History of the Museum and Project

Rare Collection of Steamboats to be saved for the Nation

One of the world’s finest collections of historic boats was secured for the nation when it passed into the care of the Lakeland Arts Trust. Legal matters were finalised on March 15th 2007 triggering a series of events that brought all the boats, buildings and land necessary together. This, in turn, released a £465,000 grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund to pay for the initial “rescue” phase of the project. It is the culmination of two years work and holds out the prospect of an internationally important attraction in one of the most beautiful lakeshore settings anywhere in the country.

The story of the Windermere Steamboat Collection began in the 1890s with the arrival in the Lake District of the newly wealthy Manchester industrialists and their families, eager to escape the smog and squalor of the city for weekends and holidays. Financially successful and socially ambitious, these men built imposing houses and opulent steamboats to demonstrate their success and to make the most of their weekend retreats. This combination of wealth and ambition created a ‘golden age’ of steamboating on the lake, where grand steam yachts and gleaming teak launches would ply the lake, hosting tea-parties and formal dinners.

It was the passing of this era which drove the museum’s founder, George Pattinson, to rescue what he could of Windermere’s elegant heritage. The group of boats that forms the Windermere Steamboat Museum collection were largely amassed by George Pattinson, a local builder with a passion for the boating history of the Lake District. Several, including the world famous Dolly, he raised from the lakebed with the assistance of divers. Some he owned, whilst others were donated or given on long term loan by boat enthusiasts to The Windermere Nautical Trust to be displayed in the purpose built Museum that opened in 1977. George Pattinson wanted the public to see the boats afloat on the lake, where they could be appreciated on the waters for which they were built, and where he could still steam them on the lake for demonstrations. This decision created a more lively museum, with only the most delicate boats in dry displays, but also made for a long-term problem in terms of conservation. 

The Windermere Nautical Trust (who previously owned the Museum) was not officially ‘registered’ and thus it had been difficult for it to get grants for the conservation work needed. Realising the Museum could not continue without major work on the collection, the Windermere Nautical Trust approached the Lakeland Arts Trust to see if it could help. There is an obvious synergy, as well as physical proximity, between Blackwell, the Trust’s Arts & Crafts House, and these hand crafted boats, many of which are from the same era.

The beauty and rarity of the boats was apparent, but so too was their desperate need for expensive, expert attention. The Lakeland Arts Trust approached the NHMF about the boats, making the case that the site and collection should be saved together. Though the NHMF’s usual remit is to fund purchases of important pieces of land and artworks it made an unprecedented offer to fund in this case the salvage of the whole collection. This involved the moving into storage of the exhibits currently on dry display and, more importantly, the craning of each boat in the dock off the water onto dry land. This task has been completed and photos of the boat lift can be found here. A new temporary building has been erected to store the boats prior to restoration, safeguarding them from further deterioration and critical damage.

The Trust now has the entire collection and, through the generosity of the founders family, the site and a nearby boathouse. The initial ‘recovery’ operation funded by the NHMF is well under way with the boats safely out of water and in specialist storage. The boats are currently being surveyed and individual conservation plans are being drawn up, as part of the project, the Trust intend to create a specialist marine conservation training workshop, where the boats will be restored by master-craftsmen and apprentices. This will give young boat-builders the unparalleled opportunity to work on these beautifully constructed boats, and enable the craft to be restored on site.

The next step will be the planning and creation of a new series of buildings on this spectacular site where, in time, the public will be able to enjoy the rejuvenated collection. It is hoped that this ambitious project will lead to a centre of international importance where visitors will be able to see craftsmen at work on the boats, as well as take lake trips on historic vessels that capture again the magic of a bygone era of beauty and romance.