Hill Top is a 17th-century Lakeland farm once in the possession of children's author Beatrix Potter. She bought the farm house as a retreat from London in 1896 at a time when she was making a significant amount of money from her stories. She used the farm as a place to develop her stories. Many of these stories (such as "Jemima Puddleduck" and "Tom Kitten") were set on the farm. Farm furniture, the ponds, and other elements were used as props in her books. 