolstoy, Proust, Shaw, Oscar Wilde, the first Labour MPs, and Gandhi, amongst others. Revolted by industrialisation and rampant capitalism, he revived the local linen industry (the museum houses the finest collection of Ruskin Lace in the world). Other exhibits explore the Coniston context: its text-book geology, its copper mines and slate quarries, and its Herdwick sheep husbandry. The museum also pays tribute to Donald Campbell (1921-1967), another local hero, who broke the World Water Speed Record four times on Coniston Water in Bluebird before a fatal crash on the lake on 4 January 1967.
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"Wealthy on the proceeds of copper mining"
Coniston Hall
An imposing 16th century house on the shores of Coniston Water. It was built by the Le Fleming family, who became wealthy on the proceeds of copper mining. Nearby, was a quay used for storing and transferring copper ore onto barges for transport to the southern end of Coniston Water. Here the ore was taken by road to the port at Greenodd and shipped to smelting and refining sites. The house is not open to the public, but good views of the hall and its enormous round chimneys can be gained from the public footpath and lake cruises.
St Andrews Church ( C of E )
In the graveyard is the finely carved gravestone of John Ruskin. The grave of Donald Campbell lies in the church cemetery on Hawkshead Old Road.
