Experience
Shepherding &
Shepherds’ Huts
at the Weald &
Downland
Open Air Museum
11 – 12 April 2015
A wonderful weekend exhibition
focused on the skills, traditions and
culture of downland shepherds.
See the tools of the shepherding
trade, explore shepherds’ huts old
and new, and meet local Southdown
sheep and their lambs...
Shepherds’ huts were once a familiar sight
in the countryside, with their corrugated
iron roofs and iron wheels. Used for farming
purposes during much of the 19th and 20th
centuries, they were homes to shepherds for
weeks at a time during lambing; their cast
iron stoves providing essential warmth to new
born lambs. In recently time these charismatic
huts have enjoyed a revival, becoming
popular as modern, moveable spaces for use
as home offices, playrooms and even holiday
accommodation. This two-day exhibition of shepherds’ huts and rural
buildings will include the Museum’s original agricultural wheeled
huts, plus inspirational examples of new build huts.
Richard Pailthorpe, Director of the Weald & Downland Open Air
Museum, says:
“Shepherding was integral to the South Downs, playing an important
role in the development of the area for centuries. Unfortunately these
traditional huts were largely abandoned by the end of the 1900’s
but their unique design has enjoyed a revival and huts have made a
fashionable comeback for largely domestic purposes. This promises
to be a fascinating weekend for all the family.”