Fulledge

Peel Tower

Holcombe · 11 miles

Rising 128 feet above Holcombe Moor, the stone monument known locally as Holcombe Tower marks the spot where Robert Peel, the former Prime Minister and founder of the modern police force, was commemorated after his death in 1850. Situated near Ramsbottom in Greater Manchester, the tower sits at an elevation of roughly 1 100 feet (335 metres) and forms a prominent landmark on the moorland that separates the town from the surrounding countryside. Construction began shortly after Peel’s passing, driven by a public appeal and overseen by a committee chaired by industrialist William Grant. The gritstone used for the structure was quarried on-site, leaving a visible pit beside the base. The tower’s crenellated base bears the name “Peel” above its entrance, and the four-stage shaft features mullioned windows and battlements that support a viewing platform. In 1929 the original wooden staircase was replaced with iron, and a marble panel bearing an excerpt from Peel’s 1846 speech to the House of Commons was added. During the Second World War the tower served as a lookout post; later corrosion led to its closure until a new concrete staircase was installed and the monument was rededicated in November 1985. Today the structure is owned by Bury Metropolitan Borough Council, holds Grade II listed status (designated 1984), and is occasionally accessible to visitors on Sundays when the flag at its summit is flying, the flag being maintained by volunteers.

Memorial to William Busfeild Ferrand

St. Ives · 16 miles

Bingley St. Ives, or St. Ives Estate is a 550-acre (2.2 km2) country park and former estate between Bingley and Harden in West Yorkshire, England now owned by Bradford Council. The park has Grade II listing in the English Heritage National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Interest. The park has been given Accredited Country Park status by Natural England.

Leverhulme Park

Tonge Fold · 16 miles

Leverhulme Park occupies the greatest expanse of green space in Bolton, Greater Manchester, and lies close to the Tonge Fold area. The land was presented to the town’s residents by the late Lord Leverhulme, after whom the park is named, and it is bordered by the districts of Breightmet, Darcy Lever, the Haulgh and Tonge Fold. Its position within the town makes it readily reachable from the surrounding neighbourhoods and the nearest settlement identified on mapping services is Tonge Fold. The site now includes a community centre, an athletics stadium and a set of five-a-side football pitches, providing facilities for a range of organised sports. A free weekly parkrun is held each Saturday at 09:00, inviting walkers and runners to use the park’s pathways. Historically the park hosted the Bolton Show, an event that evolved from a 1950s agricultural exhibition and ran intermittently for more than half a century, usually each August until 2003. At its height the show drew crowds of up to 90 000 and featured craft stalls, motorbike displays, stunt performances, falconry, dog handling, a fairground, car-boot sales and a concluding fireworks display. A later family-focused programme, Bolton One Big Weekend, attracted an estimated 20 000 visitors and offered activities such as quad-bike racing, bungee jumping, tank rides, a vintage car showcase, morris dancing, martial-arts demonstrations and a dog show. No admission charges or specific opening hours are recorded, reflecting its status as a public park with open access for visitors.

Bolton Art Gallery, Library & Museum

Eagley · 17 miles

Has an archive section

Rigodunum Roman Fort

Castleshaw · 17 miles

The remains of a Roman castellum sit on Castle Hill at the eastern edge of the Castleshaw Valley, overlooking the landscape below Standedge in Greater Manchester. The archaeological site, recorded as the Rigodunum Roman Fort on OpenStreetMap, lies on a step of Grindslow shale and commands clear views along the Deva Victrix (Chester) to Eboracum (York) Roman road that once crossed the Pennines at this pass. From the fort the valley can be seen in both directions, although higher ground surrounds the position. Constructed of turf and timber around AD 79, the original fort housed roughly 500 auxiliary soldiers before being slighted in the mid-90s. A smaller fortlet replaced it circa AD 105, later expanded with gates, a granary, an oven, a hypocaust and a courtyard building, supporting a garrison of fewer than 100 men. In the early 2nd century a civilian settlement (vicus) developed around the fortlet, likely serving the logistical needs of the nearby garrison. Both the fort, the later fortlet and the surrounding settlement are protected as a scheduled monument, reflecting their national archaeological importance. The site has been examined since the 18th century, with early plans drawn by antiquarian Thomas Percival and later trenching by local investigators, though the remains have never been fully excavated due to their protected status.

Moses Gate Country Park

Daubhill · 17 miles

Set on the Croal and Irwell valleys, the 750-acre Moses Gate Country Park lies three miles south of Bolton town centre along the A6053 between Farnworth and Little Lever, with Daubhill the nearest settlement. The site stretches from the main road to Nob End, following the River Croal to its confluence with the Irwell, after which the water continues into Clifton Country Park. Its name combines a corruption of “mosses”, referring to the historic marshy ground, with the Old English “gata”, meaning a way across. Part of the park is also known as Crompton Lodges, a reference to the former mill ponds that once supplied water to Crompton’s Paper Mills. The Kingfisher Way, an 11 km trail linking Clifton Country Park with Jumbles Reservoir, passes through the area. Three lodges provide distinct uses: one is set aside for angling, another supports water-based recreation such as canoeing, and the third functions as a nature reserve attracting migratory birds. To the east, a short surviving stretch of the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal remains in water, while much of the surrounding ground has been reclaimed from former coal-mine workings, including the old Farnworth Bridge Collieries. A weir on the Croal once fed the paper mill. Rock Hall, built around 1807 and later the park’s visitor centre, has been closed since the ranger service ended in 2014 and is currently offered for commercial lease. Nob End, designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1988 and a Local Nature Reserve in 2000, contains alkaline soils that support a range of orchids such as the fragrant orchid, northern marsh orchid and early marsh orchid, alongside other specialised plants across its 8.8 ha area. Access is via the A6053; the park is open without a listed admission charge, though facilities are limited following the closure of the former visitor centre.