Beatrix Potter

A love affair begins

The Potters took long holidays each year to the countryside in Scotland and the Lake District where Beatrix indulged in her interest in nature, spending hours exploring and sketching the wildlife. 

Her first visit to the Lake District was in 1882 when she visited Wray Castle, a Victorian Gothic-style mansion. The family also stayed in Lingholm, Fawe Park, Holehird, and Lakefield (now Ees Wyke).

Beatrix frequently returned from holiday with animals such as mice, rabbits, newts, caterpillars and birds, which formed a menagerie in the schoolroom.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit and the first children’s books

Beatrix had been painting for her own amusement for many years but in 1890 she had her first commercial success with rabbit pictures she sold as Christmas card designs to Hildesheimer & Faulkener.

The letter writer

Beatrix had become close friends with her former governess, Annie Moore. She was particularly fond of Annie’s young children, regularly writing amusing picture letters for them about the many pets she kept.

As well as writing books, Beatrix wrote letters to family, friends and fans all over the world. You can buy a book of her published letters to adults and another of her letters to children.

The birth of Peter Rabbit

Several years later Beatrix turned one of the tales into a picture book. It was rejected by several publishers, so she privately printed 250 copies of it herself. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was a great success with family and friends.
In 1902, Frederick Warne & Co agreed to publish an initial quantity of 8,000. They sold out instantly and Beatrix’s career as a storyteller was launched.

Beatrix Potter and Hill Top

By 1905, Warne had published six of Beatrix Potter’s books, including The Tale of Mrs Tiggy-Winkle. She used the profits to buy her first farm, 17th-century Hill Top Farm in Near Sawrey village in the Lake District. Along with the surrounding countryside it became the inspiration for many of her subsequent books.

In the summer of that year, Norman Warne proposed marriage and she accepted. But tragically, Norman fell ill and died four weeks later. Beatrix threw herself into the running of her farm whilst working on more ‘little books’. The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck were both set in and around Hill Top.

Beatrix Potter and the Lake District 

Beatrix’s love of the Lake District inspired her to create some of her most famous tales. She became a prominent member of the farming community and a fierce campaigner on local conservation issues.

While she was passionate about preserving a way of life, she was an astute and forward-thinking businesswoman, not afraid of making changes where necessary. Beatrix purchased a considerable amount of land in the Lake District and was advised by local solicitor William Heelis who she met in Hawkshead and later married. 

She and William lived in Castle Cottage, Near Sawrey, from 1913 until her death. Only a few books were produced for Frederick Warne after their marriage as she became much more focused on farming and investing in land and the local community around Near Sawrey.

Beatrix Potter and the National Trust 

‘I wish there may be a sufficient representative number of the old farms in the hands of the Trust.’

– Beatrix Potter in a letter to Eleanor Rawnsley, 1934

Beatrix worked closely with the National Trust, helping it to acquire land and manage farms to ensure their long-term preservation. 

Since an early meeting at Wray Castle, Beatrix became a good friend of Canon Hardwicke Drummond Rawnsley – one of the three co-founders of the National Trust. When she died in 1943, she left 4,000 acres of land and countryside in our care, as well as 14 farms. Her legacy has helped ensure the survival of the Lakeland landscape.