Touchstones Rochdale

Touchstones Rochdale stands in the centre of Rochdale, a stone building that began as a library in 1884. The museum and art gallery were added in 1903 and extended in 1913, then converted into an art and heritage centre in 2003. It is a Grade II listed building, built from Yorkshire stone under a slate roof. The library has one storey with three gables and a central porch, while the museum and gallery rise to two storeys. Carved figures appear on the gables above the entrance blocks. The centre houses collections of social history, costume, textiles, archaeology, Egyptology, geology, natural history and decorative arts. Changing exhibitions keep the displays fresh, and one gallery holds a painting by Katherine Ashton Simpson of her sister, Elva Lorence. The building’s architecture reflects its growth, with a four-bay central block flanked by gabled wings. Mullioned windows with elliptical heads and hood moulds light the reading rooms. Visitors find a café inside the complex, alongside the visitor information centre. The library’s elliptical-headed doorway leads into a space with an arcaded parapet above. Upstairs, the art gallery shows works from local and regional artists, while the museum displays Egyptology cases and geological specimens. The carved panels on the gables mark the building’s heritage and give the exterior its character.