List of museums in Greater Manchester facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Greater Manchester is a cool place in England with lots of interesting museums! These museums are special places that collect and look after amazing objects. They show us things about history, art, science, and different cultures. You can see everything from ancient Egyptian mummies to old steam engines and famous paintings.

This guide will help you discover some of the best museums in Greater Manchester. Get ready to explore and learn new things!

Art and Culture Museums
- Art Galleries and Centers
- Cultural and Heritage Museums
History and Local Life Museums
- Local History and Community
- Historic Houses and Buildings
Science, Technology, and Industry Museums
Military and Transport Museums
Sports and Other Unique Museums
Defunct Museums
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Art and Culture Museums

Greater Manchester has many places where you can see incredible art and learn about different cultures.

Art Galleries and Centers

Astley Cheetham Art Gallery: Located in Stalybridge, this gallery has beautiful Italian paintings from the 1400s. It also shows British art from the 1800s and 1900s. You can find it above the Stalybridge Library.
Bury Art Museum: In Bury, this museum has Victorian paintings, modern art, and cool photographs. It also shares stories about local history and culture.
Castlefield Gallery: This gallery in Manchester is run by artists. It shows exciting new visual art.
Central Art Gallery: Found in Ashton-under-Lyne, this gallery displays paintings, sculptures, and textiles. It also has a special Rutherford Gallery with art by local artist Harry Rutherford.
Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art: In Manchester, this unique place shows modern art by Chinese artists from all over the world.
Gallery Oldham: This museum in Oldham combines art with social and natural history. It features touring exhibits, new art, and international works.
HOME: Located in Manchester, HOME is a big center for modern visual arts and films. It's a great place to see what's new and exciting in the art world.
The Lowry: In Salford Quays, this arts center has galleries for modern art, photography, and design. It also has a special collection of works by the famous artist LS Lowry.
Manchester Art Gallery: This large gallery in Manchester has a huge collection. You can see English, Dutch, French, and Italian paintings. It also has modern art, textiles, and furniture.
Stockport Art Gallery: You can find this art gallery in Stockport. It's a great place to see different types of art.
Touchstones Rochdale: In Rochdale, this place combines art with local history and culture. It's a good spot to learn about the area.
Whitworth Art Gallery: Part of the University of Manchester, this gallery in Moss Side has modern art, watercolors, sculptures, and textiles.

Cultural and Heritage Museums

British Muslim Heritage Centre: Located in Manchester, this center used to be a college. Now, it shows how British Muslims helped in World War II. It also has the House of Wisdom, which celebrates contributions by Muslims to civilization.
Manchester Jewish Museum: In Cheetham Hill, this museum is inside an old synagogue. It tells the story and shares the culture of Manchester's Jewish community.
People's History Museum: Found in Spinningfields, Manchester, this museum tells the story of working people in the United Kingdom. It shows how people fought for their rights.
Rochdale Pioneers Museum: In Rochdale, this museum is in a historic store. It tells the story of the first consumer cooperative, which helped people buy things fairly.

History and Local Life Museums

These museums explore the past of Greater Manchester and the lives of its people.

Local History and Community

Bolton Museum: In Bolton, this museum covers local history, natural history, and ancient Egypt. It even has an aquarium!
Bury Transport Museum: Located in Bury, this museum is in an old railway warehouse. It shows how transport developed in the North West, with old trains, buses, and steam rollers.
Gallery Oldham: (Also listed under Art) This museum in Oldham includes social and natural history collections, alongside art.
Horwich Heritage Centre: In Horwich, this center focuses on local history, culture, industry, and transportation in the area.
Museum of Wigan Life: Located in Wigan, this museum used to be a library. It has exhibits on local history, culture, archaeology, and industry.
Portland Basin Museum: In Ashton-under-Lyne, this museum tells the story of local history, industries, and trades. It even has a street from the 1920s with old shops!
Saddleworth Museum: Found in Saddleworth, this museum covers local history, trades, and the textile industry. It also looks at canals, railroads, and local culture.
Salford Museum and Art Gallery: In Salford, this museum has local history exhibits and Victorian art. It even has a replica Victorian street with shops!
Stockport Museum: This museum in Stockport explores local history, archaeology, industry, and transportation.

Historic Houses and Buildings

Bramall Hall: In Bramhall, this is a beautiful Tudor manor house made of timber. It's surrounded by lovely parklands.
Clayton Hall Living History Museum: Located in Manchester, this old hall was once owned by famous families. It sits on a mound and is reached by a stone bridge over a dry moat.
Dunham Massey Hall: Operated by the National Trust in Dunham Massey, this is a grand Georgian house with a deer park and gardens.
Elizabeth Gaskell's House: This mid-19th-century home in Manchester belonged to the famous author Elizabeth Gaskell. It also has ties to other writers.
Haigh Hall: A mid-19th-century country house in Wigan that you can tour.
Hall i' th' Wood: This early 16th-century timber-framed manor house in Bolton is open on special days.
Heaton Hall: An 18th-century country house in Heaton Park, Manchester, operated by the Manchester Art Gallery.
Ordsall Hall: This historic home in Ordsall dates back to the 1400s. It has beautiful stained glass and local history exhibits.
Pankhurst Centre: In Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester, this was the home of suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst. It tells the story of the movement that fought for women's right to vote.
Smithills Hall: A family home in Bolton that dates back to the 1300s. It shows what homes looked like in medieval, Tudor, and Victorian times.
Staircase House: This 15th-century medieval house in Stockport has rooms from different centuries, showing how homes changed over time.
Wythenshawe Hall: A 16th-century Tudor house in Northenden, Manchester, that shows four centuries of history.

Science, Technology, and Industry Museums

Discover how things work and how industries shaped Greater Manchester.

Astley Green Colliery Museum: This former coal mine in Astley has a tall headgear and old mining locomotives. You can learn about coal mining here.
Bolton Steam Museum: In Bolton, this museum preserves old steam engines. It's fascinating to see these powerful machines up close.
Ellenroad Engine House: Located in Newhey, this museum has a huge, working 3000-horsepower cotton mill engine. It's amazing to see it in action!
Hat Works: In Stockport, this museum is all about the history of hat-making. You can see all kinds of hats and learn how they were made.
Mossley Industrial Heritage Centre: This center in Mossley focuses on the local cotton industry. It's housed in an old cotton-spinning mill.
Museum of Science and Industry: Located in Manchester, this big museum covers science, technology, and industry. It shows how the city contributed to these fields.
Trencherfield Mill Steam Engine: In Wigan, you can see a massive 2,500 horsepower working steam engine. It used to power a textile mill and is open on Sundays.

Military and Transport Museums

Learn about brave soldiers and how people used to travel.

Fusilier Museum: In Bury, this museum tells the history of the Lancashire Fusiliers and the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. It has lots of military items.
Greater Manchester Fire Service Museum: Located in Rochdale, this museum has full-size fire trucks, equipment, and uniforms. You can learn about firefighting history.
Greater Manchester Police Museum: In Manchester, this museum is in an old Victorian police station. You can see police cells, a court, and historic police equipment.
Heaton Park Tramway: In Heaton Park, Manchester, you can ride on restored old trams. It's a fun way to experience historic public transport.
Imperial War Museum North: Found in Trafford Park, this museum tells the stories of 20th and 21st-century conflicts involving British citizens. It's a powerful experience.
Museum of the Manchester Regiment: In Ashton-under-Lyne, this museum shares the history and artifacts of the Manchester Regiment.
Museum of Transport: Located in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, this museum focuses on buses and the history of public transportation.
Stockport Air Raid Shelters: In Stockport, you can explore almost a mile of underground air-raid shelters. These were used during World War II to protect people.

Sports and Other Unique Museums

Manchester United Museum: Located at the Old Trafford stadium in Old Trafford, this museum tells the history of Manchester United F.C. and has lots of cool football items.
Manchester Museum: Operated by the University of Manchester, this museum has a wide range of collections. You can see dinosaurs, ancient Egyptian artifacts, and learn about archaeology. It even has a vivarium with live animals!
John Rylands Library: While primarily a library in Manchester, it also has exhibits of art, history, and literature from its amazing collections.

Defunct Museums

Some museums in Greater Manchester have closed over time. Here are a few:

Cube Gallery, Manchester, closed in 2013.
Setantii Museum, Ashton-under-Lyne, closed in 2012.
Urbis, a former exhibition space, is now home to the National Football Museum.
Vernon Park Museum, Offerton, closed in 2012.
Manchester Art Museum, also known as the Horsfall Museum, closed in 1953. Its collections became part of the Manchester Art Gallery.
The Cornerhouse, a center for cinema and visual arts, merged with the Library Theatre Company to become HOME.