Explore the industrial Northwest

Where every visit tells a story: get more out of your visit to Manchester. Explore some of the sights and attractions that are within just a few miles of a city that acts as the gateway to the North

Modern History brings to life our industrial heritage, where inventions and achievements are the highlights, where you can unearth the stories that have shaped the modern world. Visit the places where history defined the happening, where tradition became trend and where belief broke down boundaries.

From awe-inspiring architecture to engineering endeavour, Modern History is for everyone. Families can experience exhibitions along with the amazing and adverse lives of their ancestors, history experts can delve into the dramatic stories of the people and places that dominated our industrial past, which in turn shaped the present. This is history at its most engaging, with unforgettable accounts, anecdotes and incidents that express the richness of yesteryear, venues packed with paraphernalia, which pioneered international industry.

Modern History showcases the best of the region’s museums, mills, railways and attractions, with walking trails, endless events and exhibitions for you to explore. What will you discover? Find out more at www.modernhistory.co.uk, or head to Lancashire and discover the region’s former textile industry. Helmshore Mills Textile Museums offers a chance to see working machinery and gain a sense of working conditions in the late 19th century. Preston’s Harris Museum & Art Gallery showcases 150 years of industrial history, such as the ‘teetotal teapot‘ (featured in the BBC’s A History of the World in 100 Objects), which tells the story of the Preston-born temperance movement.

The Northwest’s industrial success was built upon its rivers, canals and walkways. The National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port is the best place to learn more and enjoy a boat trip through an industrial landscape. In Liverpool, meanwhile, the Merseyside Maritime Museum is home to internationally renowned collections that reflect the seafaring history of a city that was once the gateway to the rest of the world.

Image: Susie Stubbs