Yeovil's Virtual Museum

Longcroft Farm

A dairy farm between Combe Street Lane and Yeovil Marsh

 

Longcroft Farm was a dairy farm between Combe Street Lane and Yeovil Marsh.

In 1816, the farm was let to Henry Guppy, known as Harry. However, in April 1816, Harry was being held as a 'Prisoner for Debt' in the King's Bench Prison, Surrey, awaiting his case to be heard at the Guildhall, Westminster during the following month.

The 1846 Tithe Apportionment recorded that Longcroft Farm was owned by Lord of Kingston Manor, William Jones Prowse, who had inherited huge land holdings in the area. The farm, at this time, was let to James Tucker, who also farmed other parcels of land.

During the 1860s, a Mr Sawtell was the tenant farmer. During the 1870s Robert Chard farmed Longcroft Farm, and during this period the farm was afflicted with a foot & mouth disease outbreak. In June 1879, Chard was declared a bankrupt.

The next tenant farmer was William Hardy who, in 1886, was fined £15 (around £1,600 at today's value) "for sending to the Central Meat Market three quarters of beef unfit for human food." In November 1891 he was charged with "falsely making a declaration for the purpose of removing swine". Hardy was fined "twenty shillings and costs". In 1903, three children were playing in the dairy at Longcroft Farm, where a double-barreled shotgun, half cocked, was standing in the corner. A nine-year-old boy named Cridland picked it up and accidentally shot his sister, who later had her arm amputated. Some of the shots also entered the chest of five-year-old Dolly Hardy, daughter of William Hardy. By January 1908 Hardy had died and his stock was sold off, comprising "34 head of dairy cattle and young stock, 4 horses, 30 head poultry, implements, hay, straw and roots".

The next tenant farmer of Longcroft Farm, certainly between 1910 and 1921, was Herbert James Pearce. In April 1921 Longcroft Farm, described as a "Valuable Freehold Property... comprising a total area of about 100 acres, with Vacant possession at Michaelmas next" was to be sold by auction in lots (see Gallery). Presumably the sale did not go well, since the sale was re-held in July 1922. However, a notice placed in the Western Gazette of 22 October 1922 noted the "principal portion of this property (withdrawn at the recent auction), and comprising lots 1 to 4 [see Gallery] and including the old-fashioned farm-house, the buildings, with about 67 acres of land and two cottages, has now been disposed of by private treaty"

In October 1922, Robert Hawkins, of Longcroft Farm, had "7 ricks of wheat straw, about 3 acres of mangolds; about 5 acres of swedes" sold by auction on the instructions of the Official Receiver in Bankruptcy.

 

For details on historic land measurement (ie acres, roods and perches) click here.

 

Each farm has (or will have) its own page - click here.
Each Parcel of land has (or will have) its own page - click here.

 

The notice of sale of Longcroft Farm by lots from the Western Gazette's 24 June 1921 edition.