When most people in the North East hear the name Bowes, they picture a grand French chateau rising incongruously from the County Durham countryside near Barnard Castle.
But the Bowes Museum and the village of Bowes are not the same place.
The village of Bowes sits four miles west of Barnard Castle, tucked into the Pennine hills where the A66 rumbles east towards Darlington and the River Greta runs quietly below the fields.
It has grey stone cottages, a castle in a state of beautiful ruin, and a past that most visitors driving straight to the museum never discover.
Two thousand years of history on one street
The Romans were here first.
The village stands on the site of Lavatrae, a Roman fort occupied from the late first century AD to the late fourth century, built to guard the Stainmore Pass – one of the most strategically important crossings in the north of England.
When the Romans left, the Normans arrived.
Henry II ordered the construction of Bowes Castle between 1171 and 1187, built directly within the perimeter of the old Roman fort.
The keep still stands today, managed by English Heritage and free to visit during daylight hours, a hulk of pale stone rising from a flat field above the village.
Walk along The Street – the main road through Bowes – and you pass 17th and 18th century buildings that give the village much of its character.
It is a compact place, but almost every corner has a layer of history beneath it.
The school that inspired Dickens
Of all Bowes' claims to fame, perhaps the most extraordinary is its connection to Charles Dickens.
In February 1838, Dickens made the journey north to research what would become Nicholas Nickleby.
He visited Shaw's Academy in Bowes – a notorious boarding school for boys run by headmaster William Shaw.
Shaw had already been sued by parents in 1823 after pupils in his care suffered injuries, and the school's reputation for cruelty was well established.
Dickens used what he saw and heard to create Dotheboys Hall and its one-eyed villain Wackford Squeers – one of literature's most memorable monsters.
The building that housed the school still stands at the top end of the village, a drab stone frontage that gives little away.
The haunted coaching inn
Dickens himself stayed at The Ancient Unicorn, a coaching inn built in the sixteenth century when the Stainmore Pass was a busy trade route.
The Grade II-listed inn – which has a bar, restaurant, 14 bedrooms and a village shop – became well known across the region for blending period charm with good hospitality, and was a firm favourite with walkers, tourists and locals alike.
It is reputed to be haunted by several ghosts, which given its age and the company Dickens kept, feels entirely appropriate.
It is also currently up for sale.
A walk worth taking
For those who do stop, Bowes rewards the curious.
A circular walk from the village takes in the castle ruins, open countryside and a stretch of woodland beside the River Greta before reaching Mill Force, a waterfall tucked into the trees above a former corn mill.
The route is just 1.3 miles and takes around 30 to 45 minutes, making it one of the most accessible short walks in the Durham Dales.
Free parking is available opposite Bowes and Gilmonby Village Hall.
The village sits on the edge of the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with the Yorkshire Dales visible to the south.
On a clear day, the sky above the Pennines is enormous.
And the museum?
The Bowes Museum – that grand French chateau in Barnard Castle – takes its name not from the village but from its founders, John and Joséphine Bowes.
John was the illegitimate son of the 10th Earl of Strathmore, whose family had deep roots in this part of County Durham.
The museum, which opened in 1892 and houses over 58,000 objects, including masterpieces by Goya, Canaletto and El Greco, remains one of the great cultural treasures of the North East.
Its famous Silver Swan automaton – an 18th-century gilded mechanical bird that preens itself and appears to catch a fish – draws visitors from across the world.
But the village of Bowes, just a few miles up the road, has been drawing people to this corner of County Durham for rather longer.
Since the Romans, in fact.
Read more
Why people love the 'amazing' Rose and Crown, Romaldkirk, County Durham
The 'incredible' Roman fort hidden beneath a village green near Darlington
The County Durham 'village of churches' that looks like it belongs on a biscuit tin
Practical information
Bowes Castle (English Heritage): Free entry, open during daylight hours. Bowes Village, DL12 9HP.
Mill Force walk: 1.3 miles circular, free parking opposite Bowes & Gilmonby Village Hall, DL12 9HR.
The Bowes Museum: Newgate, Barnard Castle, DL12 8NP. Open daily 10am–5pm.
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