Coniston in the Cumbrian Lake District

The Lake District of Northern England
Day Trips from Manchester in the Northwest of England

Aerial Photograph of Coniston, and Steam Yacht "Gondola" setting out
Courtesy of www.webbaviation.co.uk © 2005.
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The village of Coniston has been known since the earliest times as a mining centre, whose chief product was copper, mined from the mountain which dominates the village, the "Old Man". Cheaper imported copper brought about the decline of the industry in the late 19th century. Until 1882 it had been operated by the prestigious Company of Mines Royal, but these could not compete with the huge foreign Rio Tinto mines which sounded its death knell.

Here and along the banks of Red Dell Beck lie some of Cumbria's earliest mine workings, dating from Tudor times. Indelibly linked with the village of Coniston is the name of John Ruskin, who lived at Brantwood across Coniston Water, and who is buried in Coniston Parish churchyard. Ruskin was one of the foremost thinkers and writers of Victorian times, a Professor of Art at Oxford University, and noted art critic. He retired to Brantwood in Coniston in 1872, and lived there for the next 27 years.

His grave is marked by a tall and a beautifully and intricately carved Celtic cross, carved by his friend, the artist W.G. Collinwood. Coniston Water stretches for about 5 miles, and hosts a ferry service from Coniston Pier to Brantwood.

The Steam Yacht "Gondola", first launched in 1859, and now completely renovated and owned by the National Trust provides a full steam-powered passenger service, carrying up to 86 passengers in opulent Victorian luxury, with its plush upholstery and heated saloons. It is also available for group hire and private charter.

It has a daily schedule from the end of March to the end of October, from 11.00am, except Saturdays when it starts from 12.00noon.

For bookings, contact : Pier Cottage, Coniston, Cumbria LA21 8AJ. Telephone : 015394-41288 between 9.00am and 10.30am (ansaphone at all other times)

Coniston with the Old Man in the background

The main street

Coniston churchyard

John Ruskin's tombstone

John Ruskin

‡ Coniston Water and The Old Man of Coniston

John Ruskin's house, Brantwood, is popularly acclaimed as having one of the most beautiful views in the whole Lake District. Overlooking Coniston Water, it was his home from 1872 to his death in 1900. In 1878, he wrote of the view of Coniston:

"I raise my eyes to these Coniston Fells (hills), and see them, at this moment imaged in their lake, in quietly reversed and perfect similitude, the sky cloudless above them, cloudless beneath, and two level lines of blue vapour drawn across their sunlighted and russet moorlands, like an azure fesse across a golden shield".

John Ruskin was a notable poet, painter and author who by his mid-20s had become a prodigious art critic of international reputation and influence, having written, amongst other learned works, the series "Modern Painters" in defence of English painters, to whom he was a friend, patron and champion. Brantwood had been host to intellectuals and great literary figures - Mahatma Ghandi, Proust, Tolstoy and Frank Lloyd Wright among them.

The house is still filled with Ruskin's drawings, paintings and watercolours, and now form part of the Ruskin Museum collection, all on view to the public. The house's extensive gardens offer pleasant walks to the visitor with its profusion of springtime bluebells and daffodils, as well as its summertime rhododendrons and azaleas.

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