Seatoller

From prosperous farm to unique guest house

Seatoller is a tiny hamlet at the head of Borrowdale. In 1209 the land here passed from the family of its Norman overlords to Furness Abbey until, on the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539, it became Crown Property. It was subsequently sold to John Fisher, a prosperous local farmer, whose family built and owned Seatoller House until Abraham Fisher died childless in 1864. The house then became home to a series of tenants including Moses Pepper, the Manager of the Honister Quarries, who let lodgings to quarry workers before turning it into a guest house for the increasing number of visitors to the Lake District. The last tenant, John Cockbain, bought the house in 1960 with the support of G.M.Trevelyan. When John retired in 1977, the Trevelyan family formed a private company, with many previous guests becoming shareholders, to buy and keep Seatoller House as they knew and loved it. Various groups stay at Seatoller, returning year after year, including the man hunts which started in the late 19th Century and continue to this day and the Tricouni Climbing Club.

The earliest parts of the building, the current library and sitting room, date from around the mid 1600's. Progressive extensions to the then farmhouse included a buttery and next to it what is now the tea bar. In the late 18th century the replacement of thatch with slate roofing allowed the creation of the taller first floor rooms seen today. The present dining room was built as a kitchen in about 1820, and the bedrooms at the south end of the house, together with the straight staircase, date from the mid 19th century. The first two bathrooms in the house were installed in 1912 but there was no mains electricity until the 1960's! The bathroom extension that now provides private facilities for each bedroom was added in 1988 and, when in 2003 the company acquired a nearby cottage for the managers' use, the space over the dining room previously used as the managers' flat was remodelled to create the tenth guest bedroom.

The Lake Hunts Ltd, its managers and staff continue to welcome guests in the 21st century, many of whom have been coming here for years to the unique experience that is Seatoller.