10 Best Museums In Bradford

Bradford is a city located in West Yorkshire, England and is known for its rich cultural heritage. Many museums offer visitors a glimpse into the city's history and showcase the city's diverse cultural backgrounds. Here is a list of the 10 best museums in Bradford. From art galleries to historic sites, these Bradford museums offer something for everyone. Whether you are an art enthusiast, a history buff or looking for a fun day out, these Bradford museums and galleries have something for you. So get ready to explore Bradford's history and culture, and visit one of these fantastic museums!

Bradford is home to some of England's best museums, showcasing the city's unique history and culture. Bradford offers many exciting educational experiences, from interactive galleries to historic buildings. There is something for everyone to enjoy in Bradford. So, come and explore the best Bradford museums and galleries for a great day out.

1. Bradford Industrial Museum 

Address: Moorside Road, Bradford BD2 3HP England
Rating: 4/5

Ticket price: Free
Timing: 10 am to 4 pm
‍The Bradford industrial museum was founded in 1974 in Moorside Mills, Bradford. From the entrance itself, this museum in Bradford is fantastic. Volunteers run the whole place. They give brief information on the museum and what to expect inside. The Bradford Museum was originally a Victorian mill that was converted into a museum in 1974. Tourists can discover exhibits like textile machines, steam power, engineering, printing machinery, motor vehicles, and more. This Bradford Museum focuses on maintaining working examples of local industry artefacts, particularly the printing and textile machines, for the locals and tourists to display regularly. 

2. National Science and Media Museum 

Address: Pictureville, Bradford BD1 1NQ England

Rating: 4.5/5
Ticket price: Free
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
‍The National Science and Media Museum, formerly known as the National Media Museum till 2017, is a part of the UK's National Science Museum group and is located in Bradford, West Yorkshire. This museum in Bradford is one of the best museums. This Bradford museum has galleries on seven floors with ongoing exhibitions covering subjects like photography, television, animation, video gaming, the Internet, and the physics of light and colour. The museum's research centre also keeps a collection of 3.5 million objects and organises frequent exhibitions. It's recommended to book free tickets online beforehand. The museum is also home to Europe's first IMAX theatre and a game lounge (These activities must be paid for).

3. Bolling Hall, Bradford

Address: Bowling Hall Road, Bradford BD4 7LP England‍

Rating:4.6/5
Ticket price: Free
Time: 10 am to 4 pm
‍‍One of the oldest structures, this museum in Bradford which can be dated back to the 14th century, the Bolling Hall is located in West Yorkshire, England and serves as a museum and educational facility. Bolling Hall Museum is mostly a mediaeval structure located one mile from the city centre that takes tourists on a tour of their lives and the eras of the people who called the buildings home for more than 500 years. To create a sense of living using the various eras in the building's history, the interior of the rooms is furnished and decorated according to the eras.

4. Cartwright Hall

Address: Cartwright Hall Art Gallery Lister Park, Bradford BD9 4NS England

Rating: 4.6/5
Ticket Price: Free
Time: 10 am to 4 pm
‍Cartwright Hall, the civic gallery in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, is located about a mile from the city centre. Bradford's peculiar architectural style, known as "Bradford Baroque," has been used as an example by Cartwright Hall. The purpose-built gallery hosts a collection of ongoing works, including British paintings ad sculptures from the 20th century and works by old Masters. Additionally, there are historical and current exhibitions in Cartwright Hall by regional, international, and contemporary artists. Works related to the cultural heritage of several post-war migrants, some of Guru Nanak's works of Sikh art from South Asia, including Islamic calligraphy, have been gathered by the Bradford Museum group. The Monty Python movie The Meaning of Life's musical performance, "every sperm is precious," briefly featured Cartwright Hall in 1983.

5. Bradford on Avon Museum

Address: Bridge St, Bradford-on-Avon BA15 1BY, UK

Rating: 4.8/5
Ticket price: Free
Time: 2 pm to 4 pm‍Located right next to the Avon River, This museum in Bradford is a small volunteer-run museum of the natural and historical heritage of the town of Bradford on Avon. Bradford on Avon's staple industry for six centuries was wool and weaving, starting in the 14th century. This Bradford Museum has historical artefacts like photographs, drawings, prints, W.H. Allen paintings, and many more. The museum also preserves Archeological artefacts from the stone age, the bronze age, the Roman, medieval, and post-medieval periods and Natural science items like ancient fossils, Minerals, rocks and Mollusc shells. No doubt, this is one of the best museums in Bradford.

6. Impressions Gallery 

Address: 7 Aldermanbury Centenary Square, Bradford BD1 1SD England

Rating: 4.4/5
Timing: 10 am to 5 pm
Ticket price: Free
‍Impressions Gallery is an independent contemporary photography gallery with a temporary exhibitions programme showing six exhibitions each year on average. The gallery moved from York to Centenary Square, Bradford, in 2007. It is one of the oldest venues for contemporary photography in Europe. Every year over 50,000 people visit our exhibitions, take part in workshops and events, or come together to exchange ideas in a friendly environment.

7. The Bradford Police Museum

Address: City Hall Centenary Square, Bradford BD1 1HY England

Rating: 4.6/5
Timing: 11 am to 3 pm
Ticket price: Free
The captivating exhibits in Bradford Police Museum trace the history and development of policing in the city. This museum in Bradford is displayed in Bradford City Hall, where the 19th-century police station stood for a century. Learn about the beginnings of the Bradford Borough Police Force and how it has changed over the decades. Visitors can join a guided tour of the institution for greater detail and context. The guide will take you through the Victorian prison cells, allowing you to imagine the conditions for prisoners. Many of those in prison were executed. Visitors can enter the restored Victorian courtroom, where trials were held after its construction in 1873, determining the life-or-death fates of the prisoners, today used for film and television production. Moreover, visitors can admire the collection of truncheons and other weapons used to fight crime in the borough. Study some old uniforms dating back to Victorian times on display here. A photography exhibition brings to life the rich history of the local police force.

8. Salts Mill

Address: Salts Mill Victoria Road, Shipley, Bradford BD18 3LA England

Rating: 4.5/5
Timing: 10 am to 5 pm
Ticket price: Free‍‍This art gallery is last but not least on this list as one of the best museums in Bradford.  Salts Mill, also spelt as Salt's Mill, was a textile mill in Saltaire, Bradford, West Yorkshire, which is now an art gallery, shopping centre and restaurant complex. The current 1853 gallery gets its name from the year when Sir Titus Salt constructed the building that holds it. Many of the local artist David Hockney's paintings are on display within the mill.

9. The Peace Museum

Address: Peace Museum 10 Piece Hall Yard, Bradford BD1 1PJ England

Rating:4.6/5
Timing: 10 am to 4 pm
Ticket price: Free
‍‍The Peace Museum discovers the history and the often overlooked stories of social reform, peacemakers, social reform, peace and peace movements. This Bradford museum consists of three small galleries in one of Bradford’s many beautiful Victorian buildings. It is the only accredited museum of its kind in the UK. It has a collection of over 7,000 objects and aims to be inclusive, diverse and accessible and supports peace-making by telling the stories of the peacemakers. Here the visitors can discover themed exhibitions about peace and peacemakers acquired from the largest collection of peace artefacts and stories in the UK.

10. The Bradford Sock Company

Address: Hollings Mill Lower Gratton Road, Bradford BD1 2JA England

Rating:5/5
Timing: 8 am to 5 pm
Ticket price: Free‍This Bradford museum is located in one of the oldest mills in the city. At this museum in Bradford, you can discover how various socks are made and later in the shop or display area. Some of the socks are also made from local wool that is dyed and spun in Huddersfield. The building is historic, and the sock-knitting machines are very interesting. The company and building hold industrial heritage and are family owned. 

Each of these Bradford museums offers visitors a unique experience and insight into Bradford's past, present and future. With a wide range of exhibitions, activities and events for all ages, these museums provide an excellent opportunity to be inspired and learn more about this beautiful city. If you are on the lookout for more museums and galleries in a nearby city, you can check you the Best Museums in Manchester and the Best Museums in London as well.