Turton Tower

Turton Tower is a manor house in Chapeltown in North Turton, Borough of Blackburn with Darwen, Lancashire, England. It is a scheduled ancient monument and a grade I listed building.

It was built in the late Middle Ages as a two-storey stone pele tower which was altered and enlarged mainly in late 16th century. It is built on high ground 600 feet above sea level about four miles north of Bolton. William Camden described it as being built "amongst precipices and wastes." A north wing and additions were made during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I and alterations were made during the early years of Queen Victoria.
Turton Tower was home to the lords of the Manor of Turton, and in about 1200 was part of the barony of Manchester, by which time part of the manor was in the hands of the de Lathom family. It was inherited in 1420 by the Orrells, who rebuilt the pele tower. In 1628 they sold Turton Tower to Humphrey Chetham, the Manchester merchant responsible for the creation of Chetham's Library and Chetham's School of Music. It passed to his descendants, the Bland, Green and Frere families who leased it to a succession of tenant farmers.

The tower was sold in a state of disrepair in 1835 to James Kay who restored it. He sold the tower to Elizabeth and Anne Appleton who leased it to William Rigg, a calico manufacturer, whose daughter, Ellen, wrote "Victorian Children at Turton Tower". In 1903 the tower was bought by Sir Lees Knowles, 1st Baronet, MP for Salford West, for £3,875. After his death in 1929, his widow, Lady Nina Knowles, presented it to Turton Urban District Council in 1930, and it became the council chamber.

After local government re-organisation in 1974, Turton was split and the tower became part of the new Borough of Blackburn, and was administered by Lancashire County Museums Service. Following changes to the Lancashire County Museum Service, the tower was taken over by Blackburn with Darwen Council.
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