ECONOMIC HISTORY.
Goathurst manor in
1086 had 6 ploughlands and some woodland;
neither meadow nor pasture were recorded although the demesne estate, which had a third of
the arable and was worked by 4 servi, had 9
cattle, 10 sheep, 60 pigs, and 16 goats. Halswell
was smaller with only 2 ploughlands, half in
demesne with 2 servi, and some woodland; again
no pasture nor meadow was recorded although
2 cattle and 10 sheep were on the demesne. All
but 5 of the 23 tenants (15 villani, 8 bordars)
were on Goathurst manor. (fn. 27)
Goathurst was taxed at only 9s. 6d. in 1327,
less than half the total of Huntstile, and seven
people out of nine paid the minimum tax. William of Halswell was assessed at 4s. (fn. 28) The
Halswell demesne in 1597 consisted of a large
number of small fields including oat and rye
closes, meadow, orchard, a hopyard, and woodland. (fn. 29) Holdings were small in the 17th
century, (fn. 30) and inventories show a high level of
stock keeping but only small acreages under
corn. (fn. 31) William Hite, rector (d. 1689), had cattle
worth over £85 as well as horses, pigs, hay, and
corn. He produced cider, cheese, and bacon. (fn. 32)
Livestock continued to dominate inventories in
the 18th century, and clover was recorded. (fn. 33)
The acquisition of parts of Goathurst manor
by the Halswells from 1730 onwards and the
expansion of the park from the 1740s led to
changes in the balance of agriculture in the
parish and to the reorganization of tenant holdings. The demesne farm in the early 18th
century had surplus pigs, sheep, horses, and
oxen for sale, and a dairy was maintained. (fn. 34)
Cider was produced and a nursery garden established. (fn. 35) By the end of the century a wide variety
of exotic fruit was grown in the hothouses. (fn. 36) In
the 1760s, however, the home farm was not large
enough to support the house, and barley for
malting, oats, peas, and straw were bought in.
At the same time timber on the estate was valued
at £600 and rents from tenants produced
£1,400. (fn. 37)
In the 1750s some farms on Goathurst manor
were let at rack rents after enlargement, and a
similar plan was proposed for Halswell. (fn. 38) By
1756 there were seven farms with over 50 a. in
the parish, excluding the demesne holding, some
tenants having more than one farm, while many
small holding survived. (fn. 39) In 1846 the largest
tenant holding was 155 a., four others were over
100 a., and a further four over 50 a. (fn. 40) Wheat,
oats, clover, potatoes, and 5 a. of flax were
subject to tithe in 1789. (fn. 41) In 1846 arable (579 a.)
and grass (571 a.) were nearly equal in area. By
1905 the area under grass had much increased. (fn. 42)
In 1982 there were at least four dairy farms, but
arable had increased in importance through the
conversion of much of the park. Grassland accounted for 266 ha. (657 a.) of the enlarged
parish and arable for 221 ha. (546 a.). At least
two farms were over 100 ha. (247 a.). (fn. 43)
A cooper combined a workshop with farming
in the mid 17th century. (fn. 44) There was a smithy
in the village and the blacksmith in 1684 had
1,262 lb. of new and old iron besides 98 lb. of
spikes and nails. (fn. 45) In 1831 trade and manufacture supported 15 out of 58 families (fn. 46) and in 1851
there were a draper and grocer and a poulterer
in the parish. (fn. 47) Other 19th-century occupations
included a music teacher and fishmonger in
1861 and a basketmaker and threshing machine
proprietor in 1881. (fn. 48) Large numbers of people
worked on the Halswell estate: Lady Tynte
employed 20 servants in 1787, (fn. 49) and there were
20 indoor servants in 1841. (fn. 50) During the 19th
century estate workers included gamekeepers,
gardeners, a lodgekeeper, bailiffs, a clerk of
works, and a steward. (fn. 51)
MILLS.
There was a mill on the Halswell
estate in 1314 (fn. 52) which was last recorded in
1597. (fn. 53) It may have stood on the stream west
of Halswell House where a series of ponds was
later made in Mill Wood. (fn. 54) Ely Mill on
Goathurst manor was recorded in 1556. (fn. 55)
There was a water mill on the manor in the
18th century but in 1780 it was decided not to
let it and it was later taken down. (fn. 56) It may have
stood north of the church. (fn. 57)