Beatrix Potter-Artist and Storyteller:
Beatrix Potter wrote enchanting tales of Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-Duck et al creating such an indelible image of Lake District life.
Helen Beatrix Potter was born on 28th July 1866, at the family home at 2, Bolton Gardens, Kensington, London.
She came from an upper-middle class family whose wealth came largely from the Lancashire cotton industry.
She had a lonely childhood, despite the presence of her younger brother Betram. She was educated at home and seldom mixed with other children.
Instead, her companions were a succession of beloved pets, secretly carried up to her nursery. She had rabbits, newts and even a hedgehog.
Beatrix spent hours drawing them and even took them, along with her sketchbooks, on the family’s summer holidays in the Lake District.
She visited Wray Castle, located on the shores of Windermere, in 1882. At the time, she was just 16 years old and on holiday with her family.
It was during this trip that she discovered her love for the area and began to draw and paint the landscapes and animals she encountered.
Wray Castle, with its stunning views and picturesque grounds, provided a rich source of inspiration for Potter, who would go on to create some of her most beloved characters, including Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck.
Her visit to Wray Castle was a pivotal moment in her life and career, and it remains a cherished part of her legacy today.
On her return home to London she having thoughts of a stultifying future living with her parents in London.
Beatrix fled to Lakeland buying Hill Top Farm in Far Sawrey, near Hawkshead, where she lived in the latter half of her life.
Beatrix Potter was a curious lady around the village of Far Sawrey. She was always Victorian in her demeanor, wearing long tweed skirts and jackets made from her own Herdwick sheep’s wool. She wore an old felt hat in winter and a straw hat in summer.
She was never seen in a light summer dress even in hot weather. She wore clogs, made by a local shoemaker in Hawkshead, called Charlie Brown. Today his little shoe shop in now a cafe.
Visitors to the Tower Bank Arms would often notice an old lady walking up the road outside, not knowing who she was.Â
Beatrix enjoyed hearing the locals at the bar having a sing-song, especially the hunting songs.
Beatrix Potter is credited with saving the Herdwick sheep. She stipulated that every tenant farm (on farms she owned) had to have a ‘Landlords Flock’ of pure Herwick sheep.
On December 22nd, 1943, Beatrix Potter died at home at Castle Cottage, opposite Hill Top Farm.
She left behind a rich legacy for the whole world – her writings, her drawings, her farms and cottages, over 4000 acres of land, her flocks of Herdwick sheep and much more.
If you are looking for a holiday cottage with easy access of Hill Top, near Hawkshead, Enquire here.
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