Take a step back in time at JB Banks and Son Ltd.
Take a step back in time at JB Banks and Son Ltd.
Not many businesses can say they have successfully traded for nearly 200 years. Well, JB Banks and Son can. Set up in 1836, the Cockermouth shop is a hardware shop and Free to enter heritage museum, which attracts thousands of visitors every year.
JB. Banks opened in 1836 by John Banks. His son, John, joined to make J.B. Banks and Son Cockermouth, becoming a limited company on January 5, 1933.
The deeds of the shop bear the signature of William Wordsworth’s father, a land agent for Lord Lowther.
Take a step back in time and take in the sights and the smells; a wave of nostalgia overwhelms you as memories of Grandad’s shed flood your senses.
They offer a range of tools, hardware, homeware, and even gifts. JB Banks is a real hidden treasure and a go-to destination in its own right.
The shop is also home to its heritage museum, where the public is encouraged to come and explore.
The place transports you back to a simpler age, with traditional tools and equipment from times gone by; it is great to step back and recognise where it all began.
Much of the equipment they sell can do what most modern-day tech cannot, which is to stand the test of time.
As you cruise around the building, you will find all kinds of bits and bobs, feeding the minds of the curious with all its historical wonders. Adorning the staircase, which takes you to a room jam-packed with vintage memorabilia and a workshop, is an impressive selection of locks and keys from Tudor to the present day.
Each turn reveals another interesting artefact to inspect: typewriters, school desks from Cockermouth Grammar School, blow lamps, and tools for crimping, rolling, and bending tin. Looking around, you would not think you were still inside a hardware shop, and it is no surprise that the museum has earned its Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence.
They also offer many services, such as a sharpening service, shed clearances, as well as repairing, buying and selling tools.
JB Banks and Son is one-of-a-kind and is worth visiting.
They are so much more than a hardware shop; pop in and find out why this is renowned for being one of the best shops in Cumbria!
Address: 34 Market Pl, Cockermouth CA13 9NG
To learn more about what’s happening follow Cumbria Guide on our social media
