EXMOOR FARMS in THE 19TH CENTURY

Most farms in the area were built in the traditional, local vernacular for centuries. They were largely two storeyed and built of local rubble or cob under thatch. Even new houses like the pair of semi-detached houses at Winsford known as Winn and Thorn Cottages were built in the late 18th century in the prevailing style. There had been some development of more substantial farmbuildings in the late 18th century including linhays, stables, and bank barns at Simonsbath House and at Karslake and West Nethercote in Winsford, which was provided with a horse engine house.

The early 19th century saw improvement in buildings. Farmhouses like Beer in Brushford were extended and improved and Riphay farmyard in the same parish was provided with a new linhay, barn and byre, a new mill was built at Garliscombe, Withypool, which still had over 1,000 a. of arable land, and several houses and farms were enlarged including Ashway in Dulverton, which was fitted with a new staircase.

When the former Exmoor forest was put up for sale in 1818 it comprised Simonsbath farm (108.5 a.) and 10,262 a. of allotments of waste. It was bought by John Knight although it was to be many years before the ambition of creating many new farms was realised but the land was stocked with cattle, highland at first but when these failed, Devons and shorthorns. Grass and root rotation maintain Exmoor horn and cheviot sheep. All this work required an army of labourers drawn from surrounding parishes. In 1841 there were only two farmers, on what were then known as Hole and Burcombe allotments, and the steward. There was a public house and several cottages occupied by farm workers.[1] By 1848 eight farmsteads had been added including Warren farm, which in 1851 had 500 a. and employed 6 labourers. Tom Hill was a 300-a model farm with house and ranges of farm buildings around three sides of courtyard. It was deserted after being requisitioned for an artillery range in WWII when the house was shelled. Similarly designed Larkbarrow was an 870-a. farm in 1851 worked by eight labourers. It was also requisitioned during WWII and ruined. Emmets Grange, the best of Knight’s farms, has a double-piled house with a Doric porch and service wing. It has a barn, stables and a large range of outbuildings round a fold yard. Red Deer Farm, now a riding stable, was an inn and a 280-a farm in 1851.

The two obvious changes between 1841 and 1851 in the Exmoor district were the growth in farms to 22 and the decline in the number of houses of single labourers, only two remained. The presence of carpenters and masons, however, indicates building work. Of the recorded farms, two were not being worked and Winstitchen was a dairy. Farms were far larger than those in neighbouring parishes. Of those for which acreages were provided 2 measured under 50a, 6 between 50 and 150 a, 2 between 150 and 300 a. and 7 over 300a. The largest were Larkbarrow and Horsen with 870 a. and 800 a. In addition to labourers farms employed bailiffs, shepherds, herdsmen, horsekeepers, and grooms, probably an indication of the great distances involved in working of these farms.

In 1851 there were 150 farms in the Somerset parishes, excluding the 22 in Exmoor district. Given the nature of the land it is not surprising that farms were sometimes large, what is more surprising is the number of small farms, although some of these were worked part-time by millers, innkeepers, or butchers. A few of the farms have no acreages recorded including dairies but of the rest 25 were under 50 a., 65 were between 50 and 150 a., 37 between 150 and 300, and 5 over 300a of which only Wellshead in Exford was over 500 a. In fact the other 5 farms over 300 a. were in Brushford and Dulverton and 8 of the smallest were in Exford. Other differences between the parishes include the sort of workers employed. Many Dulverton farms had resident waggoners perhaps reflecting better lanes and greater quantities of hay, corn, and timber to be moved. In Withypool with its poor communications errand boys and girls were employed on several farms. At Exford cow boys were recorded. At Winsford there were a large number of agricultural labourers living in and living out. Several farmers in giving their farm statistics distinguished between in and out labourers and others omitted the living-in labourers from their statistics. At Halse farm the farmer said he only employed one man but had four male farm servants living in the house and many farms had three or more men living in.[2]

During the later 19th century many farms were deserted, some farmhouses were already reduced to labourers’ cottage. Some such as Swarcombe farm in Exford were not ancient farms. Some of the farms which may have gone out of use between the mid 19th and mid 20th centuries include Streamcombe, Lower Marsh, and Lower Spire in Dulverton, North Newland, Higher Pitsworthy, Sharcott, and Lower Prescott in Exford, Kingsland Pits in Exmoor, and Higher Leigh and Pine farm in Winsford.

However, this was also a period of model farm building, mainly in Exmoor district, but also elsewhere. New farmbuildings were provided for Ashway, Dulverton grouped round a foldyard including barn, linhay and stables. The farmhouses at Riphay in Brushford and Liscombe in Dulverton were rebuilt in the 1850s. The continuing importance of arable farming led to new barns being built in Brushford and Dulverton. Many farmhouses were rebuilt or at least refenestrated and improved in the later 19th century. New technology was gradually introduced notably farm water wheels used to power corn crushers and chaff cutters. They were installed at Northcombe and Highercombe in Dulverton, Court, Stone, Coombe and Pitsworthy farms and Ashcott barton in Exford, and Great Nurcott, Edbrooke, Withycombe, and Great Bradley in Winsford.

Few farm statistics were recorded in 1881 but in Brushford it was the medium sized farms between 50 and 150 acres that had almost disappeared and those between 150 and 300 had increased. Very small and very large farms had not changed. Withypool showed a similar pattern although some of the smallest holdings had been lost. At Exford however, it was the very large farms, which had increased at the expense of those between 50 and 300 a. although the number of small holdings was unchanged. Of 5 farms over 300 a. South Court had 900 a., and Wellshead and Stone 800 a. each. The same had happened at Hawkridge where 3 farms were now over 300 a including Rowe farm with 735 a. and East Hollowcombe with 500 a. That was also the pattern at Winsford which then had 5 farms with over 300 a. including Nurcott with 580 a. There are not sufficient statistics for Dulverton and but presumably the pattern was similar to that at Brushford. Exmoor had seen no change in the distribution of farm sizes although there was a more equal acreage among the larger farms with none over 700 a. Seven shepherds and a molecatcher were recorded in the parish.[3]

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Mary Suirat Page 4 Exmoor Reference

[1] SRO, A/BAZ 1/3; TNA, HO 107/965/14.

[2] TNA HO 107/1890.

[3] TNA, RG 11/2242, 2358.