Oakhurst Cottage facts for kids
Oakhurst Cottage is a very old and small house located in Hambledon, a village in Surrey, England. It was built a long time ago, either in the 1500s or 1600s. This cottage is a special old building, meaning it's protected because of its history.
In 1954, the cottage was given to the National Trust. This is a charity that looks after historic places and natural beauty spots in the UK. People lived in Oakhurst Cottage until 1983. Since then, it has been carefully fixed up to show what a working person's home looked like during the Victorian era (from 1837 to 1901).
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History of Oakhurst Cottage
This charming cottage might have started its life as a barn. The house we see today was built sometime in the 16th or 17th century. That makes it over 300 years old! People continued to live in the cottage right up until the 1980s.
After its last residents moved out, the cottage was restored. It was furnished to show how a labourer, or working person, would have lived. The Allfrey sisters gave Oakhurst Cottage to the National Trust in 1954. However, their tenants, Elsie and Ted Jeffrey, continued to live there until Ted passed away in 1983. The garden around the cottage is filled with plants that were popular during the Victorian era. Because Oakhurst Cottage is quite small, you can only visit it by making an appointment. Groups are also limited to no more than six people at a time.
What Oakhurst Cottage Looks Like
This two-storey building has a wooden frame and a roof made of tiles. The spaces between the wooden beams are filled with bricks that have been painted. There is a chimney on one side and an extra part, called a wing, at the back.
Inside the Cottage
In the kitchen, which has a floor made of square tiles, there is a big brick fireplace. Above the fireplace is a strong oak beam. You can see examples of old china and tools that families might have used in a similar house long ago. To get to the bedrooms, you climb a narrow staircase that leads up to the attic. These bedrooms have two gabled dormer windows. These are windows that stick out from the sloping roof. Some of the glass in these windows is very old, with small diamond-shaped panes held together by lead.
The Garden and Outbuildings
Outside in the garden, there is a small building called an outhouse. This was where the toilet was located in the past. There is also a small barn nearby. This barn holds a collection of old garden tools and other tools that workmen would have used.
