How do I find

[snowywhite]

Morning all I'm trying to find out who the last half dozen owners were of

No 2 Hitchfield Farm, Bratton, Wiltshire

Would anyone have access or know where to look for this information please, thanks

[cbcarolyn]

as far as I am aware there is no one place.

census, reg of electors (FMP and ancestry each have some), phone books - also on ancestry. Newspapers, Local archives.

trade and city directories https://specialcollections.le.ac.uk/...on/p16445coll4
Do you know when it was built?

Which dates have you done, how do you know how many owners there are?

[teasie]

As far as I can see, Hitchfield Farm is/was was exactly that - a farmhouse. Where does No. 2 come from?

It may have been recently sold, as the sale particulars include a map that says Crown Copyright 2022. The particulars also say that 'Hitchfield Farm' & 'Hitchfield Cottage' are set on the edge of the sought after village of Bratton and have been owned by one family for over 70 years! Formerly two cottages and a dairy farm that are believed to be part of the Longleat Estate, they were converted into one larger family home back in 2006"

Link to the particulars doesn't seem to be working when I post it here, but if you google 'Hitchfield Farm, Westbury Road, Bratton' the brochure is a pdf attached to Amazon AWS & should open straight up.

You can obtain a copy of the title deed from the land registry, but this normally only tells you the current owner and possibly who owned it when the land was first registered (which could actually be very recent, as freehold land title only needs to be registered when it changes hands and wasn't previously compulsory).

[Anne in Carlisle]

Is no 2 a farm cottage? If so it is likely to have been owned by the farm owner or landowner. The inhabitants of both the farmhouse and cottages are very likely to have been tenants, in which case electoral rolls would be the best bet to find who lived there over the years. There are some online but the library in the locality should have copies going back over the years.
Anne

[cbcarolyn]

in 1939 register there is 1 and 2 both surname White. Even if they were 2 cottages at the beginning I would be surprised to to them numbered back in the early days.

[teasie]

The sales brochure definitely indicates that it was two properties - the farm & the cottage - that were converted into one, and continues: they were converted into one larger family home back in 2006. However, with two staircases and two kitchens still remaining they could be easily split once again if so desired.

The photograph on the brochure indicates that the two original properties were adjoined, but with separate paths leading to their individual front doors. There's also a smaller, single-story adjoining building.

[snowywhite]

in 1939 register there is 1 and 2 both surname White. Even if they were 2 cottages at the beginning I would be surprised to to them numbered back in the early days.

This is exactly what I'm looking for cbcarolyn , are there any first name or initials with the two White Surnames. I am trying to find out whether this farm had a long history of Whites

[teasie]

It's the people from your previous post. No. 1 is William Stanley Frank White & his wife Phyllis, and in No. 2 is his father, Edward Frank White.

It looks like the farm was one of a number of properties owned by John Reeves of Bratton and auctioned off when he died. The Warminster & Westbury journal of 16 June 1894 says: "at Bratton, Hitchfield House was sold for £770, Hitchfield Farm £1050, and the cottage property also sold well"

In the 1920's there' are mentions of Nelson Stokes and then later a Mr George Emm / G H Emm, of Hitchfield Farm.

We know that the Whites are there in 1939, and in Nov 1941 there is a report of the funeral of Mrs Frederick Compton (nee Edith Louisa Freestone), including a tribute from her sister Gertie (Gertrude Olive Freestone, wife of Edward Frank White) "and all at Hitchfield Farm, Bretton".

In February 1944 the farm is up for sale (see attached) and is noted as being let to Mr E F White, but in the Western Daily Press of 12 Sep 1981 there is a death notice for Edith Julia Freestone, widow of Harry, of Hitchfield Farm, Bretton.

So it would seem that the farm remained connected to the family through the Freestones, but whether they were owners or not is another question.

Hitchfield Farm 1944.jpg

[snowywhite]

Thank you all for your time and effort, it's very much appreciated 👍👍👍👍👍