Day 3 of our Hampshire Holiday we visited Gilbert Whites house and gardens. This house is the former residence of the 18th Century Naturalist. He moved here when he was about 7 and was a simple small '2up 2down' house. Since then there have been lots of expansion to what we see today.
When the house came up for sale in the 1950's a trust was formed to keep the house as a museum. This would not have been possible without the substantive donation by Robert Washington Oates on the understanding that it would house the Oates Memorial Museum dedicated to Lawrence and Frank Oates. Two remarkable explorers of the natural world. The upper floors hold this Oates Collection.
Lawrence Oates was the explorer who tried to reach the South Pole in 1912 with Robert Scott. Frank Oates was Lawrences uncle and fascinated by the natural world.
The Reverent Gilbert White is famous for three things.
The Book - Over 250 years ago Selborne and its surrounding area became the inspiration for the young Gilbert White and natural history. This concluded in his world famous book 'The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne'. This book was published in 1789 just before he died, and has never been out of print since. It is one of the most published book in the english language and has formed the basis of a lot of what we consider natural history today.
The Naturalist - He is regarded the father of ecology
The Gardener - Gilbert was first a gardener and this developed his interest in Natural History. The house has 5 acres of garden and about 25 acres more of meadow land.
This blog is about the house. A few of us went round the house before lunch. Fascinating to look at these three important pioneer of the natural world.
Web Site - https://www.gilbertwhiteshouse.org.uk
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