Gentleman in Glos where to look

[tiler]

Hi

New Subject :

If I were a Gentleman in 1800's with farming lands (the family working some 800 acres) in Sth Cerney, Coates House Coates, East End Fairford where might I find, details, photographs maybe ?

Was there a newspaper at that time in that area............

tiler

[Arranroots]

Coates Farm seems to be part of the Royal Agricultural College on the outskirts of Ciren - aerial photo and modern study here:

http://www.rothamsted.bbsrc.ac.uk/corporate/annualreport/2003-2004/AEN2004.pdf

[tiler]

Thats interesting........ It talks of good loamy soils. In South Cerney they would drown the land..........Divert water from the rivers accross the land while dragging up the river beds..........the silt etc from the river would be carried in the water and fertilise the soils.

Workers from Sth Cerney would travell into wales to carry this out for people.


Its difficult to grasp how much land the Howell family worked in the 1800's and how much money was generated leaves me in aw and proud if you like of the whole thing

thumbsup

[Arranroots]

I'm only doing an internet search but it's surprising what turns up!

Have you seen this about Coates, for example?

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=19050

[tiler]

Ah yes I skimmed it last night but my searching skills arnt brilliant.  Its very old down there, you can walk into kemble and think your in 1800 its a magical area.

Thanks Arron

[O1dgobbo]

Hi Tiler

It depends what part of the 19th century interests you and also on the quality of various surveys in Gloucestershire (about which I am completely ignorant).  There have been a number of Parliamentary surveys of agriculture in the century - I can recall seeing a very detailed survey of agriculture and conditions in Hampshire, which was part of the national poor law survey about 1830ish.  Books were published in this series for each county and covered conditions on a parish by parish basis There was also a tithe map survey in NE Hampshire which showed the fields held by the different tithe payers and there was some similar information in the enclosure reports.  I was lucky to find much of this information in Reading University Library and you may be able to find similar collections in one of the Gloucestershire libraries (possibly an agricultural college).  Detailed statistics were collected later in the century and you can access the Parish summaries of the Agricultural returns by visiting the National Archives (series MAF 68 sadly not on line).

Good luck

Gobbo

[tiler]

Thank you Gobbo........I have to get back to glos in the new year for a week and do some more digging around,its difficult when you dont know what questions to ask...........