u3a

Ambleside and District

Local History

Status:Active, open to new members
Coordinator:
When: On Mondays 2:00 pm
Fourth Monday of each month
Cost: £3.00 for indoor meetings.

The Group re-started this January with a new Coordinator, Trudi Wakeman. Meetings are usually held at 2.00pm for a 2.15pm start on the fourth Monday of each Month at the Kelsick Centre in Ambleside. Fees are £3 a meeting which includes refreshments. Parking is not available at the Kelsick but there are various car parks nearby, the nearest being King Street Car Park. Other options include Miller Bridge Car Park and Lake Road Car Park.

Speakers needed: many members will have an interest and information that can be shared with our group. Please consider doing this and we will do all we can to help you organise a presentation.

A list of our FORTHCOMING EVENTS is given below.

Forthcoming events

27th July 2026
Outing
A visit to Threlkeld Quarry & Mining Museum
Industrial archaeology attracts a growing band of enthusiasts and the Threlkeld Quarry & Mining Museum is a wonderful source. Situated three miles east of Keswick, the quarry and museum have […]
24th August 2026
Meeting
No Meeting
NO MEETING IN AUGUST.
28th September 2026
Meeting
T W Thompson – local historian extraordinaire
Mike Green - ’T W Thompson – local historian extraordinaire’. T W Thompson (1888 – 1968) was a local lad made good. He was born into a working-class family in […]
26th October 2026
Outing
A visit to Goldscope Mine
Mark Hatton. A visit to Goldscope Mine.
23rd November 2026
Meeting
Vikings in Cumbria
Steve Dickinson. ‘Vikings in Cumbria’. This talk will reveal fascinating new insights about the Vikings in Cumbria. A research project in the valley of Kentmere in the 1980’s found the […]
28th December 2026
Meeting
No Meeting
NO MEETING IN DECEMBER.
25th January 2027
Meeting
Elizabethan Miners
Mark Hatton. ‘Elizabethan Miners’. Mark Hatton is from The Cumbria Amenity Trust Mining History Society (CATMHS). In 1564 a group of Copper Miners came to Keswick from Germany. They came at […]
22nd February 2027
Meeting
The Lake Windermere Area: its Architecture and Industrial Heritage
Andy Lowe - The Lake Windermere Area: its Architecture and Industrial Heritage. Andy Lowe is a retired Buildings Conservation Officer for the Lake District National Park and is an expert […]
22nd March 2027
Outing
A Walk around Historic Penrith
26th April 2027
2:00 pm
Meeting
SL Shamrock - an Edwardian Gentleman's steam launch
Geoff Holmes - SL Shamrock - an Edwardian Gentleman's steam launch. The Edwardian Gentleman’s Launch was the Rolls-Royce of steamboat luxury. But as the Edwardian Era faded, the boats had […]
24th May 2027
2:00 pm
Meeting
The Stained Glass Windows of Troutbeck
Ian Jones - The Stained Glass Windows of Troutbeck. At the bottom of Troutbeck valley along the Kirkstone Pass is Jesus Church, where the Browne family of Townend Farm worshipped. […]
26th July 2027
2:00 pm
Meeting
A Hotbed of Communist Activity
Dr Rob David. ‘A Hotbed of Communist Activity’. In June 1940 two prominent women communists, recently dismissed from their jobs in London for their political activities, arrived in Howtown pursued […]
22nd November 2027
2:00 pm
Meeting
From Horror to Beauty: John Brown’s Letter and the Discovery of the Lake District
Pam Gould - ''From Horror to Beauty: John Brown’s Letter and the Discovery of the Lake District" Dr. John Brown (1715-66, a poet and clergyman from Wigton) was an energetic […]