Morpeth Chantry Bagpipe Museum

The Morpeth Chantry Bagpipe Museum sits inside a 13th-century chantry in the market town of Morpeth, Northumberland. The building once housed a priest who said prayers for the dead. It stands beside the River Wansbeck in the town centre. The museum opened in 1987 to display historic bagpipes and related items. Most exhibits come from the collection of William Alfred Cocks, who gathered pipes and music during the 20th century. The collection also holds printed and handwritten music sheets and Cocks’s photographs and newspaper cuttings about bagpipes. Anne Moore now curates the displays. The museum is worth a visit because it holds one of the largest collections of Northumbrian smallpipes and Border pipes in the country. These instruments date from earlier centuries and show how local music was played. The museum also keeps records of the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society, which promotes the music today. In 2008 a serious flood struck Morpeth but staff managed to move every item to safety. After repairs the chantry reopened the next year with a visit from the Princess Royal. Inside, visitors find the pipes arranged by age and type along the walls of the old chantry room. Glass cases protect fragile manuscripts and photographs from Cocks’s archive. The Northumbrian Pipers’ Society holds its meetings here, so music can often be heard. The building itself has medieval stonework and a peaceful atmosphere. Outside, the river and town centre offer places to walk and reflect on the music’s history.