Wilpshire

Bolton Art Gallery, Library & Museum

Eagley · 14 miles

Has an archive section

Leverhulme Park

Tonge Fold · 15 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.

Moses Gate Country Park

Daubhill · 16 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.

Museum of Wigan Life

Scholes Village · 18 miles

The Museum of Wigan Life is a public museum and local history resource centre in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The nineteenth-century listed building is by the noted architect Alfred Waterhouse. It originally housed Wigan Library, where George Orwell researched his book The Road to Wigan Pier in 1936.

Jubilee Gardens

Oswaldtwistle · 4.3 miles

Opened by Councillor Peter Britcliffe June 2004 to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Gatty Park

Acre · 4.3 miles

Awarded a Green Flag for 2016 - 2017 Gatty Park BB5 4AE is around 3 hectares and situated to the north of Hyndburn Road in the township of Church. Gatty Park was formerly the grounds of Elmfield Hall owned by the Gatty Family. The park has four entrance