Hawker's Hut

The Rev. Robert Stephen Hawker (1803-1875) was  a poet, ballad writer and vicar of Morwenstow in Cornwall from 1834 until his death in 1875. In addition to establishing the Harvest Festival that we celebrate today, he was one of the best minor poets of the Victorian age, particularly as a ballad writer. And he was also an early shedworker, writing many of his poems in the hut above known as Hawker's Hut.

He built it in 1844 on the clifftop, indeed on the cliff face, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean using driftwood (timber from local shipwrecks) and is is now the smallest property owned by the National Trust. It has a slate floor, wooden benches, and a turf roof, and visitors included Tennyson and Charles Kingsley. In his day, there was a path down to the beach but sadly this has now gone.

More photos and lots more detail about the hut here.
 Image courtesy Humphrey Bolton ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master: garden offices and studios to fit any size garden. Top quality contemporary or traditional buildings.

Hawker's Hut (video)

We've covered the Rev. Robert Stephen Hawker's hut before on Shedworking, the spot where Victorian priest and poet spent much of his time in Cornwall, writing many of his poems in the hut which he built in 1844 on the clifftop overlooking the Atlantic Ocean using driftwood. Here's a nice little video from the National Trust which shows us briefly around inside.

*************************************

Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master, bespoke garden rooms and offices designed, manufactured and installed throughout the UK

Shed Heaven

One for the shed section of your bookshelf, Shed Heaven by Anna Groves is published by National Trust/Pavilion. What makes this stand out for those working in garden offices, is that in addition to the various sheds owned by the NT on their properties, there is a significant focus on the ones in which people worked. There'll be no surprises for readers of Shedworking in terms of the properties, but it's nicely done. Here's the bumph:

"The National Trust looks after many of Britain’s most important and beloved buildings – its sheds. They lurk in the shadow of grand country houses; they brave the elements on the tops of cliffs; they have inspired famous writers and housed everything from beehives to birdwatchers.

"These beautiful and sometimes eccentric structures are as individual as their owners. A Victorian coastal shed in Cornwall is where the Reverend Hawker went to write verse, and smoke opium. It’s also the smallest building cared for by the National Trust. George Bernard Shaw’s shed could be rotated throughout the day to make the most of the sun, while sculptor Barbara Hepworth used hers for napping in. Rather than a place in which to create, many of these sheds are the creation.  

"Alongside the literary writing dens and horticultural hideaways there are also floating sheds, coastguards’ sheds, artists’ studios, summer houses, beach huts, camping pods, bothies, teahouses, follies and much more."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.