Hill Top, home to Beatrix Potter
On 28th July, 1866, Beatrix Potter was born and lived at No 2, Bolton Gardens in London. Encouraged to draw from an early age, she spent many hours sketching the collection of pets that she and her brother had gathered in their schoolroom.
'The Tale of Peter Rabbit' was originally written as a picture letter to Noel, son of Annie Moore, one of Beatrix's former governesses, whilst he was ill in bed. Noel kept his letter and Beatrix sent others to the family describing Squirrel Nutkin and Jeremy Fisher and their adventures. Seven years after she had written this letter to Noel, Beatrix asked if she could borrow it back and worked to put it into a publishable form.
For me, there is a special magic in visiting places connected with authors and the books which they wrote. Hill Top is a wonderful example of this, preserving many items owned by Beatrix Potter and having been used in her illustrations. Despite the many people who choose to visit- greatly reduced in the summer of 2021 when I last visited- it is still possible to find moments of calm to appreciate this lovely house and its gardens.
This was not my first visit to Hill Top (nor will it be my last), but we were lucky enough to be staying in Near Sawrey so I was able to make three visits whilst we were there. With each visit, I noticed new things and felt able to explore each room fully, standing in places where Beatrix would have positioned herself to create some of the artwork for Tom Kitten and Jemima Puddleduck. As a child, it was the pictures in these books which captured my imagination rather than the stories (with the exception of ‘The Tailor of Gloucester’ and ‘Mrs Tiggywinkle’) and this still holds true today. The view up the path to the house with the porch and gate is clearly identifiable in ‘The Tale of Tom Kitten’ and garden features in illustrations throughout the story. Jemima Puddleduck laid her eggs in the rhubarb patch by the white gate with the bee hive to one side. The picture below shows the wall and the gate where the kittens - Tom and his sisters, Moppet and Mittens- see the Puddleducks.
Beatrix Potter bought Hill Top in 1905 with the royalties from her first few books, written at her parents home in London, but inspired by family trips to the Lakes. Although she never lived here, keeping it as a place to work, once inside, you are surrounded by her possessions- one of the conditions of her leaving it to the National Trust was that everything should be left as it was when she owned it, resulting in a fascinating treat for any visitor. Stepping through the iconic porch, you find yourself in a large room full of dark furniture with an uneven floor and low ceiling. The front door was captured in ‘Samuel Whiskers’ when Ruby, one of the cats, comes to borrow yeast on baking day. The dresser is the one pictured when Anna Maria, a rat, runs across the carpet having stolen some dough. In one corner, the staircase, recognisable as the one pictured in ‘The Tale of Tom Kitten’, when Tabitha Twitchit searches for her kittens, can be seen.
Each room is full of things to look at. Upstairs, you can peer through the windows of the dolls’ house, although sadly, not the one from ‘The Tale of Two Bad Mice’ (Beatrix used one made by Norman Warne for his four-year-old niece, Winifred, as her model). You can also imagine Samuel Whiskers with his rolling pin on the landing as nothing seems to have changed since Beatrix painted the scene.
Beatrix also used the village of Near Sawrey and the surrounding countryside as inspiration for her pictures. The Buckle Yeat Guesthouse, the post box and the Tower Bank Arms are all recognisable as is the sign post further down the hill which features in ‘The Tale of Pigling Bland’.
Set in the stunning beauty of the Lake District, Hill Top is a wonderful place to visit for lovers of Beatrix Potter as well as those who know nothing about her!
In nearby Hawkshead, you can also visit the Beatrix Potter Gallery. Also run by the National Trust, you can find lots of Beatrix’s original artwork on display in a beautiful 17th-century house along with a wealth of other artefacts, including two of her writing desks.
A lovely introduction to Beatrix Potter is ‘Beatirx and her Bunnies’ by Rebecca Colby, illustrated by Caroline Bonne-Muller, published by Nosy Crow in partnership with the National Trust (ISBN: 978-1839941078).
You can read about The House of the Tailor of Gloucester here.
