Wargrave Inclosure Award 1818

This document is available at Berkshire Records Office under reference Q/RDS/27, dated 11 April 1818. Examined by Ross Kennedy at BRO on the 15th April 2003.

It comprises a roll many feet long, made up of sheets of parchment stitched together. The document is hand written, and mostly clearly legible.

To begin with, the document initially sets down those involved, naming –Commissioner – John Davis, Bloxham, OxfordshireSurveyor – Henry Dixon, Oxfordand various local landowners.

Next, the authority for the enclosure is set down -

Whereas in and by and Act of Parliament made and passed in the Fifty fourth year of the Reign of his present Majesty King George the third intitled “An Act for inclosing Lands in the Parishes of Wargrave and Warfield in the County of Berks” … … subject to the Rules Orders Directions and Regulations mentioned and contained in a certain other Act of Parliament therein recited made and passed in the forty first year of the Reign of his said present Majesty intitled “An Act for consolidating in one act certain provisions usually inserted in acts of Inclosure..” except in such cases where the same are by the said first mentioned Act altered or varied and as in the said first mentioned Act is enacted and mentioned,

So these Awards are made under the authority, terms and conditions of –a) The “Inclosure Consolidation Act” 1801, 41Geo3 c.109b) The Wargrave & Warfield Local Act 1814, 54Geo3 c.??Ideally this Award should be read in conjunction with the two Acts to understand the full effects and limitations. The first is a Public Act and should be generally available (for example, from the Record Office reference library). The Second is a Local Act, and unfortunately is not included on the RO shelves.

The award then goes on to set out the ways -

He the said Commissioner hath set out and appointed and doth hereby award and confirm the several Public Carriage Roads and Highways Private Roads and footways through and over the Lands and Grounds by the said first mentioned Act directed to be divided allotted and Inclosed within the said Parish of Wargrave hereinafter mentioned and described (that is to say) –

Public Carriage Roads and Highways

The Above Town Road – Twenty feet wide (except where it is bounded by old Inclosures) leading out of the Harehatch Road at Mumby Hatch in a Northward direction between old Inclosures of John Sharp and Sarah Hill respectively and allotments to Edmund Watling Susannah Guy the Tythingman of Whistley, Thomas Thompson, Lord Braybrooke and Sarah Hill respectively and by or between old Inclosures of the said Sarah Hill and Ann Piggott respectively into the Blakes Road.

The Hare Hatch Road – Thirty feet wide (except where it is bounded by old Inclosures) leading out of the village of Wargrave Southward and then Eastward into the London and Bath Turnpike Road

The Ruscomb Road – Thirty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike road at Harehatch South Eastward to Hill farm Cross

The Milley Field Road – Thirty feet wide (except where it is bounded by old Inclosures) leading from Hill Farm Cross South Eastward into the parish of Waltham Saint Lawrence.

The Scarletts Road – Thirty feet wide leading from Hill Farm Cross North Eastward over High Cock Hutt and Kiln Green into the London and Bath Turnpike Road

The Bear Hill Road – Thirty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at Kiln Green North Westward to the Park belonging to Sir Moris Ximenes into the Wargrave Wood and Beargrove Lane.

The Holt Road – Thirty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at the Holt North Westward between old Inclosures of the Heirs or Devisees of James Leigh Perrot Esquire John A’Bear and Sir Moris Ximenes respectively to Eldalls Farm gate

The Blakes Road – Thirty feet wide leading from Dean Pit Corner Westward by Bear Row across the xxxx xxxx xxxx through Blakes Lane xxxx [not legible on crease in parchment] part of Royal Hill Field to Newells Cottage then South Westward over Pur Field to the Hats Plantation and Above Town Field to the village of Wargrave

The Pur Field Road – thirty feet wide leading out of the Blakes Road Northward over Pur Field and Pate Field to Crouch End Lane

The Langham Road – Thirty feet wide leading out of the Purfield Road North Eastward over Purfield and Langham Field into High Field Lane

The Bowsey Hill Road – Thirty feet wide leading from Eldalls Farm Gate North Westward then North Eastward and then North Westward over Bowsey Hill into Cock Pole Lane

Private Carriage and Drift Roads

No.I One private Carriage and Drift Road twenty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at the Holt North Westward between the allotment to James Stanbrook and an allotment to Fanny Young into Casicford Ground and Dean Close, which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the owners and Occupiers of each and every allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.II One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at Kiln Green South Eastward between an allotment to Harry Fonnereau Esquire and an allotment to the Reverend Benjamin Rudge to Thomas Oxlades Cottage and Garden which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.III One other private Carriage and Drift Road thirty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at the Sandhills Northward between allotments to Thomas Botham and William Curtis respectively and an allotment to Harry Fonnereau to old Inclosures of the said Harry Fonnereau and the Trustees of Maidenhead Charity respectively - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.IV One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide (except where it is bounded by old Inclosures) leading out of the Blakes Road Northward between allotments to

an old Inclosures of Ann Piggott and the Devisees in Trust of John Montague and allotments to Hannah Whitfield Sir Moris Ximenes and the heirs or Devisees of the Reverend John Tickell respectively to an old Inclosure of Edward Fremont - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.V One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the Bowsey Hill Road Northward between old Inclosures of and allotments to Sir Moris Ximenes old Inclosures of and allotments to Edward Wise Charles Stockes Thomas Taylor the Reverend Oliver Doyley Saint John and Stephen Round respectively into Cockpole Lane - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.VI One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading from Backside end Lane Eastward then Northward between allotments to Thomas Thompson to the south eastward corner of an old Inclosure of Mary Stanbrook - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.VII One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the Harehatch Road at Mumby Hatch North Eastward between old Inclosures of and an allotment to Eliza Silver and Harriet Silver to Wargrave Workhouse - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.VIII One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the Wargrave and Henley Road at the South East Gate of Wargrave Meadow Northwestward then Northward and again Northwestward through the said meadow to Fordhouse Lane - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.IX One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the last described Road by an allotment to Sarah Hill NorthEastward and then Northward by the west side of the Moor Closes to an old Inclosure belonging to John Sharp called the Acres, which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.X One other private Carriage and Drift Road thirty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike road at the Sandhills Northward by old Inclosures and cottages belonging to William Curtis and the Trustees of Maidenhead Charity and an allotment to the said William Curtis, which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.XI One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the Bowsey Hill Road at the Northwest Corner of Bear Grove in a Northwestward direction then Southwestward between an allotment to Edward Fremont and old Inclosure of Sir Moris Ximenes a cottage and Garden and an old Inclosure of Edward Wise to an old Inclosure of the said Edward Fremont called Hedge Birds - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.XII One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike road at the Sandhills Southward between an old Inclosure of and an allotment to Thomas Botham and an allotment to Henry Newman to an old Inclosure

called Gallants belonging to Harry Fonnereau Esquire which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment Cottage Homestead and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.XIII One other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the Purfield Road at Crock End Westward then Northward between an old Inclosure of Zachary Allnutt and an allotment to John Sharp to an old Inclosure of the said Zacahary Allnutt - which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of each and every Allotment and old Inclosure adjoining thereto

No.XIIII And one other private Carriage and Drift Road Twenty feet wide leading out of the London and Bath Turnpike Road at Hare Hatch Southward between an allotment to William Garrard to an ancient Stable belonging to the Heirs or Devisees of William Keely which said road is set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers of the said Stable

Public Footways

No.I One Public Footway of the breadth of six feet leading out of the private Road No.VII Northeastward over an Allotment to Mrs. Ann Piggott into Blakes Road

No.II And one other public footway of the breadth of six feet leading out of the Blakes Road at Newells Green in its present Track North Eastward over allotments to John Sharp Sarah Hill the Heirs or Devisees of the Reverend John Tickell to the private Road No.4 and along the same and over an allotment to Sir Moris Ximenes into an old Inclosure called Hedgelands

AND the said commissioner doth hereby declare that the said several public and private roads and ways herein before described and awarded are all that he doth adjudge to be necessary to be set out and Awarded by him within the said Parish of Wargrave

AND the said Commissioner doth hereby order and direct that all the said Private Roads and ways so herein before awarded shall for ever hereafter be made maintained and kept in repair by and at the expense of the Owners and Occupiers of Estates for which use the same private Roads are so set out appointed and Awarded respectively according and in proportion to the Number of Acres of Land of each and every such proprietor which shall be occupied used or enjoyed by means or by the use of such private Roads and Ways respectively

AND the said Commissioner doth hereby further order and direct that the several proprietors for the time being of the several allotments and old Inclosures through and over which the said several footways are hereinbefore Directed to pass shall at their Own Expence respectively make and for ever after maintain Good and Sufficient Gates or Stiles in the fences intercepting such footways with proper planks or bridges and Hand Rails over the ditches and watercourses in their respective Allotments and old Inclosures

AND the said Commissioner doth hereby further order and direct that all the Grass and herbage Growing arising and xxxing [illegible] in and upon the several public and private Roads and Ways herein before set out appointed and Awarded shall for ever hereafter belong to and be the sole right and property of the several persons whose Allotments or Estates adjoin thereto respectively on either side thereof so far as such Allotments or Estates respectively extend as far as the Crown of such respective roads or ways as by the said Act of the forty first year of the Reign of said present Majesty is directed

AND the said Commissioner doth hereby order and direct that all the Public Watercourses within the said Parish of Wargrave shall for ever hereafter be kept cleansed and scoured out by and at the expense of the several persons whose old Inclosed lands and Grounds adjoin thereto in the same manner as such watercourses were or ought in Right to have been kept

Cleansed and Scoured out if the said first mentioned Act had not been made and passed and where such watercourses pass through or between any of the hereby Allotted lands in that case by the several persons to whom such lands are so Allotted.

AND the said Commissioner in further pursuance of the said Acts of Parliament hath set out and Appointed and doth hereby allot and award unto the Surveyors of the Highways within the said Parish of Wargrave for the time being for ever as and for a public Gravel and Stone pit –One parcel of land situate in Wargrave meadow containing two Acres two Roods and thirteen perches bounded by Allotment to Richard Mathews Esquire and Charlotte Hodges respectively and the private Road No.8

The major part of the Award then follows, allotting parcels of land to various people. Many of the allotments are described as bounded in part by some of the previously awarded roads. As those roads are readily identified on the award map I have not reproduced those many awards.

A few allotments however mention other previously existing roads, these follow. Note that the map is annotated with land parcel numbers that do not directly relate to this inclosure; it may perhaps have been derived from tithe data.

5th allotment to John A’BearOne other parcel of land situate in the little Bell Lane and High Cock Hutt containing one Rood and Twenty one Perches Bounded by an old Inclosure of the said John A’Bear the London and Bath Turnpike Road and Allotments to an old Inclosure of Fanny Young

This would appear to be parcel 662 on the map, and effectively obliterates the north end of Little Bell Lane.

1st allotment to Zachary AllnutOne parcel of land situate in Great Pennys Field containing one Acre one rood and Thirteen Perches bounded by Pennys Lane and allotments to John Sharp John Newell A’Bear and the Honourable Frederick West respectively

This would correspond with parcel 141 on the map.

2nd allotment to Zachary AllnuttOne parcel of land situate Front of Chamberlains Cottage Containing sixteen Perches bounded by an old Inclosure of the said Zachary Allnut and the road leading to Crazies Hill

This would appear to be the highway verge fronting plot 165 on Crouch End Lane.

1st allotment to William AyngeOne parcel of land situate near Stanfords Meadow containing two Roods and four perches bounded by Standfords Lane and old Inclosures of the said William Aynge

This I can’t identify yet, but suspect Standfords Lane has become Private Road IX.

1st Allotment to William CurtisOne parcel of land situate at the Sandhills containing ten perches bounded by the Stars Lane and an old Inclosure of and another allotment to the said William Curtis

This would appear to be a small plot adjacent to Star Lane, 752 perhaps.

3rd Allotment to Harry Fonnerau

One parcel of land situate adjoining the North and South sides of Bear Hill Park containing Sixteen acres and nine perches bounded by the London and Bath Turnpike Road old Inclosures of and allotments to William Keely David Philips and the said Harry Fonnerau respectively the private Road no.III and the Bear Hill Road

This would appear to be plot 732 on the award map, a large arc-shaped plot including part of the Turnpike verges and swallowing up an old lane to the north of the estate.

Allotment to Mary JonesOne parcel of land (being part of an old Inclosure called Spring Close) containing one acre three Roods and twenty five perches bounded by Highfield Lane and old inclosures of the said Mary Jones John Sharp and Mary Surrell respectively

This would be a field somewhere along the Highfield Lane

2nd Allotment to Richard MathewsOne Parcel of land being an Ancient Lane called Youngs Lane containing one rood bounded by old inclosures of the Honorable Frederick West Charles Frederick Johnson and the said Richard Mathews respectively Cockpole Lane and Soundyes Lane

This would appear to be an old route over Bowsey Hill, replaced by the straight northernmost two hundred yards of private road no.5 just southeast of it. Soundyes Lane would then be the old lane heading northwest then southwest towards Langham Road.

1st Allotment to the heirs of James Leigh PerrottOne parcel of land being a Green Lane adjoining Dean Pit containing three Roods and Eighteen perches bounded by Dean Pit Lane old inclosures of and an allotment to Harry Fonnerau old inclosures of the said Heirs or Devisees and an Allotment to Sir Moris Ximenes

This can be easily identified on the award map as a lane running due east from Dean Pit Farm towards the start of Bear Hill Road. Dean Pit Lane, it is safe to presume, is the lane running due south from the farm

6th Allotment to the heirs of James Leigh PerrottOne other parcel of land situate in the Holt and Chalky Lane containing one acre two roods and eighteen perches bounded by and old Inclosure of the said Heirs or Devisees the London and Bath Turnpike Road and old enclosure of and an allotment to Sir Moris Ximenes and the Scarletts Road

This would appear to be the old lane between plots 661 and 662, the southwards extension of the Holt Road

7th Allotment to the heirs of James Leigh PerrottAnd one other parcel of land called Dean Pit containing two roods bounded by the Holt Road old Inclosures of the said Heirs or Devisees and the Whalebone Lane

This is clear on the map, although the plot number isn’t, as the small triangle to the west of Dean Pit Farm.

2nd Allotment to Stephen RoundAnd one other Parcel of land being an Ancient Lane called Fronleys Lane containing three Rood and thirteen perches bounded by Pennys Lane Cockpole Lane and old inclosures of John Hall the Honorable Frederick West the said Stephen Round and John Sharp respectively

This old lane is clear on the awards map, to the east of Pennys Lane.

3rd Allotment to the Rev. Benjamin RudgeOne other Parcel of land situate in High Cockhutt Lane containing three Roods and fifteen perches bounded by an old Inclosure of said Benjamin Rudge and allotment to Fanny Young and the Scarletts Road

This may be the old lane between plots 662 and 636, but more likely the old wide verge of what has become Scarletts Road

7th Allotment to John SharpAnd one other parcel of Land called Little Pennys Field containing one Acre one rood and thirty perches bounded by an old Inclosure of John Newell A’Bear an allotment to Zachary Allnutt Pennys Lane and an old Inclosure of Sarah Hill

This can be identified as plot 140 on the award map

Purchase by William SoundyPorters Cross – One parcel of Land situate at Crazies Hill containing eighteen perches bounded by Public Roads and an old Inclosure of John Silver

On the award map, this would seem to be a triangle of land adjacent to plot 291 at one end of Rebecca Lane

1st Allotment to Thomas ThompsonOne parcel of land being an old inclosure with the fences thereunto belonging situate near Above Town Field called Above Town Close containing thirty nine perches bounded by old Inclosures of Joseph Keeley the private Road no VI an old Inclosure of Mary Stanbrook and Backside end Lane which said allotment is also in lieu of and exchange for the tenth allotment hereinbefore awarded to Sarah Hill

This is identifiable as plot 434 on the award map

1st Allotment to the heirs of the Rev. John TickellOne parcel of land situate in Bean Lands Meadow containing two acres one rood and fifteen perches bounded by the Lake Stream the third allotment to the said Heirs or Devisees old Inclosures of Sarah Hill and John Sharp respectively and the Meadow Road

On the map, this is plain as the plot to the east of the backwater. The Meadow Road is I believe the old name for private Road no.VIII

1st Allotment to Sir Moris XimenesOne parcel of land situate on Bear Hill and including Bear place Farm Lane containing one Acre three Roods and ten perches bounded by the Bear Hill Road the Holt Road an old Inclosure of and Allotment to Harry Fonnerau and the said Sir Moris Ximenes respectively

This is clearly identifiable on the award map as the old east-west lane just to the south of Bear Place.

3rd Allotment to Sir Moris XimenesOne other Parcel of land situate in Wargrove Wood Lane Containing three roods and twenty four perches bounded by the Bear Hill Road and an old Inclosure of the said Sir Moris Ximenes

This can only be a small sliver of land opposite plot 730 on the map. Logically, the old name for Bear Hill Road must have been Wargrove Wood Lane

31st Allotment to Sir Moris XimenesOne parcel of land (being freehold purchased) situate at Porters Cross containing eighteen perches bounded on all parts thereof by Public Roads and an old Inclosure of George Soundy

This is identifiable as the small triangular plot at the east end of plot 296, adjoining two lanes, one of which is Rebecca Lane.

5th Allotment to Fanny YoungOne parcel of land situate at Little Bell Lane containing thirty eight perches bounded by the Scarletts Road an allotment to John A’Bear and an Inclosure of and allotment to the said Fanny Young

This seems to be the southern end of Little Bell Lane parcelled up.

The commissioner finishes up by certifying that the execution of the awards was duly proclaimed in church, and the parchment is certified by the Clerk of the Peace at Newbury as enrolled on 13th October 1825

The Award Map

The maps associated with this Award are not normally produced for public inspection by BRO, due to their fragile condition. A large format photograph is made available of the one-piece map (the parish copy) instead. The photo conveys an impression of the original map, which was carefully drawn and annotated to cover the whole parish. Much of the land mapped is annotated with parcel numbers, these seem to relate to some other function, not the current inclosure. Possibly tithes. These parcel numbers are not referred to in the awards at all. All the roads in the parish are shown coloured in brown. No distinction is made in the colouring of public or private, awarded or pre-existing roads. Awarded roads are annotated with their name or number. Unfortunately the smallest details such as some road names and parcel numbers are hard to make out on the photo.

A hand-coloured photocopy of the two-part map (the enrolled copy) is also made available, where annotations are more clear.

The awarded roads are plainly identified on the map. Other mentioned roads can be inferred from their descriptions in the text, with more or less confidence in each case. Note that terms like bridle-road, horse-road, drift-road, bridleway, are not to be found anywhere in the awards. I suspect there were none in this part of the country at the time; a road was a road, for all classes of users, and a footway was a footway.

I have copied the locations of the contemporary roads onto the modern Ordnance Survey map as a coloured overlay.Roads mapped but not awarded are shown BROWNawarded public roads shown REDawarded private roads shown BLUEawarded public footways shown YELLOWRoads extinguished by the inclosures are shown dotted PINK, in the positions I have inferred from map and descriptions that they previously were.Where possible, contemporary road names are added.

Commentary

Completeness of Awards Although the commissioner declared “.. that the said several public and private roads and ways herein before described and awarded are all that he doth adjudge to be necessary to be set out ..” it is important to note that doesn’t mean the awarded roads are the ONLY roads in the parish. For example, the main routes through the parish (the Henley-Twyford road, and London-Bath Turnpike, now A4) were NOT awarded and yet were indisputably public roads predating this Inclosure, and existing to the present day. These and other roads are referred to in the Award by name at various places. The Commissioner only had the power to change or set out roads in the lands affected by the current inclosure, which was only a proportion of the lands of the parish, much land having previously been inclosed – this is evident by the frequent references to “old Inclosures”. So in much of the parish, pre-existing public (or private) roads continued unaffected.

Meaning of ‘private’ Some care must be exercised in interpreting the term “Private Carriage and Drift Road”. Private may sometimes mean exclusive for the use of some persons, as we would assume nowadays. Indeed, the private ways in this award are ".. set out and appointed for the use of the Owners and Occupiers .." of adjacent lands. However, a key word that is missing is “sole”; here, the private ways are NOT exclusively set out for occupiers. An alternative view is that ‘private’ refers to the funding of the road and liability to maintain – that is to say, by the adjacent Occupiers rather than from the parish coffers. Consider the case clearly identified as “Public Watercourses”, where the commissioner directs that they shall be maintained by the Occupiers of the lands through which they pass. An unambiguous case of private maintenance liability for public utilities. By extension, the same MAY apply to the ‘private’ roads, which ARE directed to be maintained in the same fashion, yet might still have been regarded as public utilities.

A further anomaly is evident in connection with footway no.1, which is stated to be public, and yet is described and mapped as originating at one end from private road no.7. The clear implication is that the so-called private roads carry AT LEAST public rights on foot, else what would be the purpose of a public footway linking a public road to a private road.

Footway no.2 runs in part along ‘private’ road no.4, this footway however is explicitly awarded over and above the private road, so could be consistent with both ‘private use’ and ‘private liability’ interpretations, and does not help us here. Footway no.2’s eastern end seems to terminate on private road no.11, though it isn’t certain from the map copies or description. However, if it terminated on the public Bowsey Hill Road, we might expect it to be so described. This seems to be a similar situation to public footway no.1, leading to a private road.

Private road no.7 provides the sole road access to the Wargrave Workhouse, which we would normally consider a public edifice.

Yet another anomaly arises in connection with the awarded public gravel & stone pit. Sole access to this was via private road no.13. At this period, the parish roads were maintained by statutory labour, although this might be commuted to “rates”. It would be remarkable indeed if ‘conscripted’ parishioners were expected to use the ‘private’

road with their horses and carts for the purpose of extracting gravel and hauling it away to maintain the parish public roads, but denied use of the way at other times.

Of note is that all the awarded public roads are through routes, which is consistent with the legal opinion of the time that cul-de-sacs would not normally be ‘highways’. Most of the awarded private roads are cul-de-sac however, and so would not be called ‘highways’ even if publicly available.

As cul-de-sac, we can presume the majority of private roads were of most benefit to adjacent landowners, who were therefore required to maintain. Yet in the case of ‘private’ roads nos.11, 8, 7, and 4 we have good grounds that the public would have expected to use them also.

All of which leaves us with ambiguous interpretations of the term ‘private road’. Other evidence would need to be sought to clarify the status of any particular road so awarded.

Ross Kennedy, May 2003