[1] The museum covers 40 acres (16 ha), with over 50 historic buildings dating from 950AD to the 19th century, along with gardens, farm animals, walks and a mill pond.

The principal aim at the foundation of the museum was to establish a centre that could rescue representative examples of vernacular buildings from South East England, and thereby to generate increased public awareness and interest in the built environment.

The museum principally promotes the retention of buildings on their original sites unless there is no alternative, and encourages an informed and sympathetic approach to their preservation and continuing use.

These buildings, plus two archaeological reconstructions, help the museum bring to life the homes, farmsteads and rural industries of the last 950 years.

The land for the museum was gifted by a local landowner, Edward James of West Dean at a peppercorn rent.

[2] The principle of an open-air museum was well established in Scandinavia as a way to create a three-dimensional setting for explaining the way of living or working.

Open-air museums allowed the buildings to give context to the techniques, equipment, furnishings, clothes and art of the period.

The most characteristic feature of the Hambrook barn is the aisle, which continues round the ends as well as the sides of the building.

The eaves thus form a continuous line except for the high barn doors, which were needed on one side to allow loaded wagons to enter.

This timber-framed barn dates from the 16th century and originally stood at Cowfold, Sussex, and is a typical late-medieval example from the Weald.

[7] Bayleaf farmhouse is a timber-framed Wealden hall house with a peg tile roof, dating from the early 15th century.

[9] It was originally built at Ide Hill,[10] Kent, and was donated to the museum in 1968 by the East Surrey Water Company, as the creation of Bough Beech Reservoir[11] threatened its destruction.

The Causeway Brickworks closed down early in the Second World War – in common with many others – because the glow from the open-top kiln was an obvious landmark for enemy aircraft.

The building is constructed on a rough timber frame, with the main posts dug into the ground rather than being placed on a sole plate.

[15] The camp was recently refurbished with the advice of retired charcoal burners who had used traditional earth-covered clamps until 1948.

It had the normal arrangement of a central threshing floor between the storage bays and there is an owl loft above the entrance.

[19] The crane was made by John Smith Ltd of Keighley, Yorkshire, in 1900 and was originally installed at a farm in Alton, Hampshire.

An exception has been made in this case as the surviving original timbers are well distributed, and because of its unique cruck frame construction.

[25] The Ministry of Public Building and Works undertook an archaeological dig between 1952 and 1954 and uncovered eight 13th and 14th-century buildings[26] Hangleton cottage represents a typical peasant dwelling of the period based on archeological evidence of these excavations, with a main room with an open hearth and an inner room with an oven.

The earliest part of the building dates from 1554 and was originally attached to a medieval hall, which no longer exists.

In leaving it out the museum created an open space in the building to allow it to serve as the entrance and shop, and to better demonstrate the historic development of the farmhouse.

It was re-erected at the museum in 1975, but the discovery of a postcard of the building at its original site showed that the chimney had not been reconstructed correctly.

The treadwheel is housed in a small timber-framed building with a thatched roof and was originally built at Catherington, Hampshire.

[53] Tindalls Cottage, dating from around 1700–1725, is an oak-framed building with a tiled roof and gable-end chimney, originally from Ticehurst, East Sussex.

[55] This building dates from the 15th century and has a long, open room on the first floor, which probably served as a communal meeting place.

The 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter overshot waterwheel, which was originally cast at Cocking Foundry for Coster's Mill, West Lavington, drives the two pairs of millstone, a sack hoist and flour dresser.

The museum has a selection of typical farm animals, including Southdown sheep, Sussex chickens and Embden geese.

For the museum's volunteers who work in the community to stimulate public interest in historical crafts and rural buildings.

The museum received a European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Award for Historic Building Conservation Training Programme, plus Grand Prix Laureate in recognition of outstanding heritage achievements.

Voted for by the public and presented by the Duchess of York, for the museum's enormous support from the local community.