Wordsworth Trust

We had a very nice docent tell us about the house, and the guests, and the furnishings. It was very interesting. Also quite a treat to see all the personal belongings, and manuscripts. The house is lovingly cared for, and the gardens are breathtaking. I visited the house with AP students, so I was very pleased it was such a marvelously atmospheric place. There is a walk you can take down to town– it’s quite steep, with lots of gravel– so I didn’t go, but my students loved it. I walked down the street to take in the church (St Mary’s), just at the end of the street– quite a nice place, don’t miss it, and the field Wordsworth planted daffodils in when he was devastated at the loss of his daughter, is there as well– Dora’s Field– it’s part of the National Trust. There’s a little gate opposite the doors of St Mary’s and you can see the field. The family are buried at St Oswald’s Chruch down in Grassmere– also worth a visit.

You start with a guided tour of the cottage where William Wordsworth lived and it isn’t all about his poems. The guide talked about the family and their visitors and the things they got up to as well as the furniture and cooking and the garden. The upstairs museum is a bit more formal and educational, but the downstairs is an exhibition about life in the area with computer screens showing Wordsworth’s sister’s diaries as well as bits about shepherds and naming local places with nicknames. There is separate room where kids can do drawing and word games. I think that bit is free. Worth the money if you don’t know much about Wordsworth. I didn’t think I was interested but I am now.