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Local & Community History Month: How was the Middleton Estate broken up when it was sold in 1924?
- Debbie Jordan
- 1 day ago
- 7 min read
The Middleton Estate was broken up into 102 Lots when it was sold at auction in 1924. In the auction catalogue, the particulars of every Lot were explained in detail and their locations marked over two very large maps. It informed the prospective buyer of: the structures present on the land; the purposes of the structures; rooms within the buildings; what materials the buildings were made from; what type of land it was; sources of water; who the tenant was; how much rent the tenant paid; and all the legal rights associated with each Lot. It also noted when certain structures on the various lots were the property of the tenant.
Lot 1 was Middleton Hall, which was described as a stuccoed brick country mansion with attractive grounds, a charming lake, stabling, a garage, greenhouses, three cottages, farm buildings, grassland and woodlands known as Kennel Wood, Kitchen Garden Wood and Hop Yard Wood. The principal tenant was Egbert de Hamel.
The other main, and largest, Lots were farms:
Lot 2 was Park Gate Farm, opposite the entrance drive to Middleton Hall and it was leased to Messrs. H. Simcock & Sons.
Lot 3 was Coneybury Farm, to the south of Middleton Hall, which was let to Arthur Tidy.
Lot 5 was Newhouse Farm, to the east of Middleton Hall, which contained Fishers Mill and the woodland known as the Mill Plantation. It was let to Richard Throup.
Lot 6 was Lower Farm, off Bodymoor Heath Road, which was let to Mr G. Frisby.
Lot 7 was Hunts Green Farm, at Hunts Green, which included the woodland known as Roger’s Coppice and the principal tenant was Messrs. G. H. Watts and G. E. Taylor.
Lot 8 was Cross Green Farm, on Green Lane, which was let to Henry Tidy.
Lot 9 was Church Lane Farm, on Church Lane in Middleton village, which was let to Mrs Louisa Bird.
Lot 35 was Upper House Farm, on Coppice Lane and was bordered on the north by Gallows Brook, which was let to Charles Butler and Charles Frederick Butler.
Lot 37 was Church Farm in the centre of Middleton village, which was let to William Henstock.
Lot 38 was Wood Farm, off to the south of Coppice Lane, which was let to Thomas Goff.
Lot 39 was New Park Farm, on the A446 at Littleworth End, which was let to Richard and Albert Throup.
Lot 40 was Hill Farm, which was to the west of Middleton Lane at Stoke End. It was divided by the Langley Brook and included a woodland known as Aldermore Spinney. It was let to Messrs. H. Williams & Sons.
Lot 42 was Ash End Farm, at Ash End on Middleton Lane, which was let to Hampton Cordukes Lock.
Lot 43 was Allen End Farm, at Allen End, which was let to William Spiers.
Lot 44 was Cockhill Farm, also at Allen End, which was primarily let to the representative of the late Henry Jackson.
Lot 45 was Stoke End Farm, at Stoke End, which was let to Charles William Tidy.
There were Lots containing woodland all of which were unlet:
Lot 4 was Coneybury Wood, a mixed wood comprised of Oak, Ash, Beech and Elm, next to Coneybury Farm.
Lot 34 was an area of woodland adjacent to the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal.
Lot 36 was Trickley Coppice, a mixed woodland of larch, spruce, oak and ash.
Lot 41 was New Park Wood, which consisted primarily of oak and ash trees.
Lot 89 was adjacent to Bassett’s Pole and part of Trickley Coppice.
There were areas of grazing land, grassland and arable land, sometimes containing an agricultural building as well:
Lots 18 and 19, let to Messrs. H. and Walter E. Davies, on the A4091, was grassland and arable land.
Lot 21 was grazing land adjacent to the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal let to Richard Throup.
Lot 22 was grazing land between the Canal and the river Tame let to Messrs. Simcock & Sons.
Lot 23 was grassland and woodland directly to the north of Middleton Hall and was also let to Messrs. Simcock & Sons.
Lot 32 was a grassland enclosure on Crowberry Lane that was bordered on its northern edge by the Langley Brook and was let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor.
Lot 33 was three grassland enclosures in Middleton village and was let to the executors of the late John Stephenson.
Lot 75, in Middleton village, was grassland, arable land and a pond. It was let to the executors of the late John Stephenson.
Lot 76, in Middleton village, was grassland and let to William Sheward.
Lot 77, on Vicarage Hill and was divided by the Langley Brook, was grassland enclosures let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor.
Lots 78 and 79, on Vicarage Hill, were grassland let to Reverend Robert Vere Hodge.
Lot 80 was grassland and an orchard in Middleton village let to Dick Brown.
Lots 85 and 86 was grassland off and on Coppice Lane let to Hampton Cordukes Lock.
Lots 87 and 88 were grassland on Coppice Lane let to Messrs. E. and C. Hancock.
Lots 90 and 91 were grassland between Hill Lane and Bassett’s Pole and were let to Messrs. E. and C. Hancock.
Lot 93, on the A446, was grassland and ponds bordered to the west and south by the Collets Brook and was let to Hampton Cordukes Lock.
Lot 100, at Allen End, was arable and grassland and let to the representatives of the late Henry Jackson.
There were also a significant number of small holdings, each containing at least one cottage or house and other varied features:
In Middleton village: Lot 10, let to William Hand; Lot 61, which contained 6 cottages that were let to George Ball, Leonard Dixon, Mr D. Wood, Charles Butler, John William Ball and Arthur Dixon; Lot 62, which contained 2 cottages that were let to Charles Butler and Mrs Emma Bott; Lot 63, which contained 2 cottages that were let to Messrs. Simcock & Sons and Mrs E. Moore; Lot 64, let to the representatives of John Hopkins; Lot 65, let to Henry Walpole; Lot 66, which contained 2 cottages that were let to John Garland and Charles Dixon; Lot 67, let to William Henstock; Lot 68, let to Charles Jackson; Lot 69, let to George Bird; Lot 70, let to William John Dixon; Lot 71, let to Arthur Tidy; and Lot 73, let to Charles Hopkins.
At Hunts Green: Lot 11, let to Alexander Mablon Smith; Lot 12, let to James Rollason Esq; Lot 13, let to George Salt; Lot 14, let to William Morris; Lot 24, let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor; Lot 25, let to Messrs. Simcock & Sons; Lot 26, let to William Hopkins; Lot 27, let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor; Lot 28, let to William Mansell; Lot 29, let to Hampton Cordukes Lock; and Lot 30, let to Walter E. Davies.
At the southern end of Wishaw Lane was Lot 20, let to Henry Tidy.
On the A4091 near the junction with Brick Kiln Lane: Lot 15, let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor; and Lot 16, let to Walter E. Davies.
On Bodymoor Heath Road was Lot 17, let to Mr G. Frisby.
On Green Lane, opposite Cross Green Farm, was Lot 31, let to Henry Hopkins.
At Stoke End: Lot 46, let to Henry Joseph Hopkins; Lot 47, let to Arthur Preston; Lot 48, let to Mr G. Simmons; Lot 101, let to Benjamin Davies; and Lot 102, let to Messrs. Williams & Sons.
At Allen End: Lot 49, let to the representative of the late Walter Savage; Lot 94, let to William Spiers; Lot 95, let to Samuel Arthur Bird; Lot 96, let to the representatives of the late Henry Jackson; Lot 97, let to William Spiers; Lot 98, which contained 2 cottages that were let to Messrs. Williams & Sons and Charles Tidy; and Lot 99, let to the representative of the late Thomas Deville.
At Littleworth End, on the A446: Lot 50, let to James Rollason Esq; Lot 51, let to the representatives of the late Thomas James; and Lot 92, let to Richard and Albert Throup.
On or just off Coppice Lane: Lot 52, let to Thomas Goff; Lot 54, let to William Savage; Lot 81, let to Thomas Simkins; Lot 82, let to Albert Peach; Lot 83, let to Thomas Goff; and Lot 84, let to Frederick Bailey.
At Ash End was Lot 55, let to Messrs. Watts & Taylor.
On Vicarage Hill was Lot 56, let to Edward Buxton.
Finally, there were some more unusual Lots:
Lot 53 was described as an excellent small holding on Coppice Lane. It contained numerous parts. The first part was unlet and contained over 2 acres of woodland, a nursery ground, an Estate Yard with various buildings including a paint shop, carpenter’s shop and saw pit. The second part was an arable field let to Charles Butler and Charles Frederick Butler. The third was grassland let to Hampton Cordukes Lock. The fourth was arable farmland let to Thomas Goff and the final tenant was Albert Edwin Fish who rented a brick house, some other buildings and a garden.
Lot 57 was a tradesman’s small holding opposite St John’s Church in Middleton village. The Langley Brook ran through part of this lot. The tenant was Dick Brown and it consisted of grassland, a stackyard, an orchard and a garden as well as a brick house with a shop, a carpenter’s shop, a registered slaughter house and other buildings. A lean-to poultry house and the piggeries were in the possession of the tenant.
Lot 58 was the Vicarage in Middleton village, which was let to Reverend Robert Vere Hodge. It was described as a pebble-dashed brick house that contained nine bedrooms and there were also various other buildings, attractive grounds and gardens, a tennis lawn, an orchard and some grassland.
Lot 59 was the fully licensed free house known as “The Green Man” in Middleton village, let to the executors of the late John Stephenson.
Lot 60 was Middleton village school and its playground, which was let to Warwickshire County Council.
Lot 72 was an unlet brick-built Builder’s store on Church Lane in Middleton village.
Lot 74 contained a house, blacksmith’s shop and penthouse, various other buildings and a garden. It was located on Church Lane in Middleton village and was let to William Sheward.
Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.
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