Spaxton: Economic history

ECONOMIC HISTORY.

Agriculture. In 1086 the nine estates in the parish, of which Stockland may have extended into Stogursey and two at Radlet may have been partly in Over or Nether Stowey, comprised a total of 23 ploughlands, 128 a. of pasture, and 70 a. of meadow. Among the stock recorded were 124 sheep, 46 goats, and 16 pigs. Most of the estates were evenly divided between demesne and tenanted land. Two holdings, parts of Radlet and Tuxwell, had declined in value since 1066, but Stockland had more than doubled. The largest holdings were Spaxton and Pightley; Tuxwell had the greatest area of pasture and woodland. (fn. 1)

The Halswell family, tenants at Radlet by 1311, held 87 a. of arable, 5 a. of meadow, 10 a. of pasture, and 8 a. of moor, (fn. 2) but smaller holdings were more typical, 40 a. on Spaxton manor (fn. 3) and 40 a. and 30 a. at Tuxwell in 1464. (fn. 4) By 1412 Spaxton manor comprised 29 separate tenant holdings at rents varying between 1d. and 26s. 8d., including two of 40 a., the whole rental amounting to £13 15s. About 1390, when the lord was a minor, the demesnes of Spaxton manor had been divided between 12 tenants and were let for a total of £7 11s. 5d. Serfdom and labour services had disappeared from Spaxton manor by the early 15th century. (fn. 5) By 1440 the whole estate was let to farm, and surviving accounts from the 1440s and the 1470s indicate a consistent income of just under £40, although the total included rent from land outside the parish. The estate during that period was evidently administered in differing ways: in 1439-40 income was listed from arable, meadow, pasture, cottages, and mills; in 1447-8 it was arranged by place, the largest amounts coming from the established tenant holdings in Spaxton and East Postridge while the demesne rents were recorded in detail. (fn. 6)

The income from Stockland Lovel manor in 1484-5 was largely from fixed rents, the only variables being the agistment of the park, sales of wood, and perquisites of courts. (fn. 7) Lands called waterleats, recorded from the 13th century, (fn. 8) had in places been converted to arable by 1540. (fn. 9) In the meadows of Spaxton manor in the early 15th century some tenants were allowed 18d. rent for securing the haycocks after gleaning. (fn. 10)

The six principal farms on Tuxwell manor in 1540 ranged in size between 18 a. and 80 a., the two largest including tracts of downland pasture. The other farms were predominantly arable, with parcels scattered in crofts in former open fields. (fn. 11) Pressure on traditional arable land presumably resulted in the tillage of parcels on Merridge Hill in the early 17th century to grow rye. (fn. 12)

Spaxton farmers seem to have prospered during the 17th century and the early 18th, and inventories suggest well furnished houses. Silver spoons appear in several, (fn. 13) a dulcimer in one. (fn. 14) Dairies were common, (fn. 15) and one farmer left cheese worth £4 10s. (fn. 16) In 1639 a wealthy man, John Fisher the younger, had livestock worth over £200 including nearly 100 sheep, and was owed money for milk. (fn. 17) Wheat, barley, and oats were regularly sown, with smaller quantities of peas, clover, and onions. (fn. 18) Thomas Reason (d. 1716) possessed 10 plough oxen, 115 sheep and lambs, and grain worth £111, and he seems to have made malt, cheese, and cider. (fn. 19) Robert Curry (d. 1738) had recently altered his house and had created a new first-floor parlour furnished with a dozen chairs. (fn. 20)

In 1720 there were said to be 3,279 a. of arable, 605 a. of meadow and pasture, 49 a. of orchard, and 40 a. of wood, (fn. 21) but the total acreage exceeded that of the parish. By 1838 arable measured 1,800 a., meadow and pasture 1,336 a., and orchards 70 a., (fn. 22) a change perhaps in part due to restrictions on ploughing in leases from the 1730s. (fn. 23) By the early 19th century over two thirds of the parish belonged to the earl of Egmont. Wages were said to be low, averaging £15-£18 a year, and many labourers were on piece work. Women and children found occasional work but most families barely subsisted, although several owned their own cottages. Wages for living-in labourers were also said to be inadequate. (fn. 24)

In 1838 there were 38 holdings of over 25 a., of which only six were over 100 a. The largest were Tuxwell farm with 330 a., Farm with 258 a., and Spaxton farm with 242 a. By then Henry Labouchere owned c. 1,200 a. (fn. 25) The number of large farms remained fairly constant during the 19th century, but the number of labourers dropped from 66 in 1861 to 38 in 1871. (fn. 26) The tenant at Wrenmore was said in 1847 to have introduced 'implemental husbandry', and in 1871 new machinery for chaff cutting, threshing, pulping roots, and grinding for animal feed was introduced at Farm. (fn. 27) By 1905 the amount of arable land had contracted to 1,470 a. and permanent grassland covered 1,735 a. (fn. 28) There was little change in the size of farms after the mid 19th century. In 1982 dairy farming was predominant, followed by cattle and sheep rearing; wheat and barley were the main arable crops, and a wide range of vegetables was grown. (fn. 29)

INDUSTRY.

By the 16th century Spaxton was a centre of cloth working, especially dyeing and finishing, as illustrated by a contemporary bench end in the church. The plentiful supply of water powered fulling mills (fn. 30) and served the dyeing process. Imports of madder and woad were made through Bridgwater in the later 16th and the earlier 17th century, (fn. 31) and there was a dyehouse on Spaxton manor in 1721. (fn. 32) Among the clothiers were the 17th-century Collard family, from Taunton, and a man who was presented for stretching cloth in 1631. (fn. 33) Cards, spinning wheels, and looms occur in inventories, and one man had five pairs of fullers' shears. Cloth working seems to have declined after the 17th century. (fn. 34)

The Trutch family were blacksmiths, probably at Fursegate, (fn. 35) from the 16th until the 18th century. John Trutch imported large quantities of iron through Bridgwater in the late 16th and the early 17th century, including 2 tons in 1603. (fn. 36) David Trutch had a smithy with two anvils in 1645 and Richard Trutch (d. 1741) had 1,371 lb. of iron, shoeing tools, and horse shoes besides anvils, bellows, vices, tongs, and hammers. (fn. 37) An edgetool forge was set up near Ebsley by the Lillycrap family, possibly on the site of a former fulling mill, using a water wheel to power the bellows and grindstone. The area may earlier have been used for smelting iron. (fn. 38) The forge was in business between 1841 and 1861, (fn. 39) but the family appears to have turned to baking (fn. 40) and the forge and mill had gone by 1919. (fn. 41)

Leather was produced at a large tannery at South Holmes. In 1832 it was described as new and well managed. Bark was plentiful in the area and the yard could tan 30 hides a week. (fn. 42) The tanyard appears to have occupied land opposite the farmstead, in Aisholt parish. (fn. 43) In 1851 the tanner employed 22 men but some of them may have worked on the farm. (fn. 44) In 1861 he was also dealing in timber and had 25 employees. (fn. 45) The tannery was probably in use in 1872 but had closed by 1881 although the timber business continued (fn. 46) and the yard survived. (fn. 47) Other tradesmen recorded in the parish included a fellmonger in 1841 (fn. 48) and two millwrights in 1861. (fn. 49) There was a sawmill near Four Forks in 1887 (fn. 50) and another at Keenthorne near Radlet in 1927. (fn. 51) In 1987 a small firm called Thursday Cottage made preserves.

MILLS.

Mills were recorded in 1086 at Radlet and Merridge. The former may have been either in Spaxton or in Nether Stowey. (fn. 52) There was a mill at Radlet in 1311 (fn. 53) and two fulling mills there in the 17th and 18th centuries, one in Nether Stowey and one in Spaxton. (fn. 54) The mill at Merridge was mentioned in 1201 (fn. 55) and 1225 (fn. 56) and may be Cornwell's mill, held by Charles Barrell in 1720. (fn. 57) John Williams held two mill houses at Merridge in 1787 (fn. 58) but the mill may have gone out of use by 1816 (fn. 59) and none survived by 1838. There was a Mill close at Lower Merridge. (fn. 60)

Ashford mill, also called Ford, Doe's, and Street's, (fn. 61) on the boundary with Cannington, was recorded in the 13th century, was rebuilt c. 1359, (fn. 62) and descended with Spaxton manor. (fn. 63) It was a fulling mill from 1650 or earlier (fn. 64) until 1696 but by 1702 had become a grist mill (fn. 65) and continued in use until c. 1875. (fn. 66) It had an overshot wheel, but only the wheel pit and the mill building remained in 1976. (fn. 67)

Pightley mill, referred to in 1328, (fn. 68) stood probably on Durleigh brook. Its later history is unknown.

Splatt mill, also called Legge's, east of Court Farm, may have been the Spaxton manor mill recorded in 1329. (fn. 69) It was let in the 15th century, when it was known as Spaxton mill, and was repaired in 1477. (fn. 70) Ownership descended with Spaxton manor and the mill used an overshot wheel and had a bakery in the 19th century. (fn. 71) In the early 20th century the mill ground 300 sacks of wheat and barley each week including Russian, Persian, and American grain. Six horses were kept for transport to and from Bridgwater railway station twice a day. During the First World War stone from Cannington quarry was ground at the mill. In the 1950s the mill was grinding barley, oats, and beans for cattle feed. (fn. 72) In 1985 the building was converted for residential use. The mill dates from the 18th century with 19th-century additions and machinery. The mill house dates from the 16th or 17th century but was altered in the 18th.

Crockers mill, later known as Spaxton (fn. 73) or Twinell mill, (fn. 74) lay west of Spaxton village near Ebsley. It was held with Tuxwell manor in the 15th century (fn. 75) and was known as Hoby's mill in the early 16th. (fn. 76) It remained in use until 1899 (fn. 77) or later and retained equipment, including an iron overshot wheel and a set of stones, in 1919. (fn. 78) It was last recorded as a mill in 1937, (fn. 79) and was later gutted and used as a barn. Another mill called Spaxton mill was mentioned in 1851 and 1861 (fn. 80) but its site is unknown.

A manor mill at Stockland Lovel in 1521, when its roof was defective, (fn. 81) has not been found recorded later.

Jebb's mill, also called Erle's, (fn. 82) lay north-west of the church and was mentioned in 1687. (fn. 83) It belonged to Spaxton manor. It had a malthouse by 1833, (fn. 84) and probably remained in use until 1851 (fn. 85) but was demolished before 1887. (fn. 86) The house and former malthouse remained in 1987.

Currypool mill, also known as Poke's, (fn. 87) may have existed by 1579. (fn. 88) It also belonged to Spaxton manor and remained in use until 1939 (fn. 89) or later. A turbine was installed in 1934 and was used to power a saw bench in 1976. (fn. 90) In 1987 the mill house survived but the site had been landscaped for a caravan park.

Cowd's mill, also called Clyve mill, was part of the manor of Tuxwell cum Radlet in 1633. (fn. 91) It was held by the Jones family (fn. 92) and in 1818 was put up for sale with house and bakehouse. (fn. 93) The mill probably went out of use then, and in 1833 the house and land formed part of the earl of Egmont's estate in the parish. (fn. 94) The mill was probably standing in 1838 (fn. 95) but had been demolished by 1887. (fn. 96) The site is beneath Hawkridge reservoir, largely in Aisholt.

There was a fulling mill with racks on Spaxton manor in the 13th century. (fn. 97) In 1355 the site of a fulling mill with watercourse and racks was let to two men who were to rebuild the mill. (fn. 98) This may be the mill recorded in 1412 and repaired in 1481. (fn. 99) At Pleabury in Tuxwell manor there were three fulling mills in 1461 and 1540. (fn. 100) One, in need of repair in 1540-1, was sold in 1558 by William Hody to Nicholas Halswell (fn. 101) and another was acquired by Robert Blake in 1577. (fn. 102) Robert's son William sold two fulling mills to Barnabas Leave in 1597. (fn. 103) Barnabas, whose family had been tenants of one mill in 1540, (fn. 104) died in 1615 leaving a son John. (fn. 105) John (d. 1635) was succeeded by his son John (fn. 106) who held an estate in the area in 1658. (fn. 107) The Pleabury fulling mills were not recorded thereafter but one was probably the site of the edgetool manufactory. (fn. 108) A fulling mill at Radlet formed part of the estate purchased by Thomas Collard from Charles Steyning and was sold by Thomas's grandson John Collard to the trustees of Cannington almshouse. (fn. 109) In 1694 it was described as a decayed clothing mill (fn. 110) and was probably demolished. It stood probably on the stream south of Halsey Cross Farm where Mill meadow lay in 1838. (fn. 111)

Buttles mill mentioned in 1725 (fn. 112) and Blunts mill recorded in 1766 (fn. 113) cannot be identified but may be alternative names for other Spaxton mills.