ECONOMIC HISTORY
Agriculture
Open Fields and Commons
Alwoldsbury's field or fields were mentioned in 1246–7. (fn. 1)
No later references have been found and, since a grant of
arable and meadow in 1351 lay 'in Alwoldsbury and
Alvescot', (fn. 2) the hamlets' fields may by then have been
combined. Fourteenth-century grants of land 'in
Bromscott' may indicate that Bromscott or Pemscott
similarly once had independent fields, presumably in the
south-west, but a grant in 1351 of 38 a. 'in either field in
Bromscott or Alvescot' suggests a shared system by the
14th century. (fn. 3) Sixteenth- and 17th-century allusions to
arable belonging to Pitlands or Puttes referred only to
land in Alvescot's fields then held with Pitlands farm. (fn. 4)
10. Alvescot parish in 1797, showing approximate location of open fields
In the 18th century and probably earlier Alvescot's
open fields lay chiefly north of the Kencot—Black
Bourton road, covering much of the parish's central and
north-western part (Fig. 10). (fn. 5) The largest were East and
West fields, perhaps the two fields mentioned in 1351;
from the 17th century they were often called the Upper
fields. (fn. 6) Seabrook furlong, by the parish's western
boundary, was included in both those fields in the 17th
century, but in the 18th was sometimes counted a separate field. A Middle field was taken from East and West
fields before 1796. Woolands, Gassons, and Stoney or
Stonehey, all near the Kencot—Black Bourton road,
perhaps also once belonged to East or West fields, but
from the 17th century, although none exceeded 35 a.,
they were often listed separately, and in 1671 they were
recorded with the 20-a. Barrel field, south of Alvescot
village near the eastern boundary, as a single Lower
field. (fn. 7) South field, mentioned intermittently from the
17th century, was presumably either an alternative name
for Barrel or Lower field, or another small field adjoining
pasture closes near Pemscott. (fn. 8) In the early 13th century
there was also arable at Ruxhill in the south-west, where
Clanfield manor had 25 a. of demesne, (fn. 9) and ridge and
furrow indicate more open-field arable north and south
of the church, some of it probably overlying early medieval settlement. (fn. 10) By the 17th century the area was
pasture closes, however. (fn. 11)
Meadow totalling 53 a. was recorded at Alwoldsbury,
Bromscott, and Pemscott in 1086, and some of the 100
a. then recorded under Clanfield may have belonged to
Puttes. (fn. 12) Then as later much may have lain in the
detached meadows of Burroway and Sharney (c. 113 a.)
by the river Thames, where Alvescot inhabitants had
rights by the late 12th century. (fn. 13) Meadow within Alvescot
parish included Southside, around 96 a. at inclosure,
which lay south of Alvescot village near Clanfield brook
adjoining the probable site of Puttes hamlet. (fn. 14)
'Sebrokesmed', presumably near Seabrook on the west,
was mentioned in 1441, (fn. 15) and Dunsbrook and Green
mead from the 17th century, when there was also
common meadow in East field adjoining Shill brook. (fn. 16)
Dunsbrook remained lot meadow until 1796, and part
of Sharney until 1851. (fn. 17) Inclosed meadow near Shield
Farm, at Bazeland (or Batesland) closes in the south, and
in the south-west, recorded from the 17th century, (fn. 18)
perhaps included former common meadow.
Pasture 3 furlongs square was noted in 1086 at
Bromscott and Pemscott and pasture 6 furlongs square
at Alwoldsbury, with only 3 a. recorded, presumably in
error, at Alvescot. (fn. 19) Alvescot Marsh, a common pasture
of some 135 a. adjoining the south-eastern parish
boundary, was mentioned from the early 14th century; (fn. 20)
other commons mentioned from the 17th and 18th
centuries were Murrel green at Alvescot village's
southern end, the green or horse common south of the
Kencot—Black Bourton road, and the Downs (over 300
a.) in the parish's north-east corner. Residual common
rights were noted in Pitlands closes, site of the deserted
hamlet of Puttes, (fn. 21) while Cow moor (c. 20 a.) near Shield
Farm, inclosed by 1653, was presumably also former
common pasture: late 17th-century tenants retained
unspecified common rights both there and in some
other small closes. (fn. 22) By the 17th century leys provided
some additional grassland, (fn. 23) and inhabitants also had
pasture rights in the furze common in the south-west;
the furze itself was said to belong to Clanfield, though by
1796 poor Alvescot inhabitants could evidently take
furze, bushes, and thorns, since they were compensated
for the right at inclosure. (fn. 24) In the 16th century cattle
were grazed in Alvescot Marsh from around 3 May, and
the Marsh was closed usually around Lady day (25
March); (fn. 25) pasture allowances in Pitlands and presumably elsewhere in Alvescot were then fixed annually in
May, (fn. 26) and in the 17th and 18th centuries seem to have
been fairly generous, usually comprising at least 12
beasts, 4 horses, and 80 sheep per yardland. (fn. 27) Alvescot
inhabitants had no pasture rights in the detached
Thames-side meadows, where the aftermath was divided
between Weald (in Bampton) and Clanfield. (fn. 28)
Early inclosures, comprising mostly former demesne
and the sites of the deserted medieval settlements,
covered up to 30 per cent of the parish by the later
Middle Ages. (fn. 29) 'Besebrek', whose name implies
assarting, was evidently the later Bazeland near the
southern boundary, and may already have been inclosed
when mentioned in 1380, perhaps following a general
reorganization of the parish's southern part. (fn. 30) The sites
of Bromscott, Pemscott, and Puttes were inclosed
presumably by the later Middle Ages and certainly by the
16th or 17th century. (fn. 31) Demesne closes near the church
and Shield Farm (some 200 a.), west of Butlers Court
Farm (around 90 a.), and near Ruxhill Farm in the
south-west (around 220 a.) were also recorded from the
17th century, and may be partly medieval in origin, (fn. 32)
though no inclosures were mentioned in 14th-century
inquisitions. (fn. 33) Shield and Butlers Court farms were later
without common rights, presumably following agreements
at their inclosure. (fn. 34) Subdivision of closes
continued, (fn. 35) and a more comprehensive inclosure may
have been considered in the mid 17th century. (fn. 36)
A spinney near the church, recorded about 1250, was
perhaps that still adjoining the churchyard in the late
20th century. Larger coppices to the north and in the
south-west, totalling some 5 a., existed by the late 18th
century, (fn. 37) and 100 a. of woodland reported in 1586 was
presumably scattered in small coppices and in hedgerows. (fn. 38) A 'considerable quantity' of timber was reported
on Alvescot manor in 1906, much of it recently cut or
blown down. (fn. 39)
A medieval yardland on Alwoldsbury manor may
have contained 30 a. of arable, (fn. 40) and 17th-century
yardlands seem to have contained around 35 acres. (fn. 41) The
amount of common meadow per yardland varied, but
was usually small: in 1351 Alvescot manor's demesne (2
ploughlands containing 160–80 a. of arable) included
only 15 a. of meadow, and holdings of 40–50 a. in
Bromscott and Pemscott included 2 a. or less. (fn. 42) The
rectory estate, with 23 a. of arable in 1685, had 2¾ a. of
meadow in Southside, 2 a. in Millen (near the mill), and
3 parcels of lot meadow in Sharney. (fn. 43) The inclosed Shield
farm included 25 a. of meadow and over 100 a. of
pasture in the mid 17th century, (fn. 44) but few small tenants
had much inclosed land before parliamentary inclosure
in 1796. (fn. 45)
Medieval Tenant Farming
In the late Anglo-Saxon period Alvescot was probably
administered as part of the large royal estate of
Bampton, but by the Conquest its inhabitants were
tenants of three small independent manors. (fn. 46) Recorded
tenants in 1086 totalled 8 villani and 11 lower-status
bordars, with 9 slaves employed presumably on the local
demesnes, though the balance on different manors
varied: Alvescot manor had no recorded villani, while as
many as 5 of the slaves were at Bromscott or Pemscott,
perhaps reflecting their origins as small satellite settlements on the edge of the Bampton estate. The
Alwoldsbury and Bromscott—Pemscott estates were
reckoned to have land for 6 and 3 ploughteams respectively, but as only 4 and 2½ teams were recorded both
may have been understocked. The value of all three
estates had nevertheless risen since 1066, Alvescot from
20s. to 50s., Bromscott and Pemscott from 40s. to 50s.,
and Alwoldsbury from 60s. to 80s. (fn. 47) Puttes, if it then
existed, was surveyed presumably with Clanfield. (fn. 48)
By 1279 (fn. 49) there were 10 half-yardlanders and 5
cottagers at Alvescot, perhaps including some at
Bromscott and Pemscott, (fn. 50) and 13 half-yardlanders at
Alwoldsbury. The close correspondence with the
Domesday figures for each manor may indicate that the
slaves and perhaps some Alwoldsbury bordars had been
absorbed into the ranks of 13th-century villeins. At
Puttes four yardlanders and a half-yardlander were
recorded, along with two tenants sharing a divided
yardland. At Alvescot and Alwoldsbury there were also
some 26 free tenants, of whom many held no other land
locally and were probably resident; at Alvescot, most had
between ½ and 1½ yardlands. (fn. 51) Hugh Stone (de Petra),
one of a prominent local family recorded until the early
14th century, (fn. 52) held 5 yardlands and sublet another 2½,
and a few other holdings were similarly sublet. Villeins'
rents and services were heaviest on Alvescot manor,
where half-yardlanders paid 2s. 2½d. rent and owed
services valued at 5s. 9½d.; half-yardlanders on
Alwoldsbury manor owed 1s. 6d. and services valued at
4s. 10d., and at Puttes yardlanders owed 3s. rent and
services worth 7s. 6½d. Most Alvescot cottagers held 6 a.
each for 1s. 7d. rent and works worth 3s. 9d. Freeholders'
rents per yardland varied from a few pence to 20s., and
two rents included capons or wax. Two other tenants
discharged the lord of Alwoldsbury's obligations at the
hundred court, another held a house and 4 a. for 1d. and
for keeping two lamps burning in Alvescot church, (fn. 53) and
the single free tenant at Puttes owed scutage. Hugh
Stone's estate owed 'foreign' service only, presumably
light services outside the manor.
The parish was taxed in 1306 on movable goods
worth around £85, in 1316 on £119, and in 1327 on £95,
placing it among the middling rank of local rural
communities. Average wealth per head was around 57s.
in 1316 and 54s. in 1327, but there was considerable
disparity between individuals. The largest payments in
both those years came from the lord of Alvescot, taxed in
1316 on goods worth over £19, while members of the
Penne family were together taxed on goods worth over
£10. Some other sizable payments came from freeholders, but several of the wealthiest taxpayers were
otherwise unrecorded, or came apparently from families
holding in villeinage in 1279. Two taxpayers, one
possibly a half-yardlander, were assessed on 8s. only. (fn. 54)
Nine villeins and 4 cottagers were recorded on
Alvescot manor in the mid 14th century, slightly fewer
than in 1279. Rents for both groups suggest that labour
services had probably been commuted, though some
land remained in demesne. Freehold rents seem to have
fallen overall, though some in the late 14th century
remained unaltered from 1279. (fn. 55) Over half the unfree
tenants on Alvescot manor died presumably of plague
before 1351, when their lands lay uncultivated, and in
1352 only 24s. rent was recorded from villeins (nativi)
and 20s. from freeholders. The effects were presumably
long lasting, since settlement seems thereafter to have
been concentrated in the shrunken village of Alvescot. (fn. 56)
Some accumulations of holdings apparently followed:
one Alvescot tenant in 1368 held 4 houses, a vacant toft,
over 140 a. of arable, and rents from 5 smallholdings, (fn. 57)
and by the early 16th century some large, partially
inclosed farms included Puttes or Pitlands, later 2½
yardlands, which by 1536 was let to a single tenant. (fn. 58)
Several tenants in the 1430s and 1440s were fined for
allowing buildings to decay, but customary yardlands
were taken up at the same court sessions, (fn. 59) and there is no
late-medieval evidence of vacant holdings.
Medieval Demesne Farming
Three ploughlands were in demesne on Alvescot manor
in 1279, and two in 1351–2. (fn. 60) Though farming was
clearly mixed, sheep may have been important by the
13th century when the lady of Alvescot gave 60 sheep
commons to the church, (fn. 61) and stock sold from the
demesne in 1421–2 included over £60-worth of wool. (fn. 62)
By 1441, when one tenant illegally occupied 8 a. of
demesne and others were fined for encroachments, (fn. 63)
some or all of the demesne may have been leased: the
whole was certainly let for £18 (later £17) from the late
15th century to the early 17th, (fn. 64) though in the 1620s and
1630s the resident Ashcombes, then lords of Alvescot,
kept 6 yardlands in hand and employed a bailiff. (fn. 65) Two
ploughlands in demesne on Alwoldsbury manor in 1279
and probably in 1333 were not mentioned later, and
after the manors were united were presumably merged
in the Alvescot demesne or let to tenants. (fn. 66)
The 16th Century to Parliamentary Inclosure
Fourteen landholders were taxed in 1524, 25 in 1542,
and 5 in 1576. (fn. 67) The wealthiest, both resident, were
Thomas Bond (d. c. 1557), taxed in 1542 on goods
worth £35, and his son John, lessees of the demesne farm
and of Black Bourton vicarage. (fn. 68) Other prominent families, many of which remained in the late 17th century,
were the Hintons and Mays, lessees of Pitlands farm, (fn. 69)
and the Turfreys, who occupied 3 freehold yardlands
and who were recorded from the 13th century. (fn. 70) The
social structure throughout the 17th century and early
18th remained similar to that of most local parishes,
with moderately prosperous yeomen leaving goods
worth £150–£250 or more, but many yeomen, husbandmen and labourers leaving much less. (fn. 71) Most householders in 1662 (71 per cent) paid on 2–4 hearths, with
the former manor house (later Butlers Court) assessed
on nine. (fn. 72) William Claridge, one of an averagely wealthy
yeoman family, occupied an unidentified house with 15
hearths, perhaps Shield Farm, presumably as lessee. (fn. 73)
Three inhabitants, each with one or two hearths, were
exonerated through poverty in 1665. (fn. 74)
Farming was mixed, the chief crops in the 16th and
17th centuries being wheat and barley, with some peas
and vetches. Some barley was malted. (fn. 75) Rarer crops were
oats, hemp, and hops, (fn. 76) and on the inclosed Shield farm
sainfoin was introduced before 1673 and clover in the
18th century. (fn. 77) A two-course rotation followed in 1352 (fn. 78)
was presumably succeeded by three- or four-course
rotations by the 17th or 18th centuries, but no details are
known. Sheep continued to be important: a few flocks of
300–460 were noted from the late 15th century to the
earlier 17th, Thomas Bond's in 1549 being one of the
largest in the area, while several smaller flocks were also
recorded. (fn. 79) Dairying and cheesemaking were also
common, one wealthy farmer in 1699 leaving 600
cheeses worth £7 and over 30 cattle, with hay worth £15
and some wheat, barley, and malt. (fn. 80) Inclosed dairy farms
were mentioned in the late 18th century, stock on
Ruxhill farm in 1786 including hay and 18 cattle. (fn. 81) Many
lesser inhabitants left pigs, bacon, and poultry, and some
left bees. Markets included Burford and presumably
Witney. (fn. 82)
In the 1650s Alvescot manor was reduced by piecemeal sales (fn. 83) and by conversion of copyholds to freehold,
each owing 1s. quitrent. (fn. 84) By the late 18th century it
comprised only three lifehold farms with between 4 a.
and 45 a., all open-field arable, and a large leasehold of
295 a. centred on Manor Farm, much of it (170 a.)
inclosed and presumably made up of former demesne. (fn. 85)
Three other largely inclosed farms, each between 90 a.
and 137 a., were let by non-resident owners apparently
at rack rent. (fn. 86) A few prominent farmers who paid
£20–£40 land tax combined tenancies of such farms
with smaller leaseholds and freeholds: the only large
owner-occupiers were the Kirbys of Park Farm, whose
estate, made up of smaller farms acquired since the 17th
century, was also let from around 1794. Up to a dozen
cottagers in 1796 had no recorded land or commons,
and a few other people, some possibly non-resident, had
furze or common rights only. (fn. 87)
Parliamentary Inclosure to the 20th Century
Despite the existence of some large inclosed farms,
around 70 per cent of the parish remained uninclosed in
1796, when an inclosure Act was obtained. The award
was sealed in 1797. (fn. 88) The lord's trustee received 234 a.,
much of it consolidated in old inclosures, together with
some 50 a. for land let on lifehold tenancies. Awards to
Earl Harcourt (136 a. for Shield farm), John Lenthall (90
a. for Ruxhill farm), and William Bolt (97 a. for Butlers
Court farm) also comprised chiefly old inclosures.
Awards to some 37 other owners ranged from 1 a. or less
for furze or common rights, to over 300 a. awarded to a
non-resident proprietor (fn. 89) chiefly for 240 sheep commons. The Thames-side meadows were separately
inclosed in 1851. (fn. 90)
The lifehold tenancies survived in 1813, when one
cottager still owed heriot of £1 6s. 8d., (fn. 91) but thereafter all
farms were let apparently at commercial rents. Production was said in the early 19th century to have trebled
since inclosure, but farmers were 'not the best', and rent
reductions for Manor farm in the late 1810s may reflect
difficulties following the Napoleonic wars: poor relief
expenditure during that period remained high. (fn. 92) In 1851
there were seven farms over 100 a., among them the
outlying Bazeland and Downs farms, established since
inclosure; Downs farm, at 365 a., was the largest by far,
and the Nalders' freehold centred on Home Farm (later
Shill House) in Alvescot village totalled 200 acres. Four
other farms were between 40 a. and 100 acres. The
eleven farms together employed some 50 labourers, of
whom 70 were recorded in the parish, forming by far the
largest occupational group; others involved in agriculture were a cattle dealer farming 12 a., and in 1861 three
shepherds and a dairy maid. (fn. 93) By 1881 John Nalder
farmed over 550 a. and employed over 20 labourers, (fn. 94)
though the parish may by then have been suffering
further agricultural depression: many labourers reportedly joined the Agricultural Labourers' Union following
a meeting in 1872, while in 1881 four principal farms
were vacant, and in 1887 the prominent farmer John
Hill was bankrupted. (fn. 95) Rent remissions were mentioned
in 1896. (fn. 96)
One 70-acre farm was 75 per cent arable in 1867, (fn. 97) but
Manor farm (72 a.) was mostly grass, and mixed farming
continued. (fn. 98) Dairying at Alvescot mill was noted in the
1860s and later. (fn. 99) In 1909 Nalder's combined Home and
Shield farms (334 a.) were 58 per cent pasture and 42 per
cent corn and sheep land; the arable, in 'one of the best
recognized corn districts in the county', was compact
and easily worked, but there was also rich meadow near
the homesteads, and livestock included 75 shorthorn
cattle, 44 Hampshire Down lambs, 12 Berkshire pigs,
and 300 poultry. (fn. 100) Overall, the parish was then around 70
per cent arable, much of it probably on the northern
Cornbrash and Forest Marble; numbers of livestock
were similar to those in neighbouring parishes, though
in 1914 there were fewer cattle than further south, and,
as elsewhere, sheep farming was declining. The chief
crops were barley and wheat, with some swedes and
turnips and a few mangolds and potatoes. (fn. 101) Similar
patterns continued in the mid 20th century, reflecting
Alvescot's location between the mixed farming regions
of the county's north-western part and the dairying
regions of the south-west; oats were grown also,
commercial pig and poultry farming accompanied
dairying, and both Downs and Field farms retained
flocks of over 100 in the 1940s, when there were five
farms of 150–360 a., with five more of 30–85 a. (fn. 102)
Trades and Crafts
Occupational surnames in the late 13th century and
early 14th included Tailor (Cissor), Smith (Faber), and
Fuller (Foulare), though by the 14th century the first and
probably all three names were hereditary. (fn. 103) The usual
rural trades were recorded later: a butcher was
mentioned in 1630, weavers in 1631 and 1697, (fn. 104) blacksmiths, carpenters, a tailor, and 2 or 3 bodice-makers in
the late 17th century and the 18th, (fn. 105) and two masons in
the mid 18th. (fn. 106) Descendants of a carpenter, dealer, and
chapman bankrupted in 1780 continued as carpenters
and later as wheelwrights until the later 19th century, (fn. 107)
and a woman who in 1774 left a furnace to her son, later
a shopkeeper, perhaps brewed commercially. (fn. 108) A quarry
on Alvescot Downs, mentioned in 1653 as a source of
stone slate, was perhaps that east of Field Farm, which
reportedly continued in the early 20th century. (fn. 109) In the
19th century the town or parish quarry, established at
inclosure, furnished stone for road repairs. (fn. 110)
By 1811 ten per cent of families were supported from
trades or crafts, and in 1831 around 17 per cent. (fn. 111)
Throughout the 19th century there were several carpenters, shoemakers, bakers, and grocers, one or more
blacksmiths, and usually a tailor and butcher. A sawyer,
a slater and plasterer lodging at Alvescot mill, and a
midwife were noted in 1851, a confectioner in 1861, and
a hurdlemaker in 1881. Several members of the Oakey
family were masons or builders until the early 20th
century, and in the later 19th century another Oakey ran
the Poplar Brewery near the Royal George public house,
established before 1871. (fn. 112) Maltsters included prominent
farmers, the Nalders running a malthouse at Vine
Cottage (later Home Farm). (fn. 113) Some women worked as
dressmakers or straw-hat makers, and several were
employed as domestic servants in the homes of clergy or
wealthier farmers. (fn. 114)
A station master and railway porter were resident in
1881, and the railway attracted coal, coke, and salt
dealers. In the earlier 20th century there were several
hauliers, one of them, Robert Oakey of the Plough Inn,
also a sand, gravel, and stone merchant and general
dealer. In 1907 there was a cycle shop. (fn. 115) Many trades and
crafts survived until after the Second World War, but by
the early 1950s there was no blacksmith, carpenter, or
baker, and the last traditional craftsman, a hurdlemaker,
died before 1960, when Alvescot was said to be a 'dormitory for the nearest town or factory'. A long-established
haulage firm remained in 1960, (fn. 116) and a village shop in
the 1990s, when it sold chiefly outdoor clothing.
Alvescot Mill
In 1279 a predecessor of Alvescot mill, on a tributary of
Shill brook, was a freehold on Alvescot manor, occupied
with a house and 6 a. for 18s. rent. (fn. 117) Quitrent of 17s.
remained due in 1904. (fn. 118) In the early 17th century the mill
was owned with around 11 a. and 5 cottages by the
Tanner family, who retained it until 1904. Most were
resident millers, though in the mid 18th century and the
late 19th both mill and millhouse were let. (fn. 119) In the 17th
century it was evidently a corn grist mill, and so
remained; millers in the 18th century baked commercially,
and a bakehouse was mentioned from 1757. (fn. 120) In
the 1860s the mill was both water- and steam-powered,
and included an attached cider mill and press. (fn. 121) From
1795 the premises were heavily mortgaged (fn. 122) and in 1904
the mortgagee, who had evidently acquired the freehold,
sold to Alfred Akers. Thereafter the mill apparently
ceased working. (fn. 123)
In 1662 the miller was taxed on 5 hearths probably
including outbuildings, (fn. 124) and in 1670 the house and
perhaps the adjoining mill were slated and presumably
stone-built. (fn. 125) The existing house, two-storeyed with attic
dormers, is of about that date, though the south front
was rebuilt in the earlier 20th century, and in the later
20th the house was extended westwards to incorporate a
former outbuilding, which became a cottage. The
attached mill on the north, two-storeyed with a loft and
built of limestone rubble, is of the mid or late 18th
century; a northwards extension over the mill stream
was partly rebuilt in 1845, (fn. 126) with a new arch and
bakehouse chimney. In 1904 the mill had a single
breast-shot wheel driving two pairs of stones. (fn. 127) The
stones survived in 1997 along with hoppers, bins, and
wooden scales, but the wheel had been removed by
1983. (fn. 128)
Fishing rights in part of Shill brook belonged to the
mill in 1904 and presumably earlier. (fn. 129) In 1909 fishing in
a 'trout stream' in the brook was sold with Shield farm. (fn. 130)