Sale catalogue for Hill Farm, Ladder Hill

  • Map from record 1814 showing the (Trinder) farm buildings were, and where Coombe House is.
  • Map of the Wheatley meadows showing the 8  acres Great Farm Close, which was part of the sale as Lot 7
  • Extract of 1910 ownership map showing, as '421', land owned by the Chapman family totalling some 105 acres. Clearly, some of this was occupied by the railway and Avery's sawmill
  • Cows crossing Ladder Hill for milking
Archive Notes:

Sale catalogue for Hill Farm Wheatley (sold in 8 lots with the last one being land in Ickford in Buckinghamshire) which took place on July 14th 1954.

Hill Farm had been owned by Mr John Chapman, who died in 1942. It appears that Percy Trinder, the tenant farmer, was allowed to continue to run the farm until his death in 1953.

Unfortunately the plan does not exist, but the following can be gleaned:

Lot 1; Land on Ladder Hill (c. 2.2 acres) for residential development bought by Mrs Avery for £700 Lot 2: c. 3.7 acres adjoining Cuddesdon Road Lot 3: c. 5.8 acres adjoining Windmill Lane with southern aspect Lot 4: c. 24.3 acres with a 16 foot right of way at the southern end of Coombe House Lot 5: c. 27.9 acres adjoining Ladder Hill and Wheatley Railway Station with a stream running through it Lot 6: Farm buildings c. 0.9 acres Lot 7: Riverside Meadow c. 8.2 acres

The map from record No 1814 is reproduced here and identifies where the (Trinder) farm buildings were (now houses 22-40 Ladder Hill); where Coombe House is; and Avery holdings. The extract of the field names map shows the 8 acre Great Meadow. The extract of the 1910 ownership map shows the 105 acres then owned by Chapman (let to William Dennis), which area included the railway and Avery sawmill land (part of this is now 41-53 Ladder Hill). So this gives a broad idea of the ownership up for sale in 1954.

The land of Wheatley Hill Farm straddled Ladder Hill. The total area of some 73 acres was less than the 104 acres holding in 1910, shown in the valuation survey of that year, when it was owned by John Chapman and let to William Dennis. By then acreages had almost certainly been already sold off for housing (Coombe House, Six Acres, Edgehill and Elpis on the east, and on the west Longside, Windyridge, Windmills, houses numbers 42-46 Ladder Hill, and Green Hedges).

Howe Close and Nos 22-40 Ladder Hill were developed on the site of the farm and barns.

Note the existing walkway down to Avery's Mill, then called Tin Alley.

Archive Number: