In search of Beatrix Potter and Friends

The area around Hawkshead has many attractions for those visitors looking to discover more about the countryside that inspired Beatrix Potter.

In 1905 Beatrix Potter bought Hill Top, a small farm in Sawrey, which is just 2 miles from Hawkshead. Seven of her books are based in or around Hill Top. Tom Kitten and Samuel Whiskers lived there.

The house is still as it was then, and is now the most visited literary shrine in the Lake District.

Beatrix Potter married a Hawkshead solicitor, William Heelis, in 1913, and settled into a life as a Lakeland farmer. His office in the centre of Hawkshead is now the National Trust’s ‘Beatrix Potter Gallery‘.

Beatrix Potter continued to buy property in and around the area, including the land between Coniston and Little Langdale, which contained Tarn Hows. On her death this and some other fourteen farms were left to the National Trust.

Situated in Ambleside is the Armitt Library, which now contains many of Beatrix Potter’s water colours, and drawings of fungi, mosses and fossils.

The World of Beatrix Potter is located in Bowness, which is a short drive via the ferry from Hawkshead. There you can discover Peter Rabbit and friends in a magical recreation of Beatrix Potter’s books, a great experience for children.