Hall i'th' Wood

In this manor house in 1779 Samuel Crompton, a farmer’s son, invented the spinning mule-a machine which revolutionised the textile industry by producing yarn that, while still strong, was fine enough to make muslin. Links with Crompton to be seen in the house where the Cromptons lived from 1758 until 1782, include a model of the ‘mule’ – a traditional Saxony spinning wheel – and hymn tunes composed when Crompton was choirmaster at a Bolton chapel.

The oldest part of Hall-i’th’-Wood is half-timbered and dates from the 15th century Nothing has been altered since the ‘new’ wing of dressed stone was added in 1648. A typical 18th- century Lancashire kitchen is one of the most striking rooms in the house.