Discover more about life in historic Lancaster at the Cottage Museum, the smallest and most immersive museum in the city.

The tiny staircases lead to rooms that look as though the occupants have just left. Handle objects and imagine this is your home; for a while anyway.

Facing Lancaster Castle and just a short walk from the Judges Lodgings, the Cottage is part of a 1739 house, subdivided around 1820 and furnished as an artisan’s house of that date. 

The museum provides an intimate glimpse of early Victorian life in a typical 18th century cottage, which is (you wouldn’t know to look at it) spread over five floors. You can also find out more about some of the now-forgotten everyday objects in the cottage in this article: Yesterday's Everyday.

The Cottage Museum is currently CLOSED for the winter.

It will re-open in April 2025. The usual opening hours are 1 - 4pm every Saturday, April to September only.

Please check the web pages for our other museums to see their opening days and times, as each museum is different.

Dogs:  Only assistance dogs are permitted in the museum. This is because even well-behaved dogs are curious, and they sometimes need the loo. We can’t risk it for the sake of our fragile museum objects, which might get knocked over by a very waggy tail, and other visitors who may be nervous around dogs.