Chiltern Open Air Museum Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Chiltern Open Air Museum

Examples of a cottage and a prefabricated chapel at the Chiltern Open Air Museum
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Established	1976
Location	Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire, England, UK
Type	Open-air museum Folk museum Architecture museum
Collections	Reconstructed vernacular buildings from the Chiltern Hills region
Public transit access	Chalfont & Latimer Chorleywood

The Chiltern Open Air Museum (COAM) is a unique place to visit in Buckinghamshire, England. It's an open-air museum that saves and rebuilds old buildings. These buildings are from the Chiltern Hills area.

The museum helps protect history. It takes apart old buildings that might be torn down. Then, it moves them piece by piece to the museum grounds. There, they are carefully put back together. This way, people can see how buildings looked in the past. The museum is a charity. It has a small team and many volunteers who help run it.

Exploring the Museum's History
Structures in the collection
See also

Exploring the Museum's History

The Chiltern Open Air Museum started in 1976. It first opened its doors to visitors in 1981. Its main goal is to save and fix old English buildings. These buildings are from the Chilterns region. They might have been destroyed otherwise.

The museum is set on a large, 45-acre (180,000 m²) site. This area includes woodland and open fields. You can find more than 35 different buildings here. These include old barns, traditional farm buildings, and houses. There's even a working historic farm with real farm animals!

The museum wants to show how people lived long ago. It helps connect the past with today. It keeps the cultural heritage of the Chilterns alive.

What Kinds of Buildings Can You See?

The museum has many interesting buildings. You can see a 1940s prefab house from Amersham. There's also a rebuilt Iron Age house. Imagine living in a house like that!

Other cool buildings include a Victorian toll house from High Wycombe. There's also a "Tin Chapel" from Henton, Oxfordshire. A forge from Garston, Hertfordshire shows how blacksmiths worked.

You can also find a pair of cottages from Leagrave. These started as a barn in the 1700s. Later, they became two homes for workers. A chair factory from High Wycombe shows the local chair-making trade. The museum also has a rebuilt WW1 Nissen hut. Next to it is a WW2 Nissen Hut and a 'Dig for Victory' garden. This garden shows how people grew their own food during the war.

In 2014, the museum finished rebuilding a farmhouse from Haddenham. This farmhouse had been stored for 30 years. The museum needed enough money to rebuild it.

Buildings Waiting to Be Rebuilt

The museum also has 16 buildings in storage. They are waiting to be rebuilt when funds are available. One special building is Jackson Studios. This was a recording studio used by famous musicians. Artists like Elton John, Ian Dury, and Motörhead recorded music there. Motörhead even recorded their famous song Ace of Spades at these studios! The studio building is now stored at the museum. It will be rebuilt when enough money is raised.

Activities and Events at the Museum

The Chiltern Open Air Museum offers many fun activities. You can try hands-on experiences. These include blacksmithing and willow weaving. You can also try straw plaiting, historic cooking, and folk singing.

The museum hosts many events each year. These often include re-enactments and living history displays. These events help you feel like you've stepped back in time.

The museum is very popular with school groups. It has won awards for its educational programs. It cares about the environment too. In 2013, it won an award for its environmental efforts.