Shepherd's hut

The shepherd's hut was, since the 14th century and into the 20th century, used by shepherds during sheep raising and lambing, primarily in the United Kingdom and France. Shepherd's huts often had iron wheels and corrugated iron tops. Sometimes the sides were also made of corrugated iron.

Background

Use of shepherd's huts by farmers reached a peak in the late 19th century and dwindled in the 20th century with the advent of mechanised farm machinery and electric power reaching even remote farms. Their use persisted in some northern counties in the United Kingdom, particularly Westmoreland and Northumberland, where the terrain of the uplands supports little else but sheep farming.
There have been numerous different materials used to construct shepherd's huts and after World War I, when metal was in short supply the chassis were often built with wood and the sides built with interlocking planks of larch or spruce. Sometimes the roof covering would be constructed from felt and tar and insulated with lambswool. Cast iron wheels were frequently recycled from other farm machinery. There are now very few examples of the later 20th century shepherd's huts in the county of Westmorland which became Cumbria in 1974.
In North America, it was called a sheep wagon:
Shepherds huts are still in use today, but primarily as glamping accommodation, or as an alternative to a summer house, home office, shed, or workshop.