Heritage Open Days – what would you like to see?

Photo: The photo is from a book ‘Hopwood Hall 1250-1963’ by C. S. MacDonald. Published in 1963

Aerial view of Hopwood-Hall, Middleton

2 More Image(s) In Gallery

Once again, this September some of the borough’s most spectacular and intriguing buildings will be opening their doors to the public.

Take on tour of the graves of fifteen of the original 28 ‘Rochdale Pioneers’ who are buried in Rochdale Cemetery.

Visit Hopwood Hall, which is open for the first time in over 30 years, a few areas are open for public viewing. The building is currently derelict and a new effort is being launched to save and preserve the estate led by Hopwood DePree, a descendant of the Hopwoods.

Explore Rochdale or Middleton Parish Churches, Rochdale’s Parish Church has stood on the hill overlooking the town for well over 1,000 years. Built and rebuilt over the generations, it has stonework dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries.

St Leonard's Church, Middleton Parish Church, has been serving the people of Middleton for over 900 years. There was probably a wooden Saxon church on the site before that.

Hare Hill House will be open to the public, dressed as it would have been in the 1950s and 1960s when it served as the Town Hall for the former Littleborough Urban District Council.

Greater Manchester Fire Service Museum has historic fire engines, equipment, artifacts and uniforms portraying the history of firefighting, particularly in Greater Manchester.

Heritage Open Days is a nationwide event, celebrating England’s architecture and culture by offering free access to buildings that are usually closed to the public or charge admission.

It is a once a year chance to discover hidden architectural treasures and enjoy a wide range of tours, events and activities which bring to local history and culture to life at buildings of every age, style and function.

Organised by volunteers and supported by Link4Life, the council Heritage Open Days National Partnership. Heritage Open Days is England’s biggest and most popular voluntary cultural event.

Heritage Open Days runs from Thursday 7 September to Sunday 10 September.

Events and venues of buildings across the borough can be found on Rochdale Online’s Events Diary along with booking information for a few of the more specialised openings: 

https://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/events/search?searchtype=text&searchvalue=Heritage+Open+Days&Page=1