The Pearl S. Buck House, formerly known as Green Hills Farm, is the 67-

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses *Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres *Homestead principle, a legal concept th ...

Bucks County, Pennsylvania Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the Englis ...

, where Nobel-prize-winning

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

Pearl Buck Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973) was an American writer and novelist. She is best known for ''The Good Earth'' a bestselling novel in the United States in 1931 and 1932 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. In 1938, Buck ...

lived for 40 years, raising her family, writing, pursuing

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

interests, and

gardening Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. In gardens, ornamental plants are often grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants, such as root vegetables, leaf vegetables, fruits ...

. She purchased the house in 1933 and lived there until the late 1960s, when she moved to Danby, Vermont.Green Hill Farm (Pearl S. Buck House)
National Park Service She completed many works while on the farm, including ''This Proud Heart'' (1938), ''The Patriot'' (1939), ''Today and Forever'' (1941), and ''The Child Who Never Grew'' (1950). The farm, a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, is located on Dublin Road southwest of

Dublin, Pennsylvania Dublin is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The population was 2,158 at the 2010 census. Dublin is part of Pennridge School District. Geography Dublin is located at (40.373270, -75.202464). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough ...

. It is now a museum open to the public.

Overview

The Pearl S. Buck House at Green Hills Farm, an example of 19th century (built 1825Preservation/Restoration of the Pearl S. Buck House National Historic Landmark

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...

) Pennsylvanian

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, is constructed of coursed

fieldstone Fieldstone is a naturally occurring type of stone, which lies at or near the surface of the Earth. Fieldstone is a nuisance for farmers seeking to expand their land under cultivation, but at some point it began to be used as a construction mate ...

. It is four bays wide and two deep with the main entrance located in the second bay. Two

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...

s are located on the front and rear slope of the roof.

Chimney A chimney is an architectural ventilation structure made of masonry, clay or metal that isolates hot toxic exhaust gases or smoke produced by a boiler, stove, furnace, incinerator, or fireplace from human living areas. Chimneys are typic ...

s are located on each gable end. When Buck purchased the farmstead, she made extensive alterations and additions to the 19th century

farmhouse FarmHouse (FH) is a social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity founded at the University of Missouri on April 15, 1905. It became a national organization in 1921. Today FarmHouse has 33 active chapters and four associate ch ...

, including a two-story fieldstone

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

added to the east gable and two

libraries A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

. Today, visitors can tour twelve rooms of the home and visit the pre- Revolutionary War

cottage A cottage, during Feudalism in England, England's feudal period, was the holding by a cottager (known as a Cotter (farmer), cotter or ''bordar'') of a small house with enough garden to feed a family and in return for the cottage, the cottager ...

on the property and the

barn A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G. ...

built in 1827. In the large library, two Pennsylvania jugs serve as lamp bases upon a hand carved Chinese hardwood desk, at which Buck wrote her breakthrough novel ''

The Good Earth ''The Good Earth'' is a historical fiction novel by Pearl S. Buck published in 1931 that dramatizes family life in a Chinese village in the early 20th century. It is the first book in her ''House of Earth'' trilogy, continued in ''Sons'' (1932) ...

''. Buck filled her home with works of original art by

Chen Chi Chen Chi (1912–2005) was a renowned Chinese-American painter who lived and worked for much of his career in the United States. Chi was born in Wuxi, Jiangsu, China in 1912. He taught painting at the Wu Pen and Huai Chiu high schools for girls ...

and Freeman Elliot , iron works of art produced by

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

artisan An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art ...

s in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Peking } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

Fetti

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fibers such as polypropylene, nylon, or polyester hav ...

s that survived

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

s in China, and some of her own

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s. Green Hills longwise BucksCo PA.jpg, House Green Hills barn BucksCo PA.jpg, Barn

Museum and Tours

The Pearl Buck house is open to the public for daily tours seven days a week. Pearl S. Buck International currently offers two house tours to visitors: Pearl S. Buck: Taking Action, which focuses on Ms. Buck's activism and human rights advocacy, and the more traditional biographical and historic Pearl S. Buck: Life and Legacy Tour. In May 2020, Pearl S. Buck International's project of developing and implementing the Taking Action tour was named a 2020 recipient of th
Award of Excellence
by th
American Association for State and Local History (AASLH).

Accreditation

In October 2021, the Accreditation Commission of the

American Alliance of Museums American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

(AAM), the only organization representing the entire scope of the museum community, awarded the Pearl S. Buck House accreditation. Of the nation's estimated 33,000 museums, 1,095 are currently accredited.

National Historic Landmark Designation

The Pearl S. Buck House was designated a

in 1980 and opened as a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

the same year. Of 90,000 places listed on the country's

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

, approximately 2,500 are recognized as National Historic Landmarks. As of 2018, there were only 300 National Historic Landmarks dedicated to upholding the legacy of a woman. Of that number, the Pearl S. Buck House is one of only 10 with an intact collection. Approximately 17,000 people visit each year. It sits on over 67 acres of lawns, gardens and ponds.

Pearl S. Buck International

Pearl S. Buck International
is the organization that owns and operates the Pearl S. Buck House National Historic Landmark. Pearl S. Buck International is a 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit organization founded by writer, activist and humanitarian

Pearl S. Buck Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973) was an American writer and novelist. She is best known for ''The Good Earth'' a bestselling novel in the United States in 1931 and 1932 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. In 1938, Buck ...

. Pearl S. Buck International carries on Ms. Buck's legacy through

intercultural education Cultural competence, also known as intercultural competence, is a range of cognitive, affective, and behavioural skills that lead to effective and appropriate communication with people of other cultures.Deardorff, D. K. (2009). ''The Sage handbook ...

, the Pearl Buck House museum and tours, and

humanitarian aid Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance to people who need help. It is usually short-term help until the long-term help by the government and other institutions replaces it. Among the people in need are the homeless, refugees, and ...

Notes

References

* * {{authority control National Historic Landmarks in Pennsylvania Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Houses completed in 1933 Museums in Bucks County, Pennsylvania Historic house museums in Pennsylvania Buck, Pearl Literary museums in the United States Women's museums in the United States Houses in Bucks County, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Bucks County, Pennsylvania Pearl S. Buck