Yeovil's Virtual Museum

Catshill Ten Acres

A part of Preston Lower farm

 

Catshill has, through the ages, had various spellings including Kattshill, Cateshill, Cate's Lake and Catts Lake. In his will of 1696 John Knight, referring to a bequest to his son Simon Knight, wrote "Item I give unto him one leasehold estate containing fourteene acres of arable land be it more or less com[m]only called or knowne by the name of Kattshill lying in the Parish of Preston Balmonsey and now in the occupacon of Thomas Freke of the same parish... ".

An indenture of 1779 concerning Hayne properties refers to "Two acres arable.... lying in a common field called Westfield near Catts Lake next unto the way that leads unto Preston."

Catshill Ten Acres (Parcel 148), also known as Higher Catshill, was a field of  Preston Lower Farm. The 1848 Preston Tithe Apportionment noted that Catshill Ten Acres was owned by Robert Tucker and occupied by Joseph Roberts. The Apportionment recorded that the field was arable and measured, unlike its name, just 8a 2r 10p. (All eight fields of Lower Farm whose names suggested an acreage such as Three Acre Mead, Four Acres, etc., were actually less than their names would suggest. However this is due to the use of 'Statute' measurements in the Apportionment which were actually smaller that 'Customary' measurements.

Catshill Ten Acres was bounded on the north by 'Plot by Grove House' (Parcel 140a), on the west by Five Acres (Parcel 141) and Nine Acres (Parcel 142), on the south by Pookhay Mill (Parcel 143) and Catshill Eight Acres (Parcel 147) and on the east by the boundary brook separating the parish of Preston Plucknett from Yeovil.

By 1903 Grove Avenue had been constructed, passing through Catshill Ten Acres with West Park joining it from the east in the former field. At this time four houses had been constructed on the eastern side of Grove Avenue within the confines of the former Catshill Ten Acres while the western half of the field remained untouched apart from a single house and plot at the north of the field. By 1927 the remainder of the former field was occupied by houses and gardens of the western side of the north end of Grove Avenue - as also shown in the 1946 aerial photograph below.

Today the former Catshill Eight Acres is completely filled with the houses and gardens of the central section of Grove Avenue and the whole of Linden Road.

For details on historic land measurement (ie acres, roods and perches) click here.

 

 

The 1849 Preston Tithe Map. Catshill Ten Acres is at top right.

 

The 1849 Preston Tithe Map overlaid on a modern map (the 1849 map is slightly incorrect at bottom right).

 

The 1889 Ordnance Survey shows the extensive fields of Lower Farm labelled 'Preston Grove' stretching eastwards. The dotted line across the fields, indicating a footpath, was the line of the later road, also called Preston Grove. Catshill Ten Acres is at top right with a single tree.

 

The 1946 aerial photograph showing the approximate boundaries of the former Catshill Ten Acres in red. Preston Road runs along the top, Preston Grove along the bottom left while St Andrews Road is at left and Grove Avenue at right.