House Histories for Beginners E-Book

Colin Style

• Herausgeber: Phillimore & Co Ltd
• Kategorie: Sachliteratur, Reportagen, Biografien
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 431

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

Popular television programmes highlight the satisfaction that can be gained from investigating the history of houses, and there is always plenty of interest in the subject, with archives becoming ever more accessible with access to the internet. As the subject covers a broad field, the authors have set out to include advice on those aspects that usually apply to a project and others that will be of particular use for beginners. The reader is guided through every stage of research, from the first exploration of the archives to the completion of the task. Suggestions are also included on how to present the findings – a house history makes a very attractive gift. The authors describe how to deduce the age of a property (it is very seldom directly recorded when a house was built) and characteristics of research on particular types of property – such as cottages, manor houses, inns, mills, former church properties, and farms – are discussed. In one example, research demonstrated that a farm was likely to have been a Domesday manor – a fascinating discovery achieved using records accessible to any beginner.

Leseprobe

‘Proposed New Rectory, No 1. Landford’, Wiltshire, 24 August 1871. [Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office, DI/11/206. Ecclesiastical Dilapidations Board, Mortgages 1871. Plans for Rebuilding the Parsonage House, Landford. Diocese of Sarum.] Reproduced by kind permission of Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office.

Front cover: Shopwyke Manor – formerly a farmhouse – near Chichester, West Sussex. (Reproduced by kind permission of Louise Harris)

Back cover: Church Rate booklet, Parish of Axminster, Devon, 1813. [Devon Record Office, 406A add 2/PW 22.] (Reproduced by kind permission of the Incumbent and Parochial Church Council of Axminster)

First published 2006

This edition published 2022

The History Press

97 St George’s Place, Cheltenham,Gloucestershire, GL50 3QB

www.thehistorypress.co.uk

© Colin & O-lan Style, 2006, 2022

The right of Colin & O-lan Style to be identified as the Authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the Publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 0 7524 9120 2

Typesetting and origination by The History Press

Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ Books Limited, Padstow, Cornwall.

eBook converted by Geethik Technologies

ToKelda and Matthew,and our grandchildren, Cassia and Ben

Image

Old houses were scaffolding onceand workmen whistling.                      T.E. Hulme (1883-1917)

Contents

List of Figures

Foreword by Christopher Booker

Preface

Acknowledgements

Introduction

chapter 1     Getting Started

Scope

Check Title Deeds

Initial Contacts

Making Preliminary Enquiries

Tools of the Trade

Checking-In

Identifying the Property

Maps

Listed Buildings

The Tithe Survey

What to do if Tithe Survey Particulars are Missing

Enclosure Awards

The Valuation Office Survey

The Next Step

chapter 2     Laying the Foundations

Extending from the Tithe Survey

Land Tax Assessments, c.1780-1832

Rate Books, c.1800-1850

Background History of the Locality

Using Archive Indexes

Subjects and Collections Indexed

Searching the Indexes

The Place Index

The Persons’ Index

Manor and Estate Indexes

Indexes to Special Types of Property

The Maps Index

Locating Quarter Sessions and Parish Records

Index to Local Authority and Council Records

Using the Internet to Search the Catalogues

Comment

chapter 3     Researching Back from 1832 to 1662

Rates

Overseers of the Poor Rates, Church Rates, Way Rates

Other Rates

Apprenticeship Indentures

Hearth Tax and Window Tax

Manorial and Estate Records

Tracing Manorial Records

Various Manor and Estate Records

Surveys

Valuations

Rentals

Manor Court Rolls and Manor Court Books

Accounts and Correspondence

Papists’ Estates Returns

Borough and City Records

Deeds

Feet of Fines

Feoffment and ‘Livery of Seizin’

Bargain and Sale

Lease and Release

Marriage Settlements

Fee Simple and Fee Tail

Abstracts of Title

Wills and Probate Inventories

Quarter Sessions

chapter 4     Searching Back before 1662

Character of Earlier Records

Parish Records

Parish Registers

Where to Find Parish Registers

Overseers’ and Churchwardens’ Accounts

Pew and Seating Papers

Published Early Records

The English Place-Name Society

Early Rolls

Lay Subsidy Rolls

Protestation Oath Returns

Muster Rolls

Parliamentary Surveys

Record Society Publications

Public Record Office Publications of Early Records

Cartularies and the Court of Augmentations

chapter 5     Moving Forward from the Tithe Survey to 1910

The House Built before the Tithe Survey

The House Built between the Tithe Survey and 1910

The Return of Owners of Land, 1872-3

The Censuses

Births, Marriages, Deaths from 1837

Using Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates in House Histories

How to Obtain Birth, Marriage or Death Certificates

National Wills and Administrations, from 1858

Voters’ Lists, from 1832

Fire Office Insurances

Published Sources

Sales’ Particulars

Trade and other Directories

Newspapers

Pictorial Records

chapter 6     1910 to the Present Day

Twentieth-Century Problems

More Local Sources

Estate Agent Notices

WI Scrapbooks and Millennium Projects

The Second World War

Local Authorities

Land Registry Office

Voters’ Lists and Telephone Directories

Local and Oral History

chapter 7     Former Church Properties

Where to Find Ecclesiastical Records

Diocesan Records

Other Ecclesiastical Records

Estate Records

The Parish Glebe

Types of Original Ecclesiastical Records

Glebe Terriers

Queen Anne’s Bounty

Dilapidation Books and Orders

Parsonage House Plans

Visitation Queries

Plural Livings

Non-Residence Licences

Probate Inventories

Deposition Books

Church Estate Records

Advowsons and Bishops’ Registers

Letters of Complaint, Letters of Petition

Published Records

Crockford’s Clerical Directory

Church and Parish Histories by Local Historians

Local and Regional Newspapers

Summary

chapter 8     The Post-1910 Town Property

Twentieth-Century Houses are Rewarding

Ingredients of a Post-1910 House History

The History of 20 Mallord Street

Comment on the Researches

chapter 9     The Farm

Definition of a Farm

Elements of a Farm History

Farm Life

Women and the Farm

Farm Finances

Quality of Lands

How Farm Lands are Described in Records

Field Names

Past History or Usage Names

Past Holders’ or Associated Persons’ Names

Agricultural Usage or Description Names

Topographical Features’ Names

Positional Names

Size Indicators

Farms as Communities

The Changing Status of Farms

Researching Surrounding Farms

Farmers in Indirect Record Sources

Farms and Domesday Book

The National Farm Surveys of England and Wales, 1940-43

How to Trace the Records of a Farm in the National Farm Survey

chapter 10     The Cottage

Are Cottages Difficult to Trace?

Disappearance from Manorial and Estate Records

Lack of Identifying Parcels of Land

Numerous Name Changes

Divisions, Amalgamations, Alterations

Part of a Larger Property or Group

When the Trail Goes Cold

A Problem Cottage

Cottage History in the Soil

chapter 11     The Manor House

Definition

Records of Special Interest

Terms Used for the Manor House

Assets Attached to the Manor House

The Manor House and Domesday Book

chapter 12     Mills and Mill Houses

Definition and Descriptions

Products Milled

Mill Power

Mills, Domesday Book and Early Cartularies

Features of Records

Finance and Mills

‘Lately Erected’ Mills

Records for Millers and Mills

chapter 13     Inns

Inn Incidents and Events

Untraced Anecdotes

Poor Reputation of Inns in the Past

Deposition Books, Quarter Sessions, Newspapers

Constable Returns

Victuallers’ or Alehouse Recognizances

‘A Book of Licenses’, 1620

The Parish Church and Inns

Problems with Inn Records

Wills and Inventories

Indirect Sources

Activities at Inns

Recipes, Cookery and Cuisine

Diaries and Letters

Billeting Returns and Rent of Inn Signs

Inn Names

Oral History

The Late Albert Manley’s Memories of Hunter’s Lodge, Uplyme

chapter 14     When Was the House Built?

Dating a House from the Records

Dating a House by Vernacular Architecture

Case Histories

Using Maps to Date a Property

Two New Gardens

‘A Fine Decorated Plaster Ceiling’

Licence for a Chapel

Appearance of a ‘Messuage’

‘New’ Cap Inn

‘His Dwelling House’

An Estate is Divided

Two New Cottages

Occasions and Events

Datestones and Inscriptions

chapter 15     Writing and Presenting the House History

Why Write Up the House History?

General Characteristics of the Write-up

Form of Presentation

Order of Parts of the Write-up

Sample Chronology

chapter 16     A Case Study

An Outline History

History of the Site

‘Mr Thos. Whittys New House in Axminster’

The Research Process

Getting Started

General Maps

Laying the Foundations

Searching Back from 1776-8 to 1662 and Before

Moving Forwards from 1776-8 to 1910

From 1778 to 1837

From 1837 to 1910

1910 to the Present Day

Comment

Chronology

Introduction to Chronology

Excerpts from the Chronology

chapter 17     Deciphering the Records

Numbers

Money

Land Measures

Customary and Statute Measures

Regional Measures

Dates

The Old Style and New Style Calendars

The Regnal Calendar

Dates for Settling Accounts and Paying Rents

The Days of the Week

The Law Terms

Calculating Rates

Handwriting or Palaeography

Abbreviations and Spelling

Latin

Notes

A List of Helpful Sources for Beginners

List of Figures

Frontispiece: ‘Proposed New Rectory, No 1. Landford’, Wiltshire, 24 August 1871

1. The Search Room, Devon Record Office, Exeter, 2006

2. Tithe Map, Parish of Sidmouth, 1839

3. Tithe Apportionment, Parish of Sidmouth, 1840

4. Ruislip Enclosure Plan, 1806

5. Ruislip Enclosure Award, 1814

6. Valuation Office Survey, Valuation Book, Combpyne, 1910

7. Valuation Office Survey, Field Book, Combpyne, 1910

8. Aerial view of Manor Farm, Combpyne, late 20th century

9. Land Tax Assessments, Parish of Axminster, 1813

10. Church Rate booklet, Parish of Axminster, 1813

11. Devon Record Office Place Index card

12. Devon Record Office Catalogue page

13. ‘Sidbury Parish April the 16th 1759, Officers for the year’, and ‘Apprentices’

14. Inquiry concerning John Pereu Foslogas [1420]

15. Draft Return of Lord Arundell’s Estates as a Papist, 1717, updated to 1746

16. Inventory of Mary Sharpe of Milverton, Somerset, 1697

17. Storms in Kingston Seymour, 1606, 1703 and 1734

18. ‘A true & perfect Account of the Sea-Wall work belonging to Kingston-Seymour’, 1745

19. Churchwardens’ Accounts, Exeter Holy Trinity, 1628/9

20. Seating in Drewsteignton Church, 1680

21. Poor Rate Assessment, Parish of Branscombe, 1898

22. A page of the Census, 1851

23. A page of the Census, 1861

24. Fire Insurance Office Certificate, No 49, Magdalen Street, Exeter, 1833

25. Sales’ Particulars, No 49, Magdalen Street, Exeter, 1887

26. WI Scrapbook of the history of Bradenstoke cum Clack, 1955

27. Lists of property, occupier and number of bedrooms, 1917

28. ‘A Map of the Glebe of Templeton Parish’, 18th century

29. Glebe Terrier, ‘Viccaridge of Marystow’, 1680

30. Replies to Articles, ‘Truroe Rectory’, 1744

31. Cary’s Map of London, 1787

32. Plan of Bosloggas Tenement, St Just-in-Roseland, 1811

33. ‘Reference to Bosloggas’ Tenement, St Just-in-Roseland, 1811

34. ‘Mannor of Membury’ Court Leet and Court Baron, 1744

35. Richard Thomas’s comments re ‘Bosloggas Tenement (No. 21)’, St Just-in-Roseland, 1829

36. National Farm Survey, Higher Hurston, Chagford, 1940-3

37. Petty Constable Presentments, Galmpton, 1684

38. Map of the Parish of Uffculme, Devon, 1833

39. ‘A Draught of the Estate of Mr William Danvers of Monks in Corsham anno 1707’

40. Survey Map of Abbots and Little Anne, 1739

41. Extent and Visitation of Dawlish, 1281

42. A fatal accident at Lee Mills, Ilfracombe, 1825

43. Richard Cawley’s Licence for Blue Ball, Sidbury, 1823

44. The Examination of Saull Coward of ‘Wittome Frary’, 1703

45. Victuallers’ Recognizances, Cullompton Division, 1809

46. Thomas Badcocke’s Licence for the Rose and Crowne, Moulton, 1618/19

47. The late Albert Manley reminiscing about Hunters Lodge, Uplyme, 1993

48. Daniel Gibbs’ Specification and Estimate to Build a New Farm House at Uphay Farm, Axminster, c.1823

49. Stone-Masons Wanted, for a Place of Public Worship in the Devon Old Gaol Yard, Exeter, 1796

50. The fine late 17th-century plaster ceiling in Moor Farm, Morebath

51. A page of the authors’ report, Canonteign House, Christow, 2004

52. 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map, Axminster, 1889

53. Map of the Manor of Axminster, 1776-8

54. The Law Chambers, Axminster, 2006

55. Church Rate, Parish of Axminster, 1648

56. Church Rate, Parish of Bishopsteignton, 1739

57. Church Rate, Parish of Bishopsteignton, 1684

58. Letter from Lewis Tremayne of Heligan to Arthur Tremayne of Sydenham, 22 April 1706

59. ‘A general Alphabet of the Old Law Hands’

Forewordby Christopher Booker

Most of us who live in a house more than a few years old sooner or later become curious about its history. We want to know when it was built and something about those who have lived there before us.

I was very much in that position some years ago when I and my family moved into an old rectory in a Somerset village. Architecturally the house was something of a puzzle, a hotchpotch, looking as though it had been built and rebuilt several times between the 15th and 19th centuries. But how was I to find out just when and why this had happened?

Then, one day, out of the blue, came a letter from Colin and O-lan Style, asking whether, for a very reasonable fee, I would like them to carry out an investigation into the house’s history. I was fascinated and impressed by how much they came up with.

We were particularly fortunate, it turned out, that our house had for centuries belonged to the church, because the details and plans of all those later reconstructions were safely stored away in the diocesan records; and when Colin and O-lan produced their report, there they all were, copied and handsomely presented, with dates, costs and everything.

Most of the questions which had puzzled us were solved. And with them came a sheaf of other papers, such as pages from Kelly’s Directories down the decades, shedding light on those who had lived in our house, the history of the village and those more prominent residents who had lived in nearby properties.

After many years of carrying out such investigations, Colin and O-lan have now decided to pass on some of their expertise in this book, providing anyone who wishes to carry out research into the history of their own home with guidance and clues as to how and where to start looking. It can be a lengthy and time-consuming quest, and of course it is one which never comes to an end, because new fragments of information are always turning up from unexpected places.

Anyone determined to embark on that trail might find this book a very useful starting point. But it can simply be read in its own right as a picture of how different types of building have developed over the centuries, and how our sources of information have inevitably become more comprehensive the closer we come to modern times.

Christopher Booker (1937–2019) was an author and journalist who lived most of his life in the West Country. One of his most recent books was The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories.

Preface

Returning from a walk along Devon lanes, back in the 1980s, we stopped on a hill to take a long view of our cottage. It nestled in the valley below, like a cat with its paws tucked under. It looked so smug and inscrutable that we were moved to wonder about its history, which led us to realise that there must be many others who would like to know about their houses, too.

That was the start of a 27-year-long period of being absorbed in researching property in all its forms – cottages, farms, mills, manors, vicarages, inns and houses. The days, months and years flew by. Every project was the same and yet different. We came to know what to expect but still seemed to find something fresh.

A property and its story is not, of course, just an academic abstraction. We all feel the urge to make a chain with the past, and to be identified with the people and events associated with a roof and its four walls. This is whilst recognising that a house has to do with the present, being an investment, not only in terms of money but of one’s life and family, too.

There is also the extended benefit of a house revealing the history of its locality, even though it seems a different exercise from a local history study. After all, the local historian marshalls his facts and figures line abreast, whereas the house historian follows a single abode and its inhabitants down from generation to generation. This longitudinal approach, however, can throw a lot of light on a community and changes within it.

Investigating house histories is definitely catching on, helped by the popular television programmes on the subject. It has the added attraction of being a shared interest. People are easily interested in other peoples’ old properties – unlike genealogy, which fascinates the families concerned but does rather tend to leave outsiders cold.

It raises a fair question. Why did ‘house detecting’ take so long to become popular if it is so personal and interesting, and vital to bonding with the past? For one thing, the last few decades have seen home ownership accelerate. The popularity of making second or retirement homes of old houses and cottages in rural areas has also fuelled the vogue. It means we have a much greater personal stake in it all. Increased prosperity and leisure also contribute. Along with the history of their family, people often earmark researching their house as a first pleasurable task when they retire.

This enthusiasm has been helped along by the archives opening up and becoming ever more user-friendly. For example, someone told us that years ago he wanted to find his family on an old census and he had to order up one ponderous tome at a time. Now, all the censuses are on microfiche or film – and on the internet, which continues effecting its revolution in information access.

For all the wonders of modernity, the right records for an individual property have to be found, studied, and the correct conclusions drawn. It is a task that still cannot be done in a flash. With this in mind, our advice is designed to help people begin to research their house history – and to carry it through. There is nothing more frustrating than starting a history and then having to abandon it with all those intriguing questions unanswered.

We might wish readers a happy conclusion to their researches. On the other hand, since we have found and continue to find it so all so fascinating, perhaps we should say, ‘May your researches never end …’ However the wishes are expressed, we hope this book helps you to find out all you want to know about your property.

It is with deepest sadness I wish to tell you that Colin Style, author and house historian, unexpectedly collapsed and passed away in 2014 while we were on our way to visit the archives.

Colin’s own fascination with research continued to the last. He was a first-rate researcher, most adept at finding the right records to reveal the history of a house and its families. His searches were both wide and deep, always with an eye out for that small nugget of elusive information sometimes discovered in an indirect source. Some of the findings also provided subject matter for the articles he wrote. How he would have relished this opportunity of revising and updating House Histories for Beginners!

House Histories for Beginners meant a great deal to us both, and it is in Colin’s memory I have had the pleasure of revising it for this new edition.

Acknowledgements

A book on house histories needs many helping hands to bring it to fruition. We have indeed received such help, not only in the preparation of this book, but also during our years spent researching in the archives. Without all the material collected, House Histories for Beginners could not have been written.

Our home base has long been the Devon Record Office and the Westcountry Studies Library, Exeter. Our especial thanks go to John Draisey, County Archivist, and every member of the staff at the Devon Record Office for their kindness and great assistance over the years. A special thank you is extended to Susan Laithwaite, who had the task of obtaining the permissions for the many illustrations used. She also provided the transcription of an extract from a very early court roll used in this book.

At the Westcountry Studies Library, Peter Waite and Tony Rouse have always been extremely knowledgeable and helpful, as have their colleagues. We particularly appreciate Tony easing the path to publication by quickly arranging the release of material.

Further afield, we have received valued co-operation from other archives as well. Particularly, we would like to thank Angela Doughty, Exeter Cathedral Archives, and Paula Lewis, Somerset Archive and Record Service, who have pleasantly and efficiently kept the records coming over the years.

The following persons and archives were prompt and friendly, either in arranging clearance for the illustrations used, or in supplying us with photographs: Alison Spence and Chris Bond, Cornwall Record Office; Sarah Lewin, Hampshire Record Office; David Prior, The Parliamentary Archives, House of Lords Record Office; Elizabeth Scudder, London Metropolitan Archives; Tom Mayberry, County Archivist, and Graeme Edwards, Somerset Archive and Record Service; Paul Johnson, The National Archives, Kew; John D’Arcy, County Archivist, Wiltshire and Swindon Record Office.

We have made liberal use of Diocesan and Parish records. We acknowledge with grateful thanks The Diocese of Exeter; and the respective Incumbents and Parochial Church Councils of Axminster, Bishopsteignton, Branscombe, Drewsteignton, Exeter Holy Trinity, Sidbury, and Uffculme, in Devon; and Kingston Seymour, Clevedon.

There are many private collections on loan to the county record offices and other archives. We are grateful to the following owners of deposits who kindly gave us permission to reproduce material from their records: The Rt Hon. Lord Petre; Mr John Tremayne; Husseys, Exeter.

Outside the archival services, there are a number of persons to thank and acknowledge. Nigel Cole, Senior Partner of Beviss and Beckingsale, Axminster, provided a good deal of information on the Thomas Whitty house (Law Chambers), and arranged the owners’ permission to use the property as a subject.

Francis Whitty, a direct descendant of Thomas Whitty, inventor of the Axminster carpet, kindly gave us a Whitty family tree and details of the family. It was an invaluable contribution.

Symonds and Sampson, Axminster, gave us the use of a photocopier, urgently needed in the last stages of the book.

A number of owners of the houses we researched most kindly supplied us with photographs to use as illustrations: Diane Bolton, Abbots Ford, Combpyne; Nicky Campbell, Manor House, Combpyne; Kate Davidson, Canonteign House, Christow; Diana Parker, Moor Farm, Morebath; Louise Harris, Shopwyke Manor, Chichester.

We gratefully acknowledge Gollancz Ltd for use of the poem ‘Image’ by T.E. Hulme, first published in The Life and Opinions of T.E. Hulme (1960), by Alun R. Jones. Although every effort was made to secure copyright permission, no copyright holder could be traced. We apologise for any inadvertent omission.

Christopher Booker has supplied an informed and stimulating Foreword. It is a valued contribution to the book, and we appreciate his agreeing to write it so readily.

We are grateful to Auriol Griffith-Jones for compiling the Index –something no book like this should be without.

An appreciative thank you, a general one, is for all those who took an interest in and supported our house history work over some 27 years. We thoroughly enjoyed it all, and hope they did too.

Lastly, our special thanks go to our daughter Kelda Style, for her ongoing support and encouragement. She has also introduced us to computing skills which have proved particularly useful in the preparation of this new edition of House Histories for Beginners.

Introduction

The layout of House Histories for Beginners is designed to guide the researcher through the typical path of a house history. It starts on page one with the first day at the archives, and remains at the elbow to give advice in step with growing progress and familiarisation.

Although a standard research guidance procedure has been put forward, complete uniformity is never possible. Each type of dwelling does have its own record quirks. For example, a former vicarage will differ from a cottage. To cater for this, we have provided chapters for different types of dwellings. It is, therefore, necessary to check the chapter applicable to the house being researched – as well as working through the common methodology.

We certainly recommend that the chapters on the other types of property also be read. This will add much further information, and makes for comparisons with other types of houses.

There may be a wealth of detail about a house in the records – except, crucially, the date it was built. This is a very frequent omission. How to deduce age, when it is not directly recorded, merits its own chapter.

People are part of the house story. Since it is discussed throughout, we do not give a separate chapter to the human element. Records such as censuses, parish registers, churchwardens’ accounts, and overseers of the poor accounts, are vital.

Although it is not strictly to do with researching, a piece has been added about writing up and presenting the results of all that toiling in the archives. (A full house history does, indeed, require a good deal of time and patience.) It provides the final finish to the project, particularly if it is to be shared with family and friends.

A case study has been included to demonstrate how the records can be applied. The story of the house built, and lived in, by the inventor of the Axminster carpet, offers a typical example of the range of records and problems involved in a house history project.

We decided to omit the subject of vernacular architecture. It complements, but is a separate discipline from, archival researches. There is a number of excellent books on the subject, and some are included in ‘A List of Helpful Sources for Beginners’.

The internet continues to evolve apace, and we are experiencing a digital revolution. This is proving very fruitful for the house researcher as digitised images of more and more original documents are becoming easily accessible via the internet. This new edition of House Histories for Beginners has been revised and updated to reflect this significant development. Some of the more valuable websites are included in ‘A List of Helpful Sources for Beginners’.

Useful as the internet is, however, a full property history still needs to be researched in the archives. It is worth remembering that, whereas the archives and libraries hold most of the original records, only a comparatively small proportion of these have as yet been put onto the internet.

Deciphering old records sounds daunting. A great deal of house history research, however, may be done without special expertise in Latin or the old hands. A chapter of basic suggestions on deciphering records is included. One feature that may prove useful concerns how to work out rates. This can be of great assistance in identifying a house and taking it back into the more distant past.

Most of the experience for this book has been obtained working in Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, Cornwall, Hampshire, Bristol and Bath. Further work has been done in London and the Home Counties. The layout and categories of record indexes and catalogues in each county record office tend to be much of a muchness. Local studies libraries, too, tend to be similar. The National Archives, Kew differs from the counties in having its own systems for the national records. We are confident that this house history guide can be used wherever the property is situated.

As is to be expected, there is a West Country flavour to the examples and illustrations employed. They, too, can be adopted as generally applicable.

In summary, we believe that users of this book will want to know about the lives of the owners and occupiers, as well as the ages of and changes to the buildings, and any previous history of the site. This is the total house history in all its aspects. Flesh and blood and bricks and mortar go hand-in-hand to get the best result. Even so, there are no hard and fast rules. However far the researcher goes, we hope House Histories for Beginners will be a helpful companion.

CHAPTER 1

Getting Started

Scope

Before researches commence, one should have a clear idea of what the possibilities are, and how to treat the findings. Any archivist in the county record offices will confirm that one of the most frequently asked questions is, ‘How old is my house?’ This simple query can be hard to answer. A house may have had previous dwellings on the site and incorporate elements and materials from them. A house may also have been virtually rebuilt around a remaining core.

It is as well, then, to bear in mind these considerations, and be prepared to accept a history of changes and alterations. Outlines of evidence can be blurred. There is little enough in black and white. What criterion to adopt for age of house, and whether to continue researching the history of the site for prior dwellings, are questions to decide in advance.

The scope of the researches and how to present the findings are, of course, especially important if one is doing the history for someone else. Here one is trying to empathise with what will be of most interest. A mental note should be made to keep an eye out for the recipient’s favourite material. Some like maps, others title deeds or wills, and so on.

Whether for oneself or someone else, a property history project needs local enquiries before one sets foot in the archives. Professional genealogists rather favour commissions where next to nothing is known of the family to be investigated. Anything and everything discovered then becomes a revelation, with the good chance of a very happy customer at the end of the day. In theory, it might be delightful to compile a house history that is a complete surprise from beginning to end. In practice, however, most properties already have some known history to be noted down. One also needs to enquire if any stories go with a house, in addition to the hard facts. There might be an association with some person or event in the past or, even, a ghost. Not to be ignored, these tales can be preposterous or turn out to be uncannily true.

The briefing should extend to any features of interest and curiosity – perhaps a statue in a garden, a window or an arch that looks vaguely ecclesiastical in style, something odd about a wing, or an old sundial. Such idiosyncracies might help trace the property in the documents. Identifying objects of interest and shedding light on them also makes the history more tangible.

A couple of cautionary comments are added. People tend to be overly optimistic about the amount of information waiting to be gathered. Records, however, can be patchy. Evidence might have to be inferred and deduced from what there is. On the positive side, this makes for a fascinating exercise, made more so when one does make a breakthrough.

The house history researcher will also have to decide how rigorous he or she will be when faced with difficult evidence. Time and again one comes across references that are not crystal clear. It might not be absolutely certain whether the house being investigated is the same as the one referred to in the particular document being studied. A known owner might hold a number of other properties as well – so which house is being referred to in the document? Another common problem is not being sure whether a reference is to the present house or to a previous dwelling on the site. How readily the house researcher is prepared to accept a less than definitive answer is a matter of individual conscience!

Check Title Deeds

An essential first step, naturally enough, is to check the current title deeds. Since the Law of Property Act of 1925, however, the seller of a house need only prove title for the previous 30 years. This has resulted in a great throwing away of redundant old deeds, and radically reduced chances of tracing back more than a few decades.

This does not mean that the current title deeds are not well worth examining – even after the possible slight struggle to retrieve them from a bank or building society. In fact, if the house is still mortgaged, it is unlikely that the original title deeds will be released. The mortgagee, however, should be able to provide photocopies, probably for a fee.

The deeds should be checked for names of previous owners. Details of the property, including any plans, should also be noted – features and dimensions of house and lands, boundaries, easements, rights and so on. Kept at hand to help identify references in the records, they will form part of the completed history.

Of almost as much value as the deeds themselves are the other legal papers bundled up with them. These might concern planning applications, matters like boundary disputes, sales of pieces of land, and so forth. In addition, the conveyancer of a property might have come across other documentation in the preliminary legal search. If not essential to the present title these might be given to the purchaser for interest. It is something to bear in mind when a house is being bought. If the buyer has a mind to make an early start on the history of the new house, he or she might ask the conveyancer to keep an eye out for anything of purely historical interest. With the shift to standardising the registering of properties, the Land Registry Office for the county should also be contacted, as part and parcel of looking out the deeds.

Initial Contacts

With the preliminary local information collected, the next stage is a first trip to the county record office, or to the city archives, and to the county local studies library. Wherever later researches lead, whether to The National Archives, Kew, or to other counties or libraries, the local county record office or city archives will still be home base for the duration of the exercise. It is an environment requiring cultivation.

MAKING PRELIMINARY ENQUIRIES

Prior to one’s first visit, a preliminary telephone call to the record office or archives is advisable. The local library should be able to provide the address and phone number. For internet users, contact details for record repositories in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, and elsewhere may be found in The National Archives Discovery, Find an Archive (see ‘A List of Helpful Sources for Beginners’).

In some counties there is more than one record office, and an initial enquiry at the main office will establish where one needs to go. Some record offices require advance reservations for map space, microfilm and microfiche readers, and search room seats.

Each archives has its own regulations. The use of pens and biros is forbidden. Some archives also forbid the use of rubbers. Bags or any carriers in which documents could be concealed are also not allowed in the reading or search rooms. Lockers are usually provided. Mobile phones should be switched off. Some archives provide gloves which must be worn whilst handling any documents.

Figure 1 The Search Room, Devon Record Office, Exeter, 2006. Reproduced by kind permission of Devon Record Office.

One may not eat (and this includes sweets and chewing gum) or drink whilst researching, but most record offices have separate facilities for a break. It is a good idea to take a packed lunch.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

The first requisite is to arrive well-armed with the essential tools of the trade – a good-sized pad of paper, a ruler, a supply of pencils, an A3 folder or wallet, tracing paper, and a magnifying glass. Extra aids are a camera and a laptop computer.

Collecting and keeping the information with report-ready care as one goes saves a great deal of time at the end of the day. After extensive researches, a mass of photocopies and notes will have accumulated. If these are in poor condition and disorganised then preparing the material for a write-up or presentation of the history will be very time-consuming. The A3 carrier is suggested to help keep the material in good condition. Many maps and documents photocopy in A3 and it is preferable to keep them unfolded.

A camera speeds up the collection of records like old maps in colour. With time in the archives rather precious, it helps to take photos, or photocopies where permissible, to study at leisure at home. It is a false economy to transcribe a document to save the cost of photocopying it. Transcriptions might, however, be necessary where photocopying could damage a book or a document. Cameras create no such problem and the various record offices tend to be flexible about their use, particularly when for personal research and not commercial or publication purposes. The copyright rules for a particular record office should be checked on arrival.

It is always a good idea to consult the duty archivist before taking photographs or requesting photocopies. Some material cannot be photocopied, like large documents, maps and plans, bound volumes or stitched membranes, and fragile documents.

Laptop computers are widely used now, of course, and every library or record office caters for them. They have obvious advantages, particularly when the researcher is required to be seated in one position transcribing records like lengthy deeds or parish registers. Laptops can be cumbersome and slow up house history researching, which requires a lot of bobbing around looking at maps, pulling out books of published records, and taking small extracts from rates. If time available in the record office is no object, however, then the house history will look all the better for being recorded straight onto a laptop.

CHECKING-IN

Checking-in to the record offices is invariably quite quick and easy. There are seldom charges or entry fees. Proof of identity will be required, with a recent financial statement or utility bill carrying an address. It is customary for a reader’s ticket to be issued. This will have to be produced on future visits. If it is an Archives Card, it will also be valid for other county record offices participating in the scheme. (Not all do.)

All record offices carry information leaflets on facilities available and the rules for using the archives and handling the records. This literature facilitates the familiarisation process. It means that the researcher need not ask about finding his or her way around, but go straight into the hard information of advice on ordering records.

Identifying the Property

It goes without saying that the property to be researched should be correctly identified on maps at the outset. An old farmhouse or cottage, surrounded by open fields, will be less difficult to find than a house in a line of terraces on a street. Even so, an old farmhouse or cottage can be confused with a lookalike; this happens particularly when properties are unnamed on the map.

MAPS

A series of maps from differing time periods needs to be taken. One also needs to find a map that allows the house to be seen in relation to the lands and other houses surrounding it. These will be obtainable from the county record office or the local studies library. What is needed is a modern map for the last thirty years or so (for which one will probably have to sign a copyright form), as well as those for the later 19th and early 20th centuries. The latter are known as the First Edition and Second Edition Ordnance Surveys. They come in 25-inch scale which is best for seeing the structural details of the property. The Second Edition Ordnance Survey is also produced in 6-inch. A generous A3 size area at this scale will allow the house to be seen in context with its surrounds.

Photocopies of these maps – many of which are available on microfiche – should be taken and kept on file for continual reference and checking.

It would be convenient, at the same time, to collect copies of earlier largescale general maps of the area. A vast number of maps have been produced over the centuries, and what is available varies from county to county, city and borough. The First Ordnance Survey, under the names of William Mudge and Thomas Colby, was produced between 1798 and 1847, and is likely to be obtainable in the local studies library.1 The Ordnance Survey surveyors’ field drawings might also be held. The originals are deposited in the British Library’s Map Library at St Pancras, London. Enthusiasts for maps would find a trip there of great interest. It is claimed to house the largest collection in the world.

Another map widely available across the counties is the series produced by C. and J. Greenwood between 1817 and 1839. The scale of all the maps mentioned is one inch to the mile. Properties are marked. In towns, however, individual houses are hard to discern.

These are but three of the large variety of general maps held in the county record offices, local studies libraries, or general reference libraries. Enquiry of the archivist and search of the map indexes will ascertain what is available. Very early maps are likely to be disappointing in the amount of detail they carry for the house historian. There are, of course, exceptions, particularly in the case of city and borough maps.

Photocopying is possible, but not universally available. It depends on the size of the maps and their condition.

LISTED BUILDINGS

As a last task, before starting on the records proper, check if the house is a listed building and take a copy of its assessment. Like the Ordnance Survey maps, the lists of buildings of ‘special architectural or historic interest’ for a particular county are held in either the county record office, or the local studies library, or the reference library. There should also be copies at the County Council offices and local council planning department. If the house is thought to be particularly old or historic then the National Monument Record Centre is also worth checking.

Each List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historical Interest was produced by the Department of the Environment. In 2005, Historic England (formerly English Heritage) ‘took over the responsibility for listing from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’.2 The National Heritage List for England, established in 2011, is ‘the only official up-to-date statutory list of all protected historic buildings and sites’ in England.3

The Tithe Survey

The Tithe Survey was an historically fascinating exercise. For house histories it is invaluable, not only for its comprehensive coverage of lands and houses but, also, on account of when it was done. The period of the 1830s to 1840s forms a bridge between the more ancient and more recent past. It is the best point to start researching a house that is hundreds of years old. One then works forwards and backwards in the records.

To begin researching, all one needs to know about the tithe survey is how to trace details of the property on it. The survey comes in two parts, a map and an accompanying apportionment schedule. One original and two copies of the map and schedule were originally made. Most of the originals are now kept at The National Archives, Kew.4 One of the copies was to be kept in the parish chest, the other in the diocesan registry.5 Many of these copies are now in county record offices, but Kain and Prince recommend also looking in ‘all ecclesiastical, municipal and university archives’ for ‘a locally held copy of a tithe survey’.6

There is a separate tithe map for each parish. It would seem a simple matter to order up the right parish map and apportionment for the area of the house. There is, however, an occasional snag. Boundary and address changes have taken place since the 1840s. The house might have been in another parish at the time of the survey. So, before ordering the map, it is advisable to check one of the 19thcentury commercial directories which gives detailed information about each parish. The county record offices usually have copies of Kelly’s on their shelves.

The tithe map shows every field or section of land, as well as all houses, cottages, barns and outbuildings. Dwellings are coloured differently from other buildings on the map. Each piece of land is numbered. A farmhouse or larger house might have its name written beside it. The survey is generally, but not always, completely accurate. One owner of an old manor was affronted to see his house marked as a barn on the map, although described in the apportionment as a house, barton and garden.7

Figure 2 Tithe Map, Parish of Sidmouth, Devon, 1839. [Devon Record Office.] Reproduced by kind permission of The Diocese of Exeter.

Having found the property, and taken down the number of the land with the house on it, it is a straightforward matter to look up its details in the schedule. The house and any estate going with it will be given its separate section on the apportionment. The information given will generally be the name of ‘Landowner’ and ‘Occupier’ of the property; the map reference number of each piece; ‘Name and Description of Land and Premises’; the ‘State of Cultivation’ of each piece of land; and the ‘Quantities in Statute Measures’ of each in acres, roods and perches. Also noted will be the amount of tithe payable to the vicar and amount payable to the impropriator – which does not really assist in researching the history. Lastly, there is a column for ‘Remarks’. The names of later purchasers are sometimes pencilled in. All these details should be taken down, not only for the house but for all the lands going with it.

At the very end of the apportionment schedule is an alphabetically arranged ‘Summary’ of the landowners’ names, which also gives their occupiers and the total extent of each holding and its rent-charge.

A tracing, photograph, or photocopy of the section of the tithe map where the property is located should be taken. (Photocopying is a possibility because county record offices often have microfiche copies of the tithe maps and the apportionment schedules.) Naturally, the outline of the house as it was then will be of great interest. It can be compared with outlines given on other maps.

Figure 3 Tithe Apportionment, Parish of Sidmouth, Devon, 27 May 1840. [Devon Record Office.] Reproduced by kind permission of The Diocese of Exeter.

Whilst the tithe survey is on the table, it is a good idea to note down the names of owners and occupiers of neighbouring properties from the apportionment. The names can be written beside their respective properties on the tracing or photocopy which has been taken of the tithe map. Alternatively, names and brief details, not forgetting the appropriate map numbers, may be noted separately. These neighbours’ names could prove helpful when tracing who was living on the property at the time of the 1841 and 1851 censuses.

It may be that the house was not built until after the tithe survey, and so does not appear on the map. The same full details should be taken down of the empty land, which was to be built on later, and of the estate of which it is part. The information could help identify who built the house. If one wishes to trace back the site of the house, the same research methods and records will be used as for a house built before the tithe survey. In this case, the overall property of which it was part will be the focal point of the researches. If, however, one does not wish to trace back the site of the house, the next step is to consult another comprehensive survey. This is the 1910 Valuation Office Survey, which is discussed a little later in this chapter.

WHAT TO DO IF TITHE SURVEY PARTICULARS ARE MISSING

A house may well have been built by the time of the tithe survey, but might be non-tithable. In such cases, it might be mapped but without any details given on the schedule of apportionment. A copy of the tithe map should still be made to provide the outline picture of the house, and names and occupiers of nearest tithable neighbours taken for future reference.

The next step is to find a survey to supply the details the tithe survey failed to provide, as in Chapter 16, ‘A Case Study’. There might be a borough, estate, or manorial survey, or perhaps an Enclosure Award. Ideally, such a survey or award should not be much earlier than the 1770s, and must include both a map or plan and particulars. The details it gives will need to be linked to the 19th century as well as to any earlier records.

The duty archivist may well be able to advise whether any comprehensive surveys are available for the area being researched. To find such a survey or Award one needs to search the relevant indexes (see ‘Using Archive Indexes’ in Chapter 2, ‘Laying the Foundations’).

Enclosure Awards

Having finished with the tithe survey, one might search for an Enclosure Award. This is of interest to all researchers of properties built before the tithe survey. For those who need an alternative to the tithe survey, it is particularly important because the house might have been in an area where tithes were extinguished by the enclosures.

Enclosures began in the 16th century, but really gathered pace towards the end of the 18th century. Early Enclosure Awards were lengthy documents, mostly without maps. In Enclosure Records for Historians (2000), Steven Hollowell says that ‘by the end of the 18th century it was becoming normal for surveyors to draw up an enclosure plan or map’. He also comments that the later Awards, which have a map, ‘are easier to use’.

The early enclosures were primarily by private Acts of Parliament. The first General Enclosure Act, however, was passed in 1801, with more to follow in 1836, 1840 and 1845.8

Most Enclosure Awards are now with the county record offices. There might be a map and Award giving identifying details about the property and its owner and occupier. There are matching reference numbers on the map and the Award.

For example, Ruislip, Middlesex does not have a tithe survey because tithes were extinguished. It does, however, have an Enclosure Map of 1806, matched with property details given in an Enclosure Award book of 1814.9 Surveyed by E. Kelsey, this map shows old enclosures, allotments, and the bounds of the manor.

The parish of Huish Episcopi in Somerset does have a Tithe Survey. Certain properties, however, are not given in the apportionment schedule of 4 February 1845.10 There is a statement to the effect that all lands not listed in the schedule are ‘subject to a Corn Rent’ in lieu of tithes, following the Enclosure Act made by George III for Huish Episcopi. The Enclosure Award, dated 1799, has a map of Huish Episcopi.11 From this it is possible to identify the house in question, its lands, and the name of its proprietor.

The Valuation Office Survey

This later, comprehensive survey is vital for all house history researchers. Those who are researching their property back before the tithe survey will need it for later researches. Those whose houses were not built until after the tithe survey, and have chosen not to research the early history of the site, will need to get details before proceeding further.

The Valuation Office survey was carried out between 1910 and 1915. Like the tithe survey, it covered England and Wales, with every property surveyed and given a number plotted on a map. The results were collected according to parishes within valuation districts. The detailed information is kept in Field Books with findings summarised in Valuation Books. The Field Books, together with maps showing each property with its assessment number, are kept at The National Archives, Kew. The Valuation Books, however, are deposited in the county record offices. This is excepting those for London and Westminster which have gone into The National Archives. Most Valuation Office survey records have survived, except those for the Portsmouth and Southampton areas which were destroyed by enemy action.

Figure 4 Ruislip Enclosure Plan, 1806. The lands of Mr Richard Heming are shown. [London Metropolitan Archives, MR/DE/RUI/2/2.] Reproduced by kind permission of London Metropolitan Archives. Photograph by London Metropolitan Archives.

Figure 5 Ruislip Enclosure Award, 1814. Details of the lands of Mr Richard Heming are recorded. [London Metropolitan Archives, MR/DE/RUI/2/1.] Reproduced by kind permission of London Metropolitan Archives. Photograph by London Metropolitan Archives.

The Valuation Book for the area of the property should be examined first as it might obviate a visit to The National Archives, Kew. Each county record office has its own catalogue for these Valuation Office Survey, Valuation Books. If the property has a distinctive and traditional name, it might be traceable in the book and give enough crucial information. The problem, however, is that without the assessment number taken from the Valuation Office map, it might be difficult to identify in the Valuation Book. It is particularly difficult when having to work with an undifferentiated line of houses on a street or unidentified cottages on an estate.

Figure 6