Low Grounds Farm [Pound Farm] Historic Occupiers

 Updated June 2022

Historic list of occupiers. These are not necessarily owners of course.

Description: Near Temple Lock. Harleyford Lane. On the site of Neolithic and Bronze Age activity. Very close to the Thames, and on the historic flood plain. Also called Pound Farm in some early 1800s records (because of its proximity to the pound lock at Temple)

1771- Richard Allaway??

1776- Land at Low Grounds leased at the time of his death 1776 by Dr William Battie of Court Garden House Marlow and London (where he kept a madhouse). Whether he had the whole farm or not I can't yet say. A biography of Dr Battie is available here

1806- Land at Low Ground let to Richard Webb but again it is not clear if this is the whole farm. Owned by surgeon William Cleobury of Marlow.

1815- Thomas Taylor. Died at the farm that year aged 75. Memorial to him was erected inside Marlow church. Wife Francis had predeceased him and he married her sister Sarah Palmer. Marrying your dead wife's sister was illegal at the time as he obviously knew from the contents and wording of his will. Though elderly himself, Sarah must have been much younger as Thomas thought it possible that he and she could still have children together. In his will he left his farm stock and implements and other property to trustees including Sarah for the benefit of any children born to them as a couple. In 1830 farm employee Thomas Cull is killed at the farm. He is out shooting rooks with his master when one of the birds is killed up a tree and gets lodged there. Thomas climbs up to collect the carcass but slips and falls. He is killed instantly. 

1833-35. James Franklyn / Franklin. In 1834 he started selling off his farm stock as he was moving into the Crown Inn, Market Square Marlow as the new publican. His lease was going to be up in 1835 anyway. Lists of sale items included a lot of brewing utensils so he was obviously already interested in that area. Otherwise his was a mixed farm with a dairy herd, beef cows, sheep and crops of hay, wheat and oats. For more on James and the Crown generally see post here. The farm was owned by Davis Davenport Esquire at this time and was 218 acres of land.

1837-68. Mr John Curtis. Born around 1805. Wife Jane whom he married in 1841 (née Simmonds). This may have been a second marriage for him. In 1837 his shepherd was killed after falling from a tree he had climbed in order to get a good position from which to shoot "pest" rooks. In 1862 a  field on the farm used for a cricket match by Marlow Cricket Club. In 1865 cattle plague broke out on the farm, which would have been a serious worry for the Curtis family. It was one of the greatest fears of Victorian farmers. Many cows died at Low Grounds in quick succession and John felt the need to write to the South Bucks Free Press to defend himself as "much has been said" about the case. He assured the community that it wasn't dilapidated buildings on the farm or the unhealthy riverside situation of them that had caused the plague outbreak. Rather it was an infected calf brought from London. He said local vet Mr Meakes had managed to cure 2 animals and others were under similar treatment with hope of success [Reading Mercury 19th August 1865, South Bucks Free Press 15th September 1865. Via the British Library/ BNA]. At the parish church, the Rev Milman leads prayers on the appointed day to plead for divine assistance in dealing with the outbreak. He says every such affliction sent by God was a "memento of sin and a summons to repentance."

1868- John Curtis, above died there age 63.

1869-81 Jane Curtis widow of above assisted by her son John (born 1844). In 1881 she is listed as a farmer of 329 acres employing 3 men and 2 boys. That year wasn't a great one for Jane and John- there was a fire at the farm and they had peas, oats and chaff stolen from them.

1891- by this date John was also called a farmer on the census no longer just "farmer's son". His mother was around 71 or 72 so no surprise there. It looks like the day to day running of the farm was the care of John by the mid 1870s but mum obviously considered herself in charge for a long time afterwards! John also acted as a poor law Guardian for Marlow.

1901-15 (at least) John Curtis. Though Jane was still given as head of the household on the 1901 census she was no longer calling herself a farmer. She died at the farm aged around 87 in 1906.

Farm occupier listings are compiled by me from property records, ads, trade journals, censuses, wills, court cases and more.

To look for other people on the blog use the Person Index option on the top drop down menu.

Lots more farm occupier lists to come on the blog for both Great Marlow and Little Marlow. Come back later to see what we have. Use the menu here  to find other farm posts.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to use this original research content for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog and a link here. Census information though my own transcription from microfilm always remains Crown Copyright.