ECONOMIC HISTORY.

Agriculture.

In 1086 Edmonton manor, which included the berewick of South Mimms and probably Monken Hadley, was assessed at 35 hides worth £40, the value T.R.E. and twice that when Geoffrey de Mandeville had received it. There was land for 26 ploughs, 22 of which belonged to the peasantry and only 4 to the demesne, although the demesne comprised 16 hides. (fn. 97)

In 1272 the demesne consisted of 593 a. of arable, 59 a. of meadow, 60 a. of several pasture, a grove, and easement of vines. (fn. 98) The arable had been reduced by 1359 (fn. 99) to 400 a., of which only 160 a. could be sown if it was well-tilled, in which case it was worth 4d. an acre. The rest, worth only ½d. an acre, was gravelly and sterile. Every third year it was laid open for common of pasture, when it was worth 2d. an acre. There was less reduction in the several pasture (40 a.) (fn. 1) and meadow (60 a.) (fn. 2) and the wood was specified as 40 a. The demesne was badly managed in 1359: the capital messuage had no net worth, the windmill was useless, (fn. 3) most of the soil was infertile, and the demesne had been reduced without any corresponding rise in rents. (fn. 4)

In 1478 the demesne, then 477 a. of open-field land, 56 a. of several pasture, and 45 a. of meadow in the common marsh, was leased out to the manorial bailiff for £14 a year. (fn. 5) From 1486 until his death in 1523 the bailiff was the powerful Nicholas Bone, a local man feared by his neighbours as a 'man of great possessions', (fn. 6) who was probably responsible for the separate leasing of part of the demesne which became Sadler's farm. (fn. 7) By 1523 Sayesbury demesne farm consisted of only 178 a. of open-field arable; 70 a. had been inclosed from Pury field for several arable and 30 a. for pasture. The several pasture and meadow remained unchanged. (fn. 8) The demesne was reunited by the Cecils after 1571 (fn. 9) and in 1606 (fn. 10) it consisted of 257 a. of arable: 171 a. in the open fields (fn. 11) and 86 a. of inclosed arable (Broom fields), 114 a. of inclosed pasture, (fn. 12) and 49 a. of meadow.

In 1086 most of the cultivated land, for 22 ploughs and consisting of 12½ hides and 40 a., was divided among 52 villeins, 17 bordars, and 14 cottars. There were also 4 serfs. Only one villein had one hide, three had ½ hide each, 20 had one virgate each, and 24 had ½ virgate each. There were 9 bordars on 3 virgates, 4 had 5 a. each, and 4 had 4 a. each. There were 4 cottars on 4 a. and 4 villeins and 10 cottars on one hide and one virgate. (fn. 13)

By 1272 there were 7 tenants by knight service, (fn. 14) tenants in socage whose rents (£12 13s. 1d.) provided threequarters of the total rental, (fn. 15) villeins holding 4⁵/8 virgates (fn. 16) and small molmen owing £2 17s. 11d. rent. Customary tenants owed 1,247 works a year. All customary tenants, presumably including the molmen, owed services of ploughing and harrowing in winter and Lent on 37 a., carting in summer on 18½ a., mowing 23 a. of meadow, threshing 6 qr. 1½ bu. of corn for winter fodder, and 171 carrying works from Michaelmas until Lammas. Forty customary tenants owed one day's cornhoeing, one day's hay-lifting, and two boondays' reaping. Three of them, who held cottar land, owed 154½ works between Michaelmas and Midsummer and 72 works between Midsummer and Michaelmas. Twenty-four customary tenants owed one day's corn-binding and one day's hay-stacking. (fn. 17)

In 1359 the total rental from tenants was £16 a year, a little less than in 1272. All were free tenants except six bondmen (nativi), from whom the only customary works, reduced to hoeing and autumn and winter works, were demanded. (fn. 18)

Thereafter the proportion of freehold land seems to have remained much the same until the mid 16th century, when £12 9s. 1½d., 1 lb. pepper, and a hunting dog were the fixed annual rents of free tenants. (fn. 19) In the late 16th century, however, freehold rents dwindled to £5 3s. 2d. as estates were released from obligations to the central manor. (fn. 20) Rents from customary tenements increased greatly between 1359 (about £3 6s. 9d.) and c. 1525 (£82 7s. 7½d.). (fn. 21) In the mid 16th century they reached £87 7s. 3½d. (fn. 22) but by 1606 they had fallen to £73 10s. 10d. (fn. 23) James I tried to increase the profits of Edmonton manor but in return for increased admission fines he had to agree that customary rents should remain the same. (fn. 24) By 1650 freehold rents amounted to £7 13s. and copyhold to £77 1s. 6d. (fn. 25) About 1716 quit-rents totalled £96 a year. (fn. 26) On the eve of parliamentary inclosure, when only 22 per cent of the parish was unenfranchised, copyhold rents totalled £77 9s. 10d. (fn. 27)

Tenure by Borough English on copyhold land, which characterized Edmonton, (fn. 28) hindered the growth of estates, since the elder son would inherit his father's freehold and the younger his copyhold estate. Another factor was the fragmentation of free holdings among several children. John Marsh (d. by 1312) divided his lands among four sons and two daughters. (fn. 29) His family was long established, since William de Mandeville (d. 1189) had granted land to Thurstan, (fn. 30) whose son Picot had taken the surname Marsh from the near-by Edmonton marsh. (fn. 31) The Marshes were active in local affairs during the 13th and 14th centuries but their land became part of the Causton and Depham estates and their connexion with Edmonton seems to have ended c. 1350. (fn. 32) The Fords also apparently lost their lands to Caustons in the mid 14th century. (fn. 33) The family had held land in Edmonton at least since 1202, (fn. 34) William Ford had married a sister of the lord of the manor in 1264, (fn. 35) and two Fords were knights. (fn. 36) Wolwyn le Sune received a small estate from William de Mandeville (d. 1189) (fn. 37) which his descendants retained until Agnes, daughter of Roger Sune, conveyed it to Roger de Depham in 1316. (fn. 38) Other local 13th- and early-14th-century families which in almost all cases lost their lands to William Causton and Roger de Depham were the Anesties, Berghs, Bursers, FitzJohns, Newmans, Salmons, le Venours, and Vikers.

There were precedents for the accumulation of land by Depham, Causton, and Francis. Londoners had been acquiring property in Edmonton, for residences or as investments, (fn. 39) since the 12th century and probably earlier. The Mandevilles themselves were powerful in London. Witnesses to one of Geoffrey de Mandeville's charters of c. 1086 included Roger Blund and Ralph Heyrun (de Hairun), (fn. 40) probably ancestors of the patrician London families which had been granted knights' fees in Edmonton in the 12th century. (fn. 41) Other such families (fn. 42) with land in Edmonton were the FitzAlufs (c. 1160), (fn. 43) the Bucointes (c. 1198– c. 1223), (fn. 44) who were related by marriage to the Renger or FitzReiner family (1191–1314), (fn. 45) the FitzAilwins (1203), (fn. 46) FitzAlans (1204), (fn. 47) Bukerels (1217–71), (fn. 48) Gisorses (c. 1230–1351), (fn. 49) which included John Gisors who assumed the debt of the town of Edmonton c. 1250, (fn. 50) Poles (1291–1362), (fn. 51) Wyrhales (1303–48), (fn. 52) and le Mires (1312–30). (fn. 53) The main landowners in the 14th century were William Causton the mercer (1308–54), (fn. 54) Roger de Depham, alderman (1314–58), (fn. 55) Adam Francis the mercer and his son, Sir Adam (c. 1328–1417), (fn. 56) Causton's apprentice, the mercer John Bernes (c. 1333–75), (fn. 57) and John Northampton the draper (1383–95). (fn. 58) By 1400 at least nine mayors of London had been involved in dealings in land in Edmonton. (fn. 59) Another feature of land tenure in medieval Edmonton, and itself a corollary of the connexion with London merchants, was the large number of estates owned by religious houses, most of them in London. (fn. 60)

Land in Edmonton continued to be held by Londoners throughout its history. (fn. 61) In the 15th and 16th centuries several royal officials acquired an interest in the parish, among them John Innocent, Henry Somer, Sir John Pecche and John Sharpe, Sir Wistan Brown, Phillip Hobby, and Thomas Wilson. The most important was William Cecil, Lord Burghley, who between 1571 and 1588 acquired nearly 2,000 a. in Edmonton as part of his estates centred on Theobalds (Cheshunt, Herts.). (fn. 62) In 1606 the largest landholder after Robert Cecil, earl of Salisbury, and the chapter of St. Paul's was Sir Jasper Leake, with 650 a. There were no other very big landowners. Estates of 100–200 a. were owned by Richard Rogers, comptroller of the mint, Sir Henry Roe, alderman of London, Edward Nowell, father and son, Robert Estry, and Sir John Brett. (fn. 63)

At inclosure in 1804 half the land was owned by 11 proprietors and half by 287 people, mostly in parcels of less than 5 a. The largest estate (670 a.) belonged to St. Paul's. William Tash had 582 a., William Mellish had 438 a., Mary Bowles 403 a., and Sarah Huxley's devisees 383 a. (fn. 64)

Most owners regarded property in Edmonton as a source of income rather than as a country seat. The earliest deeds, of the 12th and 13th centuries, portray a very complicated tenurial structure in which rents played an important part. During the 18th century, as the woodland was cleared, gentlemen's residential estates appeared at Southgate but in 1800 and 1852 the amount of land occupied by the owners was very small. (fn. 65)

For most of its history farming in Edmonton was mixed. Alluvium along the river Lea produced meadow land which was often waterlogged and supplied only hay or pasture. The London Clay in the west was wooded until the 17th and 18th centuries, providing mast for pigs and some pasture for cattle. Most of the valley brickearth and gravel in the centre supported arable farming.

Wheat, oats, rye, barley, maslin, peas, and beans were grown. In 1345, for example, John le Venour had 10 qr. of wheat, 10 qr. of rye, 20 a. sown with maslin, and 26 a. sown with oats. (fn. 66) In 1699 the court leet made regulations that gates or fences around common fields were to be made up by Michaelmas where wheat or rye were to be sown or by Lady Day where oats, peas, or barley were to be sown. (fn. 67) In the Middle Ages a three-course rotation was probably followed (fn. 68) but by the late 18th century the course was more complicated and following was giving way to vegetable crops. The rotation in 1794 was potatoes, wheat, turnips on the wheat stubble, oats, tares, peas or beans, and wheat. (fn. 69)

In 1086 there was as much meadow as arable land, as well as pasture for cattle and woodland for 2,000 pigs. (fn. 70) Both oxen and horses were used for haulage until the 17th century. (fn. 71) John le Venour in 1345 had only 4 oxen, 2 draught animals (affr'), and a cow (fn. 72) but at Dephams in 1552 there were at least 25 bullocks, oxen, horses, pigs, geese, and chickens. (fn. 73) John Rockhill, in addition to a mixture of grain, had horses, cattle, and sheep in 1585. (fn. 74)

During the Middle Ages sheep were kept only by the wealthier farmers. There were sheep-houses on the estate of William Ford c. 1300 (fn. 75) and at Sayesbury farm in 1478 (fn. 76) and in 1340 the ninth was paid on wool and lambs by John Marsh, John le Venour, John Castle, William Viker, Edmund Pymme, and Thomas Anesty, all local men of substance. (fn. 77) Such men in the 14th and 15th centuries were responsible for inclosing and taking into severalty common-field land and converting much of it into pasture. (fn. 78) Cattle and sheep, presumably raised for the London market, were important in the 16th and early 17th centuries, when there were several cases of sheep-stealing. (fn. 79) Much livestock was driven through Edmonton to London. Between 1607 and 1617 11 drovers, 6 kidders, and a badger who dealt in wool, were licensed in Edmonton (fn. 80) and most of the 31 people granted licences in 1658 came from there. (fn. 81)

In 1368 John Manning, a fisherman from Chingford, granted John Berners of London a fishing weir at Neylond on the river Lea and all its attendant fishing rights. (fn. 82) In 1605 a meadow called le Neys belonged to Sir Robert Lee but free fishing in the river over the 1½ mile northward from the Tottenham boundary then belonged to the chapter of St. Paul's. The next ¼ mile was claimed by one Brothby. (fn. 83) In 1650 all fishing and fowling in the parish was said to belong jointly to the lord and tenants. (fn. 84) Fines were, however, imposed c. 1641 for fishing in the common sewer. (fn. 85)

Woodland in western Edmonton gave way to meadow land or pasture and livestock was kept on many estates in Southgate, partly perhaps for aesthetic reasons. (fn. 86) Welsh sheep and dairy cows, for example, grazed on the Minchenden estate in the 18th century. (fn. 87) In 1804, out of a total of 6,638 a., 4,571 a. (69 per cent) were under grass, compared with 1,903 a. (28 per cent) of arable land; there were 164 a. of woodland. (fn. 88)

Bad farming, recorded at Sayesbury in 1359 (fn. 89) and on Bowes manor c. 1667, (fn. 90) was more general by the end of the 18th century. Agricultural writers were particularly scathing about the failure to grub up bushes and drain Edmonton's portion of Enfield Chase, which had been allotted in 1777 (fn. 91) and where cattle lacked both shade and pasture. The common meadows of Edmonton marsh, too, were neglected. Divided into small strips of 5 a. or less, (fn. 92) their soil was chilled and their hay yield low. In both cases the recommended remedy was inclosure. (fn. 93)

Edmonton Inclosure Act was passed in 1800 (fn. 94) and the award published in 1804. (fn. 95) Approximately 1,097 a. of open-field land, 413 a. of common marsh, 1,200 a. of Enfield Chase, and 29 a. of common waste in the form of small greens were inclosed. Old inclosures included 806 a. of arable, mostly in the central area near the common fields, 2,193 a. of meadow, and 765 a. of pasture which was scattered throughout the parish but mainly in the west and south-east.

There were 27 farms by the mid 19th century. In 1851 the largest were Huxley (350 a.), Broomfield (340 a.), Bury (300 a.), Nightingale (300 a.), and Cuckoo Hall (220 a.), all long-established farms. The greatest change since inclosure had been in the north-west, where six farms had been created on former Chase land: Model or Camelot, Eastpole, Westpole, Bohun, Oakhill, and Chase. Bush Hill Park Farm was built on former open-field land. Eaton Farm near Palmers Green, Dysons near the Tottenham border, and Betstyle in New Southgate, were all erected on old inclosed land. Despite the many farms, there was considerable unemployment. Twenty-one farmers employed 188 men, although there were as many as 541 farm-workers. (fn. 96)

In 1867 (fn. 97) out of 5,885 a. of farm-land, 3,881 a. (66 per cent) were under grass, cereals were grown on 1,039 a. (18 per cent), fodder crops in 518 a. (8 per cent), vegetables on 392 a. (6 per cent), and the rest was fallow. There were 415 dairy cows, 196 other cattle, 882 sheep, and 959 pigs. Although farm-land contracted (fn. 98) with the spread of building, the percentage of it covered by grass and the proportionate number of animals remained much the same until well into the 20th century. In 1957 only 42 per cent of farm-land was under grass, by which time only pigs and fowls, which required little acreage, were reared in any number. Dairy cattle remained important, especially in Southgate, and dairy farms were a feature of Bush Hill Park and Winchmore Hill until the 1920s and 1930s. (fn. 99) In 1897 and 1917 there were roughly as many horses, 463 and 383, as there were cattle. Sheep dwindled to 188 by 1897, increased to 317 by 1917, and had disappeared by 1957.

Cereal crops continued to decline, covering only 261 a. (6 per cent of the farmland) by 1897. Fodder crops and vegetables became correspondingly more important, covering 518 a. (12 per cent) and 847 a. (20 per cent) respectively in 1897.

The acreage under vegetables was nonetheless important because it represented market-gardening and nurseries. About 1898 an acre of nursery land was let at £10 a year compared with £3 for farmland. (fn. 1) According to a local tradition Edmonton had supplied London with vegetables during the Great Plague and in consequence had been given free standing in Covent Garden Market. (fn. 2) Fruit and vegetables were grown in the mid 18th century, although mainly in the gardens and conservatories of the wealthy in Southgate. A wide variety, including melons, was grown at Minchenden in 1740, (fn. 3) there was a melon ground at Bury Farm House in 1786, (fn. 4) and Culland's Grove had a 'grapery' at the end of the 18th century (fn. 5) and 24 orange and lemon trees in 1832. (fn. 6) Tobacco and sulphur were purchased in 1792 at Minchenden for the 'hot walls', probably the forerunners of the hot houses mentioned in 1811. (fn. 7) In 1816 there were hot houses at Arnos Grove and Culland's Grove and a conservatory at Southgate Grove. (fn. 8) Potatoes and turnips were replacing fallowing in the rotation of crops and c. 1841 potatoes and vegetables were a feature of Edmonton. (fn. 9)

Market-gardening and particularly nurseries under glass began when head gardeners from the big houses exploited the London market. The soil, especially the brickearth, was good and the Lea provided easy transport for manure and for the coal to heat the glass houses. (fn. 10) As the traditional marketgardening areas of East London were built up, growers moved northward along the Lea valley, (fn. 11) until by c. 1800 nurseries were a feature of Tottenham. (fn. 12) In 1851 there were at least five nurseries in Edmonton, mostly in the southern part. Market-gardening was carried on at Cuckoo Hall farm in north-east Edmonton, where 23 persons were employed, at Marsh Side in eastern Edmonton and at Winchmore Hill. (fn. 13)

Seven of the horticultural firms of 1851 still existed in 1878. Cuckoo Hall farm had been taken over by Enfield as a sewage farm in 1877 (fn. 14) and some of the nurseries in old Edmonton moved to the north and west. A new feature was the concentration of florists in Dyson's Road. (fn. 15) Most nurserymen specialized in cheap plants, tomatoes, and cucumbers for the new working-class suburbs. In 1894 Edmonton was among the 10 leading horticultural parishes in Middlesex, (fn. 16) there were 100 a. under glass in 1898 compared with 10 a. in 1870, (fn. 17) and the numbers of florists, nurserymen, and market-gardeners reached 66 in 1890 and 73 in 1908. (fn. 18) Long established firms included those of the Adams and Jifkins families from before 1851 until 1937, the Cuthberts of Southgate High Street from 1851 until 1926, the Hayes family from 1851 until 1908, and the Hills and Kings from 1890 until 1937. (fn. 19) The most important was that of Henry May, who arrived as a florist in 1870 and who by 1898 owned three nurseries employing 200 people. May grew a great variety of forced plants for Covent Garden, provincial markets, and export. (fn. 20) Still in Edmonton in 1908, he had left by 1926. (fn. 21)

As horticulture reached its height, it was menaced by encroaching building and by fogs. (fn. 22) The numbers of those employed dropped to 38 by 1926 (fn. 23) and 25 by 1947, (fn. 24) as both nurseries and farms gave way to housing. The last farms were those in the north-west and after Oak Hill College farm, where dairy cattle and chickens had been kept, closed in 1973 (fn. 25) only stables on the site of Eastpole farm were left.

Common Fields and Pasture.

In reply to the parliamentary enquiry of 1650 the jurors of Edmonton listed 17 common fields; (fn. 26) 23 were recorded in the late 16th century (fn. 27) and 14 in 1801. (fn. 28) It has therefore generally been concluded (fn. 29) that Edmonton never had a classic two- or three-field system but was characterized by irregular fields. This view, based upon late evidence, takes no account of early modifications to Edmonton's economy, particularly by London merchants.

The largest common fields were also among the earliest (fn. 30) and imply a two- or three-field system. West of Fore Street lay Langhedge (c. 1166 x 1189), (fn. 31) which had 149 a. in 1804, (fn. 32) and the Hyde or Hyde field (c. 1166 x 1189), (fn. 33) a large field of 290 a. in 1750 (fn. 34) and 272 a. in 1804. Its southern boundary was a stream, probably Bridgewater, (fn. 35) which divided it from Oak field (the 13th-century Hok field), (fn. 36) which had 79 a. in 1804. Oak field may be identifiable with Legha (1222 x 1250), (fn. 37) a field last mentioned in 1328. (fn. 38) The Hyde and Langhedge and probably Oak field seem to have formed a twoor three-field system for the community in Upper Edmonton, along Fore Street and Silver Street.

Another system in the north was used mainly and perhaps at first exclusively by the manorial demesne. It consisted of Bury field (1154 x 1166), (fn. 39) 112 a. in 1804, and Hounds or Ounce field (1478), (fn. 40) 236 a. in 1478 (fn. 41) and 179 a. in 1804. Pury or Pery field (1252 x 1257), (fn. 42) where the Sayesbury demesne had 210 a. in 1478, (fn. 43) was another name for Bury field. (fn. 44) A third large field which probably formed part of this system lay south of Bury Street. It was later divided into three: (fn. 45) Storksnest field (c. 1260), (fn. 46) 23 a. in 1804, Church field (1280), (fn. 47) 50 a. in 1804, and Ashcroft (1478), which contained 29 a. in 1478 (fn. 48) and was included in Church field and Storksnest field in 1804. Peacocks field (1495), (fn. 49) south of Church field, may have been an assart but was probably a division of Church field.

Common arable land appears to have covered most of the area east of Fore Street and Hertford Road and west of Edmonton marsh. East field (13th century) (fn. 50) originally covered much of northeast Edmonton although by 1605 it had shrunk to a close of 23 a., East or Brick field between Enfield and Sayes marsh. (fn. 51) There was also a West field (13th century) (fn. 52) but it was pasture by 1329 (fn. 53) and its position is unknown. North and South fields (early 13th century) (fn. 54) seem to have lain south of East field adjoining the marsh and Amberlands. (fn. 55) These early common fields may have served the hamlet at Lower Edmonton.

Continuous assarting modified the simple two– or three-field system from an early date. Philip Godard had assarts in 1166 x 1189 (fn. 56) and a piece of land assarted next to Enfield park was mentioned c. 1222 x 1250. (fn. 57) Land had been 'newly assarted' in High field in western Edmonton in 1566. (fn. 58) All the common fields in the west, serving Winchmore Hill and Fords Green, were small and apparently assarts. Hag field (in 1227 Heg field), (fn. 59) on the edge of Enfield Chase at Winchmore Hill, had 25 a. in 1804; Pickestones or Picketstones (1592) (fn. 60) to the south had 9 a. in 1605 (fn. 61) but was completely inclosed by 1804.

A group of fields suggests the extension of cultivated land from Hyde field into the wooded land to the west. Dead field (13th century) (fn. 62) had 29 a. in 1804 which included Apslands (late 16th century), (fn. 63) called Dedesapelton in 1338. (fn. 64) Tilebarrow or Tilberyowe field, probably Tingelborh (late 12th century) (fn. 65) and Tithelberch (1252–7), (fn. 66) contained at least 10 a. in 1605. (fn. 67) Pond field (1321) (fn. 68) had at least 7½ a. in 1605. (fn. 69)

There were other fields east of Green Lanes, between Fords and Palmers greens: Holly or Hollis field (1605), (fn. 70) with at least 6 a. in 1605, (fn. 71) High field (1566), (fn. 72) 23 a. in 1804, and Scots field (1576), (fn. 73) 22 a. in 1804. Party or Partens field (1597) (fn. 74) at Winchmore Hill may have been another assart. Assarted fields farther south included Crabtree field (1605) (fn. 75) near Broomfield House and probably many at Bowes.

Broom field by Bury Street was listed in 1650 (fn. 76) as a common field. While it may have originated as an assart or as an inclosure from Bury field, when first mentioned in 1523 it was as Broom closes (64 a.), wholly inclosed demesne land, (fn. 77) and it did not figure in the controversy over common-field rights in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.

There was probably assarting in the east, where it is difficult to distinguish between assarts and the divisions of an older common field. Nokholt or Nuccolds (13th cent.) (fn. 78) and Strode (1154 x 1166) (fn. 79) or Shrove field (c. 1515 x 1530) (fn. 80) alias Cuckoo Hall field (1605) (fn. 81) in the north are examples. Many fields were named after landowners of the 13th and 14th centuries, who probably accumulated strips by purchase and exchange (fn. 82) and then took their blocks into severalty, obliterating all the original common fields by the late 16th century. (fn. 83) The process probably started in the early 13th century when Geoffrey de Querenden (fn. 84) made grants in North field, South field, and Querenden Colwell to Ralph Bergh (Berewe or Burgh). (fn. 85) Bergh's rearrangements may have given rise to Barrow field (1222 x 1263 Bergh field), (fn. 86) which contained 22 a. in 1804. The 13th-century le Sune family created Sounes field, (fn. 87) and John le Venour's Home field (1347) (fn. 88) had by c. 1493 become Venaris field. (fn. 89) Pentridges in 1483 was a farm and close (fn. 90) but was recorded as a common field in the late 16th century. (fn. 91) It was probably Causiware or Castleware field (1650), (fn. 92) 53 a. in 1804, and perhaps named after the Castle family of the 13th and 14th centuries. (fn. 93) Similarly Mays field, although not recorded before 1773, (fn. 94) may have taken its name from the 13thcentury May family; (fn. 95) it contained 50 a. in 1804. Other names were derived from the Dephams, Gisorses, and Claverings, who were all active in the 14th century. (fn. 96)

Similar activity farther south, probably east of Montagu Road, created the early-14th-century John a Marsh field, which, with the adjoining Down field, covered about 50 a. in 1605. (fn. 97) In 1204 (fn. 98) there were Dores, Chanterele, Palmers, Wulves, and Wenmares fields, and Great Rudings, none of them identifiable but all probably assarts. Two more, Stony field and the 'great field from William son of Fubert's house to the highway', which became Fuberts field (early 13th century), (fn. 99) lay between Fore Street and Montagu Road. They were conveyed in 1319 by the sons of John Marsh to William Causton. (fn. 1) Other probable assarts near by were Squattokes field (1332) (fn. 2) and Rush field (1154 x 1166) (fn. 3) and Pratts or Spratts field alias Hungerdown (c. 1493), (fn. 4) whose name suggests its origin in poor, presumably marshy land. (fn. 5) It was during the 14th century, with the creation of Dephams, Plesingtons, Caustons, and Claverings, that eastern Edmonton was transformed.

Many fields were probably never fully common in the sense that several owners held strips in them. Common of pasture, the unstinted right to graze animals on the stubble after harvest, was claimed in many fields, which may have originated as assarts always held in severalty by one individual. Inclosure of both types of fields, (fn. 6) however, provoked opposition, from those dispossessed of arable or of herbage. Between 1413 and 1417 about 120 armed people broke down the 'pastures, closes, and severalties' on Willoughby manor to turn them into common. (fn. 7) The countess of Hereford (d. 1419) intervened against Henry Somer, who had inclosed Polehouse croft out of Hyde field, and the inclosure of John a Marsh fields by Lord Cromwell, lord of Dephams, led to a meeting in 1438 of the owners and lessees of all the important estates, who forced him to restore common rights. A second attempt to inclose John a Marsh field was made in 1475 by Richard Charlton, then lord of Dephams. Like all the fields in north and east Edmonton, John a Marsh field was intercommonable with Enfield. Tenants from Enfield led the opposition and after obtaining the advice of royal and duchy officials, between 200 and 300 commoners from Enfield, Edmonton, Hadley, and South Mimms broke up the hedges and ditches. Sir Richard later inclosed the field again and in 1486 the combined estates of Edmonton manor, Dephams, Plesingtons, Caustons, and Claverings passed to Sir Thomas Bourchier, who appointed as bailiff Nicholas Bone (d. 1523), the chief figure in the early inclosure movement. (fn. 8) Between 1486 and 1515 200 a. were inclosed by Bone and 100 a. by others, including St. Paul's, Holy Trinity, Haliwell, and Sir John Risley, lord of Tottenham. In Church field, Bone inclosed about 30 a. from the eastern and southern parts c. 1493 (fn. 9) and 15 a. from the north c. 1495 (fn. 10) and Robert Manser of Pymmes and James Bake created closes. Bone also inclosed 4 a. from Barrow field and leased other land on condition that the lessee kept the fields several and hedged them. Thus John a Marsh field and Downfield (30 a.), 24 a. in Hounds field, and 47 a. in East field were inclosed. Between 1515 and 1530 Bone and his successor John Grimston inclosed another 100 a., mainly in the north and including Strode, Nokholt, Venaris, Dephams, Gisors, Pond, and part of Pury fields. By 1517 other inclosures included 54 a. by John Leake, of which 14 a. was in Langhedge, the whole of Pratt field, and Bows field. (fn. 11)

Since Bone intimidated the inhabitants of Edmonton, it was the Enfield tenants who appealed to Sir Reynold Bray, Chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, in 1493 and won a case in the duchy court after 1523, when Grimston had impounded Enfield animals grazing in Pury field. The rights of Edmonton tenants to common of pasture in Enfield fields were upheld by the same decision but the people of Enfield were probably more dependent on cattle or had less pasture of their own and were therefore resented in Edmonton. The process was not halted but most of the inclosures of Bone and his associates remained in severalty, many were converted to pasture, and the cattle of both Enfield and Edmonton inhabitants were successfully excluded from pasture on the stubble. On the fields which remained fully common, pasture rights were restricted in 1699 to householders or those paying the poor rate in Edmonton. (fn. 12)

Possibly because the manor passed to the Crown in the 1530s, there was little further inclosure. Party field was apparently inclosed by 1597 (fn. 13) and Tilebarrow, Holly field, Pickestones, and Crabtree field before 1804. In 1804 1,097 a. of open fields were inclosed, mostly west of Fore Street and Hertford Road. The Hyde (280 a.), Hounds field (179 a.), Langhedge (153 a.), and Bury field (112 a.) were the largest. (fn. 14)

The marshes on the alluvium by the Lea consisted of about 400 a. (fn. 15) which, like the common fields, were divided into many small strips and open for common pasture from Lammas to Lady Day. (fn. 16) The neighbouring parishes in Middlesex and Essex had a similar system and in the Middle Ages they shared rights of common in the marshes as they did in some of the common fields. Sir Adam Francis inclosed North or Sayes marsh at the beginning of the 15th century, denying common pasture rights to the inhabitants of Enfield. Although the countess of Hereford supported the Enfield tenants, they were still trying, presumably unsuccessfully, to regain their rights against the opposition of the inhabitants of Edmonton in 1561–2. (fn. 17) Thereafter Edmonton marshes were common only to parishioners. There was no stint but all animals had to be marked with the parish brand. (fn. 18) Numerous regulations about the opening and closing of the marshes, driving animals or carts, cutting grass, clearing ditches, or keeping mangy animals were enforced by haywards, chosen from eight heriot-paying holdings called hemstalls or haywards. (fn. 19)

The inhabitants of Edmonton, as of neighbouring parishes, had unstinted rights of common in Enfield Chase. (fn. 20) In 1272 the lord of Edmonton had timber and herbage rights in Enfield park worth £1 a year (fn. 21) but William de Say surrendered them in 1284 (fn. 22) in return for 20 cartloads of brushwood a year from the foreign park of Enfield, presumably the Chase. (fn. 23) During the 16th and 17th centuries Edmonton joined its neighbours in defending common rights against officials of the Chase. (fn. 24) The struggle was largely between the humbler tenants and wealthy landowners who wanted pasture for their large flocks and herds uncontaminated by the inferior beasts of the poor. Under pressure from the larger landowners, an Act was passed in 1777 to inclose the Chase and Edmonton was allotted 1,231 a. to the north-west of Southgate, which was administered by salaried surveyors responsible to the vestry. Their main task was to cut down the remaining trees and from 1782 until 1785 the parish obtained an average of £1,865 a year, chiefly from the sale of wood. (fn. 25) A stint was introduced whereby each householder of less than £10 a year could pasture one horned neat beast, while two horned beasts or one horse were allowed for every subsequent £10. The Chase allotment was open for pasture from 12 May until Candlemas. (fn. 26) In 1800, however, it was included with Edmonton marsh and common fields in the Edmonton Inclosure Act. (fn. 27)

Edmonton manor court appointed a driver of cattle, a hayward, a parker and, after 1733, a poundkeeper. (fn. 28) Repair of the common pound was the responsibility of the lord. (fn. 29) Courts of Bowes and Polehouse appointed a hayward from 1674 to 1693, a common driver in 1694, and a pound-keeper in 1740. (fn. 30) In 1973 a pound survived at the junction of Fox Lane and the Bourne.

Mills.

A mill rendered 10s. in 1086. (fn. 31) In the late 12th century a mill was held by William son of Fubert. In 1204 it was granted by Roger FitzAlan to John Bucointe, (fn. 32) who leased it to Gundred de Warenne before 1224, (fn. 33) and in 1275 it formed part of the Ford fee confirmed by Laurence de la Ford to Clerkenwell priory. (fn. 34) It may be identifiable with Scerewesmill, which in 1256 was near the Medesenge or Pymme's brook (fn. 35) and with the water-mill and mill-house in Nuns field which was leased by Nicholas Roldsby to William Calton, tanner of Edmonton, in 1577. (fn. 36)

Sadler's mill, named after its late-16th-century tenant Roger Sadler, was a copyhold water-mill south of Bury Street held by Lord Burghley in 1591. (fn. 37) It was sold to Edward Nowell in 1613 (fn. 38) and survived as a place-name long after the mill had fallen into disuse. (fn. 39)

In 1605 a second water-mill, possibly the medieval one, belonged to Jasper Leake's freehold estate of Weir Hall. It was set among ponds and osiers near the mansion (fn. 40) and remained part of Weir Hall until the early 19th century (fn. 41) but had disappeared by 1851. (fn. 42)

A windmill belonged to Edmonton manor in 1272 (fn. 43) and 1295 (fn. 44) and in 1359 was worth nothing as it lacked a grinding stone. (fn. 45) A windmill erected on the Weir Hall estate between 1605 and 1627 (fn. 46) stood in 1801 near the water-mill. (fn. 47) A new windmill was erected north of Silver Street, on the site of the later Windmill Road, before 1819 (fn. 48) and was sometimes called Parfrey's mill after the miller in 1851. (fn. 49) It was a wooden post-mill with a round house used for grinding corn, to which a brick tower was later added for steam power. The mill was auctioned with the rest of the Huxley estate in 1887 (fn. 50) and was derelict in the early 20th century; the last remnants were demolished in 1965. (fn. 51)

Markets and fairs.

About 1680, in response to a request by the local inhabitants, the high constable of Edmonton hundred proclaimed the first Edmonton statute fair on 14 September at the gateway of the George and Vulture near the corner of Marsh Lane. The fair was held for three days each year, at various public houses until c. 1730 and thereafter at the Bell. (fn. 52) By 1805 there were three sites: the Statute field (commemorated in Fairfield Road), the Bell, and the Angel, where a pie-powder court was held. It was originally a fair for the hiring of servants and was stated in 1813 to be the only one near London (fn. 53) but by 1819 it was 'only a holiday fair'. (fn. 54) Its heyday was in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, when it attracted crowds from London, many of whom were already excited after St. Bartholomew's fair, which immediately preceded it. Hackney carriages brought people from Shoreditch and in 1788, when John Nixon depicted the fair, (fn. 55) there were 25,000 people and 150 hackney coaches. (fn. 56) By 1816 it drew 30,000 people 'chiefly of the lower ranks', (fn. 57) causing offence to the middle class, (fn. 58) and it was suppressed in 1823. (fn. 59)

Two Beggar's Bush fairs, to be held on Ascension Day and the feast of St. Giles, were founded at Southgate in 1614, when the site formed part of Enfield Chase. (fn. 60) They were very thinly attended in 1816 (fn. 61) but continued to be held until 1912 in a field near the Crown off Chase Side. (fn. 62) An open market was established at four sites in Southgate in 1919. (fn. 63)

Trade and Industry.

Although agriculture long remained important, Edmonton was never wholly dependent upon it. Of a total population in 1801 of 5,093, 557 people were employed in trade, manufacture, and handicraft, compared with 412 in agriculture. In 1811, however, about 37 per cent of the population were in the former category, while 39 per cent depended on agriculture. South Street ward was the most rural with 46 per cent dependent on agriculture and Church Street and Fore Street wards were the most urban, with 50 per cent and 46 per cent respectively dependent upon trade and industry. (fn. 64) In 1851, of 9,708 persons, 642 worked in agriculture, 416 in trade and commerce, and 672 in craft and industry. As many as 691 were household servants. (fn. 65)

Brickearth and timber, together with Edmonton's proximity to London and a navigable waterway gave rise to early industry. The Romans had a brick- and tile-making works in Church fields. (fn. 66) Houses were built of brick, probably made locally, by the 16th century (fn. 67) and Tile Kiln Lane, recorded in 1597, (fn. 68) probably preserves the memory of an early works. A bricklayer was mentioned in 1613 (fn. 69) and a brickmaker in 1704. (fn. 70) The churchwarden who encased the church in brick in 1772 was a bricklayer (fn. 71) and in 1851 there were two brick-makers, 46 bricklayers, and 5 builders. (fn. 72) In the late 19th century there were brick-fields at Bull Lane, Hedge Lane, Bury Street, Hertford Road, and Bush Hill Park. The Acton Brick Co. and Plowman's Brick Co. had works in Bridport Road and Houndsfield Road, Samuel South was in Bury Street and Snells Park, and W. D. Cornish, the most important brickmaking firm, had its main works at Bush Hill Park. As the price of land rose the industry declined until Cornish, the last firm, closed in 1936. (fn. 73) Gravel deposits were worked at the end of the 19th century in Hedge Lane, Church fields, Montagu Road, and Pickett's Lock. The last were still exploited in 1951. (fn. 74)

Woodland, concentrated in the west of the parish, supported hewers, cutters, peelers, sawyers, broommakers, (fn. 75) colliers, and tanners, (fn. 76) probably from the Middle Ages. The first recorded collier died in 1547 but the heyday of charcoal-burning was the late 16th and early 17th centuries, when Lord Burghley and his son bought up and exploited large stretches of woodland, particularly in Southgate where about 40 a. of woodland every year were set aside for charcoal. At Michaelmas the hewers felled it and took it to the coal hearths, (fn. 77) where they hewed it and the colliers 'coaled' it. Edmonton was probably the nearest source to London, whither the fragile charcoal was sent in sacks. (fn. 78) Most colliers were small farmers or labourers for whom charcoalburning was a seasonal and subsidiary occupation. After the Act of 1777 the Edmonton portion of Enfield Chase replaced the Southgate coppices for a while as a source of timber and in 1780 the vestry permitted two hearths to be erected there for charcoal-burning. (fn. 79)

William the tanner lived in Edmonton in the 13th century. (fn. 80) Tanning, a full-time occupation, flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries, when the Southgate woods provided the necessary bark. The tanners were interrelated by marriage, and sons tended to follow fathers. Tanners End near Silver Street may commemorate John Walker (d. 1590), one of the most prosperous of them. Local tanners may have had some organization, since in 1597 carriers were to take bark to 'the tanners' house' (fn. 81) and Jasper Leake's property in 1605 included 'the tanners' court'. (fn. 82) Twenty-two Edmonton tanners were recorded between c. 1562 and 1689, (fn. 83) by the end of which period the industry was in decline, probably because of the reduction in woodland. There was a tannery in Bury Street from the 17th century until 1802 (fn. 84) but it had been replaced by 6 houses by 1861. (fn. 85) There was another tannery in Fore Street in 1787. (fn. 86) Tanning and charcoalburning had died out by 1851, although there were still 12 sawyers, 3 leather-sellers, 19 cordwainers, and 49 shoemakers. (fn. 87)

Almost all Edmonton's other industries owe their existence to the London market and to the ease of transport of raw materials and finished goods. As a large village Edmonton in the early 17th century supported several brewers, tailors, and butchers, and, among more specialized craftsmen, a picturemaker and a clock-maker. (fn. 88) A weaver was mentioned in 1609 (fn. 89) and a silk-weaver in 1610. (fn. 90) There was a weaver in 1772 (fn. 91) and weaving probably long flourished as a cottage industry. There were 4 handloom weavers in 1851. (fn. 92) Silk-weaving, probably of stockings, (fn. 93) was carried on in mills or factories, whither workhouse children were sent in 1834. (fn. 94) William Kelsey lived and probably had his silk factory at Winchmore Hill in 1851, when at least six other people were involved in silk manufacture. (fn. 95)

The earliest factory was Aldersey's glass mill near the junction of Bury Street and Hertford Road in 1773. There was a hard soap factory at Edmonton in 1789. (fn. 96) A soap-boiler at Southgate in 1703 (fn. 97) probably worked on his own. There was an unidentified factory on the eastern side of Fore Street near its junction with Angel Road in 1804. (fn. 98)

Wood and coal were cheaply transported by barge along the Lea. There was a wharf and warehouse on the Lea near Angel Road in 1804, (fn. 99) Corkers, the timber merchants, were established by 1839, (fn. 1) and there were 11 coal merchants and 10 warehousemen in 1851. (fn. 2) L. Hall (Edmonton) Ltd., timber importers and saw-millers, opened at Dorford Wharf near Angel Road in 1928 and employed some 100 people in 1973. (fn. 3)

Imported timber helped to establish both coachbuilding and furniture-making. Coach-building was among the features of Edmonton c. 1841 (fn. 4) and involved 44 people in its various operations in 1851. (fn. 5) Eleazer Booker, whose firm existed at least from c. 1840 to 1878, (fn. 6) employed 41 men in Upper Fore Street in 1851. (fn. 7) There were coach-builders in Southgate in 1868, (fn. 8) in Southgate High Street in 1878 (fn. 9) and 1908, (fn. 10) in Upper Fore Street, possibly Booker's successor, by 1893, and at New Southgate in 1908 and 1926. (fn. 11) There were 10 cabinet-makers in 1851, including one at Bury Hall who was also a plateglass-maker with 50 men. (fn. 12) A firm at Winchmore Hill in 1878 was manufacturing telescopic ladders by 1893. (fn. 13) In 1890 there were three cabinet-makers in Edmonton and one in Southgate High Street. (fn. 14) Some of the 20th-century furniture firms, like B. & I. Nathan, began as cabinet-makers. (fn. 15)

Other early factories included the gasworks of Tottenham and District Gas Co., opened in 1847 next to the railway line near the Tottenham border, (fn. 16) a horse-hair factory in Hertford Road in the 1840s (fn. 17) and an 'Oriental printer' in Bury Street who employed 70 people in 1851. (fn. 18) Fore Street, a densely populated area, became a centre of small-scale industry. There was a hair roller manufacturer in Lower Fore Street in 1866 (fn. 19) and there were glass and oil factories in Upper Fore Street in 1890 and five firms, mostly cycle manufacturers, in 1908. (fn. 20) In 1970 there were only four firms in Fore Street (fn. 21) after the Snells Park area had been developed for housing and the small factories moved to Claverings industrial estate. (fn. 22)

Industry also spread around Lower Edmonton, especially northward along the railway line. There were mills, possibly saw-mills, at the Green in 1866 (fn. 23) but growth took place mostly during the 1920s and 1930s, with seven firms in 1926. (fn. 24) There was a slipper factory in a new road, Chichester Road, by 1937 (fn. 25) and in 1933 another slipper factory was erected in Rosebery Road, previously reserved for housing. (fn. 26) By 1970, however, there were only eight firms in the area. (fn. 27) Farther south factories were built in the 1920s and 1930s in Brettenham Road, east of Fore Street. There were three in 1926, eight in 1937, and eleven in 1970. (fn. 28)

Eley Bros. had a cartridge factory at Tile Kiln Lane near Weir Hall by 1865 (fn. 29) and moved to Angel Road in 1903. The old works were sold in 1919 to a motor firm but apparently had disappeared by 1926. (fn. 30) A little farther east in Silver Street the former workhouse of the Strand union was occupied in 1926 by the Klinger Manufacturing Co., a stocking-making firm from Tottenham, (fn. 31) which employed 1,850 people in 1941 (fn. 32) and sold its site in 1967 to the G.L.C. (fn. 33)

At Southgate, in addition to a coach-builder, there was one factory belonging to Hadfield Bros., varnish manufacturers, in 1878. (fn. 34) By c. 1889 the factory, in Chase Side, was occupied by the French Cleaning and Dyeing Co. There was a photographic plate factory in Chase Road by c. 1883 (fn. 35) and Watkin and Son, manufacturers of 'the Chase bicycle', were in existence by 1895. (fn. 36) In 1970 there were twelve firms in Chase Road, including Newby Bros., old-established builders who employed about 100 men. (fn. 37)

There was little industry in New Southgate, apart from Colney Hatch gas-works in the extreme south-west. By 1890 Southgate Engineering Co. was in South Road, where there was a piano manufacturer's by 1908. (fn. 38) Knight and Co., engineers, were in Springfield Road from 1917 before moving to Chase Road in 1931 (fn. 39) and there was one factory in Station Road by 1926. (fn. 40) There were a few factories in High Road in 1970, when eight were concentrated in Station Road. (fn. 41)

Enamel sign-making works were built in Hedge Lane near the home of the founder James Bruton c. 1883 and survived in 1937. (fn. 42) Most factories in Palmers Green, however, were built along the North Circular Road and Green Lanes during the 1920s and 1930s. One of the largest was that of the Metal Box Co., which in 1929 acquired a perfume factory established in 1914 in Blind Lane (Chequers Way). Metal Box started rebuilding in 1934, when Blind Lane disappeared in the North Circular, and had some 900 employees there in 1973. (fn. 43) Green Lanes had one factory in 1908 and 13 in 1970. (fn. 44) Firms included Die Casting Machine Tools, which opened in 1940 and employed about 100 people in 1973. (fn. 45) There has been very little industry in other parts of Edmonton, at Winchmore Hill, Bowes Park, (fn. 46) and Bush Hill Park.

Most industry is in the east of Edmonton, along Angel and Montagu roads. In Angel Road, conveniently situated between the Lea and the G.E.R., factories were built from the mid 19th century. The largest was that of Messrs. Ridley, Whitley and Co., established by 1865 at Angel Road works between the river and the New Cut. (fn. 47) The factory, which manufactured floor-cloths, employed 900 workers in its heyday but had only 100 by 1914, shortly before its closure. (fn. 48) In 1897 the Gothic works were erected south of Angel Road, east of the railway line but near the gasworks, by T. Glover & Co., who made gas meters, and by R. & A. Main, makers of gas stoves. (fn. 49) The two firms later amalgamated and were taken over in 1965 by Thorn Electrical Industries. A subsidiary company, Main Enamel Manufacturing Co., was formed in 1946 and built a new factory on part of the Gothic works site in 1951. (fn. 50)

In 1901 Aerators Ltd., which was formed in Crayford (Kent) to make sparklet syphons in 1897, purchased a 3-acre site south of Angel Road, where a new factory was built. The firm, which changed its name to Sparklets, began to manufacture munitions during the First World War and extended its premises. After the war it contracted again and sold most of its site to the British Oxygen Co. Sparklets moved to Tottenham c. 1953 and British Oxygen gradually extended its premises to 23 a., where some 1,300 people were employed in 1973. (fn. 51)

When Eley Bros. (see above) moved from Tile Kiln Lane in 1903, they built extensive works north of Angel Road between the railway and Salmon's brook. In 1921 the firm moved to Waltham Cross (Herts.) and the site was divided among several firms of which the largest were the Great Eastern Cabinet Co., with 230 workers in 1941, (fn. 52) and the Ever Ready Co. (Great Britain), which moved there from London in 1935 and employed 450–500 people in 1973. (fn. 53)

After Angel Road became part of the North Circular Road (1924–7), (fn. 54) factories multiplied on either side. There were eight firms in 1926, 38 in 1937, and 80 in 1970, including 26 at Eley's estate to the north and 36 at the Lea Valley trading estate to the south. (fn. 55) Most factories were small and changed hands frequently. Only 37 per cent of the firms of 1937 were still there in 1970. Among the largest in 1941 were Rego Clothiers, which moved from east London in 1928 and employed 1,700 people, B. & I. Nathan, furniture manufacturers who moved from Hackney in 1930 and employed 300 people, and Atlas Lamp Works, which opened in 1931 and employed 200 people. In 1973 Nathan's had some 250 employees (fn. 56) but the largest firms were the British Oxygen Co. with about 1,300 (fn. 57) and M. K. Electric Ltd. with about 3,000. M. K. Electric had been founded in 1919 as the Heavy Current Electric Accessories Co. in rented premises off Fore Street and in 1923 had changed its name and acquired its first factory in Wakefield Street. It opened other factories south of Angel Road and north of the gas-works in 1937 and 1969 and on the Eley estate in 1958, 1965, and 1974. By 1974 M. K. Electric had 12 factories and offices in Edmonton. (fn. 58)

The low price of land in the former marsh was instrumental in attracting industry to Angel Road. A second industrial area developed at Bridport Road, because the price of land depreciated after the top layer of soil had been removed during brickmaking. (fn. 59) Eight factories were built in 1931–2 (fn. 60) in the area between Bridport Road and the Tottenham border, bounded on the west by Bull Lane and on the east by the railway. There were 13 factories by 1937, (fn. 61) 16 by 1941, (fn. 62) and 23 by 1970. (fn. 63) The Dunlop Rubber Co. and the Enfield Clock Co. (London), which both started in 1932, had 1,500 and 300 employees respectively by 1941. Most firms, which included several furniture and clothing manufacturers, employed fewer than 100 people, (fn. 64) although in 1973 Fanfold Ltd., makers of business forms, who had moved from Cricklewood in 1957, employed about 320 (fn. 65) and A. H. Meltzer, shoe manufacturers who had moved from east London in 1932, employed about 150. (fn. 66)

The most recent industrial concentrations, the Montagu South and Claverings industrial estates, are situated east of Montagu Road and west of the railway, adjoining the factories around Angel Road. There were two varnish manufacturers, James Price and Co. and Rolls and Co., at Marsh Side (later the northern part of Montagu Road) in 1890. (fn. 67) Rolls and Co. still existed on the Claverings estate in 1973. (fn. 68) The Pegamoid works, where leather cloths were made, had been erected by 1913 east of Montagu Road and the railway. (fn. 69) By 1941 there were about five factories (fn. 70) in the area but after the war the council planned industrial estates at either end of Montagu Road to house the many firms which would be displaced by rebuilding elsewhere. The 6½-acre site of Claverings farm was acquired in 1949 for small-scale industry, including clothing, furniture-making, and precision engineering. Montagu South, 18 a., was acquired in 1953 for depots, sand and ballast storage and the production of concrete. (fn. 71) By 1970 there were 25 firms in Montagu South industrial estate and 26 in Claverings industrial estate. (fn. 72) Charlton Road, which joined Montagu Road north of Claverings, contained Qualcast (Fleetway), which had moved from Tottenham in 1937 and employed about 290 people in 1973, (fn. 73) and Edward Doherty & Sons, which had moved from Tottenham in 1938 and employed about 250 in 1973. (fn. 74)

Footnotes