Pitstone Green Museum

The farm, as you see it today, was largely built by the Countess of Bridgewater

and is unusual in that it has been occupied by the Hawkins family since 1808,

before most of the farm was built in 1830. It was built close to the site of

earlier farms one of the old buildings still remain to this day. Most prominent

of these is the Big Barn, a section of which dates from the 17th century and was

transported to the site when the farm was built in the first half of the 19th century.

The Pitstone Local History Society was formed in 1963, later to become the Pitstone

& Ivinghoe Museum Society. Inspired by David Wray,they began collecting almost

anything associated with farming and rural life in the locality. The collection

was initially housed at Don Levy’s Vicarage Farm, Ivinghoe but then moved to

Pitstone Green Farm when further space was needed.

In 1991 a 99 year lease on the 1831 farm was granted to the Pitstone Local History

Society (now Pitstone & Ivinghoe Museum Society) by Jeff Hawkins , the then owner of

the farm. On the death of Jeff Hawkins in 2001, Pitstone Green Farm was gifted to the

National Trust and forms part of the Ashridge Estate. The Ashridge Estate comprises

5000 acres of beautiful countryside ranging from magnificent woods, commons, downland

and farmland which support a rich variety of wildlife, including carpets of bluebells

in spring, rare butterflies in summer and the fallow deer rut in autumn.