History of Low Bank Ground
The land at Low Bank Ground was originally owned by Furness Abbey and farmed by the monks who also kept a boathouse and a pond in the lower field stocked with fish. With the dissolution of the monasteries in the sixteenth century the land was given to yeomen farmers who continued to keep sheep, cattle and work the woodland adjoining the site.
At the end of the nineteenth century the land formed part of the estate owned by John Ruskin, the artist and social reformer, who lived at Brantwood. Jack Woodman farmed the land from 1933 until 1949. During this time the main farmhouse was modernised and the gardens set out in their present form.
Wigan Council bought the property in 1983 and has made changes to provide comfortable accommodation for groups of up to 40 persons whilst retaining the character of a Country House estate.
The Day Visits Centre, Yew Tree Lodge, was opened in 2007.