Who are these people?

[Andy J2022]

Yes, Alan I see what you mean. However Thomas born 11 Apr 1879 is definitely shown as Married. I went back later and thought I checked what it said about Mary, but as you say I looked at the wrong entry. Whoops.

[AlanBoyd]

Yes, agreed, Thomas and Hild are married, and are parents of Arthur, Muriel Margaret, Reginald and Gordon. So the transaction referred to in reply #19 was a division of land between siblings.

[Andy J2022]

I think I'll stop adding to this thread for now. Obviously getting tired! Hopefully ellie will come back later and tell us how she gets on with identifying the people in her photographs. She has planty to work on. I think the current day Bostock family at Roundshill Farm may be able to help fill in the gaps.

[AlanBoyd]

In 1911 Richard Henry Smith, farmer, and his wife Minnie are at Fern Hill in the civil parish of Warwick St Mary. Looking at the boundary of this parish at genuki, here:

https://www.genuki.org.uk/gaz/WAR/boundary/12753

(see image), it includes the westerly Fern Hill, but excludes the easterly.

In the 1921 census Richard Henry Smith and his wife Minnie are running a laundry at 32 High Street Warwick. This is definitely the same man since the subsequent obituary of his wife Minnie refers to her late husband as well-known farmer of Fern Hill who retired from farming to run a laundry.

And of course, in 1921, Frederick Stanyer is a farmer at Fern Hill. This sequence of events is consistent with the Stanyer Fern Hill being the westerly of the farms.

[ellie1789]

Hi Alan,

According to that map, the Fernhill Farm in the east should have been included. I’m just before that bend on the edge of the map

[Andy J2022]

I'm not clear what you mean Ellie. Surely your house is the one above the 'e' in Rouncil Lane within the parish boundary. That is the Western most FernHill Farm on the old maps. The Eastern FernHill Farm is the pink blob outside the parish boundary, in the centre of the map, approximately half way between your house and the word Borrowell within the Kenilworth built up area. 

[AlanBoyd]

Map now labelled with where I think everything is/was. Have I got it  right? The image is a bit degraded because i had to screenshot it after editing to give it a new name.

[AlanBoyd]

Here is more evidence supporting my theory that the Stanyer farm was the Fern Hill to the west. There are three points to make from the article presented below:

1) It is stated that the Stanyer Fern Hill has a gated road running through it. I think this can only be the farm to the west. Looking at the old OS map there is evidence for something across the road at both sides of the west farm – gates?

2) The address of Fern Hill is given, as it often is, as Beausale, which lies even further to the west. Surely the other Fern Hill would be linked to Kenilworth, and it would be very confusing to tie it to Beausale?

3) It is stated that Stanyer has been at the farm since ~1911. This fits well with my previous evidence that J H Richardson was there for the 1911 census but retired and moved to Warwick before 1921. In fact, as I previously posted somewhere the first newspaper reference that I have found for Fred Stanyer, Fern Hill is from 1912. Since the Richardson farm is precisely located by being in St Mary's parish in the 1911 census I think the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the Fern Hill farm to the west was the Stanyer farm.

My understanding of the original post is that this is the farm you are interested in.


from the Midland Daily Telegraph, 20 June 1938

WARWICK FARMER'S DIFFICULTY
Seven Years' Continuous Protest to County Council
When Mr. Fred Stanyer, a well-known Warwickshire farmer, of Fern Hill, Beausale, was summoned at the Warwick County Police Court, on Saturday, for allowing 13 cows to stray, he told the Bench that his farm was not enclosed. A road ran through it, and at either end there were gateways. The gates required to be put into a proper state of repair, and he had written to the County Council and the Warwick Estate but without result. The gates were old when he went to the farm 27 years ago, and had since got broken up. He had been urging the need of attention since 1931.

The Bench said that in view of the defendant's difficulties they would not convict. They expressed the view that gates should be put up, one at each end of the road.

[Andy J2022]

Yes Alan, that's my understanding of the situation too, with the left hand Fern Hill Farm now being renamed Fernwood.

To summarise my understanding of where we are, the right Fern Hill, Oak Farm and Roundshill Lane Farm were/are all owned by the Bostock family and the right hand Fern Hill farm was occupied by the Stanyer family (either as owners or tenants) until 1941, when JH Lloyd became either the new owner or tenant. Ownership may be less important than occupancy for the purpose of identifying the people in the photographs

One piece of evidence we haven't examined is fact that when Thomas Bostock bought one of the Fern Hill farms at auction in 1917, the area of the farm was stated to be 235 acres, 3 rods and 31 perches. It was bigger than the area for Roundshill Farm which was sold at the same time (191 acres) but smaller than Oaks Farm (297 acres). The earlier Ordnance Survey maps (see link by mckha489 at the top of page 2 of the thread) show the area of the fields but don't show the farm boundaries. However it may be possible to add up the field sizes and make a guess as to which farm is which.

There is a separate issue about why all three farms were being sold at the same time and who the previous owner/s were, but that probably won't help with the core issue of who owned what in the late 1930s and early 1940s. 

Ellie, do you still intend to put the photographs on here as you originally suggested? It might open up a further area for research. Not least of which is that they may show geographical features or other clues in the background.