Malham Tarn House: Preserving a historic Dales landmark
In 1946, Malham Tarn House was gifted to the National Trust as part of the wider Malham Tarn Estate in the Yorkshire Dales. For many decades the house was used as a field studies centre, but has been vacant since autumn 2023. The Trust is now carrying out essential maintenance to Malham Tarn House as it prepares for a new and exciting chapter.
The history of Tarn House
Built in the late 18th Century, Malham Tarn House is a listed building within a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The house itself was notably the home of local philanthropist and Member of Parliament Walter Morrison (1836 – 1921), who made substantial extensions to the property throughout the 19th Century. According to Historic England, Walter Morrison was visited by the author Charles Kingsley – who is thought to have been inspired to write The Water Babies while staying there.
“Tarn House has been a Malhamdale landmark for many generations, but its most recent usage for over 70 years as an educational centre meant that it was also quite enigmatic. People would tell us that they might walk past it all the time but had no idea what went on there.”
- Martin Davies, General Manager for the Yorkshire Dales
Caring for Tarn House
The building came back under the direct care of the National Trust once again in 2023, meaning that it could be properly surveyed and explored for the first time in many decades. The Trust has taken the opportunity to carry out essential conservation works while the property is empty, such as repairs to the roof, restoration of the canopies, and external decoration. We’ve also worked with experts to find suitable local homes for many of the property’s artifacts and historic documents, either relocating them to the Trust’s archives, the North Yorkshire Council archives at Northallerton, or to the nearby Museum of North Craven Life at The Folly in Settle. In early 2024, the Trust hosted several open days for the local Malhamdale community, where many people shared their own memories of visiting Malham Tarn House.
Following significant interest from a number of different parties, the National Trust has chosen a preferred bidder to continue advanced discussions about a new and exciting chapter for Malham Tarn House.
When deciding which bid to progress, the Trust carefully considered feedback from the local community and other interested parties about how people would like to see Tarn House used in future. We strongly believe that our preferred bidder will be a welcome and well-used addition to Malhamdale, and we look forward to working closely with them as part of the community as their plans evolve.
We will be formally announcing the new tenant once the legal process has concluded. The Trust will also need to carry out further essential repairs and restoration works to the building before the new tenancy can commence.
What about the other buildings?
Visitors to Malham Tarn will notice a number of smaller buildings peppered around the estate. This includes two boathouse buildings, and a number of cottages which were previously used by staff working at the field studies centre. The cottages were not included in the marketing of Malham Tarn House and will instead be refurbished by the National Trust as holiday cottages and residential properties to help support its conservation work. The boathouses will remain in use for the anglers and under the Trust’s care.
The North Wing of Tarn House, located just behind the main building, was recently refurbished by the Trust and is now occupied by our Yorkshire Dales staff, rangers and volunteers.
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