Lancaster Walking Tour: Explore Historical Sites and Traces of Slavery Trade
5.0
27 Ratings
Lancashire
Embark on a captivating Lancaster walking tour to uncover historical sites, including Lancaster Castle, the slave trade's impact, and the first forensic murder case. Join us now!
Duration:
2 hours, 45 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Lancaster Castle - An ancient castle - but what else? Learn about the Castle’s place in history - its famous and not so famous prisoners, trials and executions.
- Saint George’s Quay - An eighteenth century harbour on the River Lune, its connections to the international slave trade, and characters connected with this area.
- Judges’ Lodgings - The oldest house in Lancaster. Who it was owned by and its link to witchcraft.
- Church Street - A prince goes missing. Some stories about a potential king of England.
- Market Street - A prince raises the banner and another loses a shoe. Stories about two Royal prices - 300 years apart.
- Dalton Square - A murder and a government bonus. Learn about the first murder solved by forensic science and the bonus paid to slave owners.
- Lancaster Canal - The White Cross Mill and the Lancaster Canal. Learn about the Storey Brothers and the heyday of this coastal canal.
- Penny’s Almshouses - A look at an almshouse - still functioning today. Who founded it and how it was financed.
- The Storey - An educational institute founded by donations - which became the forerunner of the university tradition in the City.
What's Included
- Guided walking tour
Additional Information
Home to a rich legacy from the Roman era, a historic castle, a unique national song, ties to the transatlantic slave trade, and the first case of a brutal murder cracked using forensic science, Lancaster brims with intriguing sites and stories.
Our journey commences at Lancaster Castle, delving into the trials of the Pendle Witches and prominent Quakers. We’ll delve into the ways in which Lancaster flourished due to its involvement in the 18th-century slave trade. We’ll learn about Lancaster’s Black and White Canal and how the pioneering use of forensic science helped solve a murder in the heart of Lancaster.
Sites we’ll explore:
- Lancaster Castle
- The Priory
- The Quayside
- Almshouses
- Affluent houses tied to the slave trade
- Other distinctive edifices linked to architects and industrial magnates
- Lancaster Canal
- The residence of a physician that transformed into a murder scene
Location
26 Castle Park
Castle Park
In front of the Castle front gate on the steep slope - guide will be carrying a red umbrella
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(27 Ratings)
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I508nqjulieh
May 26, 2024
Thoroughly recommend - We can thoroughly recommend this walking tour. You will learn so much about the history of Lancaster and get your steps in too!!! Barrie clearly enjoys sharing his knowledge and together with his sense of humour we enjoyed spending the morning in his company.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nomad64695472467
May 26, 2024
Barrie's tour is excellent - Barrie was an excellent guide: very knowledgeable, interesting and patient (we asked lots of questions...) The weather was against us but it didn't matter a jot: we were engaged the whole time. It is a very good way to get to know the history of the town and decide which of the places you may wish to return to afterwards.
We highly recommend booking on this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Yvonne_r
May 26, 2024
Top rate tour of Lancaster's history - Barrie was an excellent guide: very knowledgeable, interesting and patient (we asked lots of questions...) The weather was against us but it didn't matter a jot: we were engaged the whole time. It is a very good way to get to know the history of the town and decide which of the places you may wish to return to afterwards.
We highly recommend booking on this tour.
Review provided by Viator
These2230ve
May 16, 2024
Lancaster small group walking tour - Many tales were told of Lancaster’s history. I would have missed a lot if I hadn’t done this tour. Learned about the witch trials, slave traders,the many important products and businesses originating in Lancaster such as oilcloth, linoleum, anaglypta. Quite a lot of walking at a brisk pace on this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
J2153ptsuec
Apr 20, 2024
Lovley day - Excellent tour. Barry was very knowledgeable, informative, friendly and made it interesting. Really enjoyed our afternoon. The only thing I struggled with was standing in one place as I have a back problem but this didn't reflect on the tour. Thank you Barry. 😊
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lisahv8248hs
Apr 7, 2024
Interesting - The tour guide certainly knew his stuff, we learnt a lot and it was all very interesting. Glad we left the children with their Grandparents as this would be too long for them and they would have got bored but we loved it
Review provided by Tripadvisor
362douglask
Mar 28, 2024
Very enjoyable and learned a lot - Enjoyed the tour. It was very informative. Guide (I think his name was Barry) was very friendly and knowledgeable. I felt I learned a lot about Lancaster.
Only suggestion would be to build in toilet stops - the tour was 3.5 hours long so that was quite a long time without a stop.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Paulbg5061pe
Mar 24, 2024
Enjoyable tour with knowledgeable tour guide - Tour guide was very knowledgeable about the history of Lancaster. We had the tour to ourselves, however I think it would have been just has good if it had been full. Does not rush round and takes time to explain things, and clearly enjoys history.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Debbiel885
Mar 23, 2024
Informative and enjoyable. - So much information plus seeing the sights. Learned a lot and was delighted it covered so much history and we saw so many places around the City. Thoroughly enjoyed the walk
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Staceysx7379mi
May 28, 2024
Waking tour of around the Lancaster castle - Really knowledgeable guide. Walk through parts of the city we wouldn't have known were there on our own. Lovely scenery and fact about the town and it's past
Review provided by Tripadvisor