The parish of Maiden Newton contained at one time no fewer than four manors. At two thousand eight hundred and fifty nine acres [according to the tithe commutation] it was a big parish about which I am light on information. The parish then was rather like a kidney bean with it’s concave border pointing west and the town was hard up against Frome Vauchurch in the northern part of the parish. The bulk of the parish lay below to the east, south and west of the town, which was about a quarter of it’s current size.
The tithe map has a few plots named East field and Middle field and the notice about the new roads, of which there were only two, refers to the road towards Cattistock passing through the West field. This is odd terminology given the proximity of the town to the northern boundary of the parish and it’s placement on the extreme western boundary of the parish itself.
The Maiden Newton bill was introduced towards the end of 1830 [I can find no reference to the first reading but the second reading was on 25th November 1830, it was engrossed on 17th December and enacted on 4th March 1831. The first meeting was held on 19th April at the house of Mr Symes called the Kings Arm Inn with John Baverstock Knight as the sole commissioner.
17th February 1832 |
Scaling Maiden Newton |
18th February 1832 |
Went to Ransom in the Morning and Scaled a little of Maiden Newton |
22nd February 1832 |
Scaling a Little of Maiden Newton in the Morning and went to Stockwood common in the afternoon – and called on Mr Champion respg division |
24th February 1832 |
Scaling Maiden Newton |
7th – 8th March 1832 |
Scaling Maiden Newton |
9th March 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton Fair [sold my Alderney ]– to Mr Symmonds of Gorwell |
14th – 16th March 1832 |
Scaling Maiden Newton |
20th March 1832 |
Making Sketch of Maiden Newton Down for valuing |
The Mr Browne referred to was Francis John Browne, only son of George Browne, who had extensive land holdings in Dorset. It was he who donated Forston House to the county to come it’s ‘Lunatic Asylum’.
4th April 1832 |
Doing Various Jobs and putting in measures into Maiden Newton Map from Mr Brownes Map [Old Inclosures] |
10th – 11th April 1832 |
Examining claims with Map |
21st April 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton and marked off the different qualities of land on the Down preparatory to Valuation |
Only two roads were built. The first was named by Knight as The Cattistock Road. This extended from ‘Coomb’s Cottage’ in the village “and extending Northwards over the West Field in it’s present Course heading towards Cattistock and Evershot”. This is the modern C road, known even today as the Cattistock Road and it is probably this road that is referred to below.
The second road is called “The Dorchester and Yeovil Road, thirty feet wide commencing at the Boundary of Cattistock near Sydling Combe and extending Southwards over Maiden Newton Down in it’s present Course, leading from Yeovil towards Dorchester.”
This road is oddly more difficult to be certain of since the only road that fits this is that it would form a part of the road that is today the A37 and this had already been turnpiked.
23rd April 1832 |
attendg Cmmnr at Maiden Newton when Public Roads were finally settled by Mr Churchill the Magistrate |
24th – 26th April 1832 |
Valuing arable Lands |
1st May 1832 |
Putting in Values on Map and altering the same in Terrier preparatory to casting |
8th May 1832 |
Taking Levels of New Line of intended Road |
9th May 1832 |
making Section of said Road and Estimating Expenses of making the same |
10th May 1832 |
Making Sketch of Exchange between Ld Holland amd Mr Valder preparatory to putting it on the Margin of the Deed |
16th May 1832 |
Making Particulars calculations of Maiden Newton Road putting in Qualities in P Hinton East down and went to Woolcombe Rook Shooting |
19th May 1832 |
Went to Ransom in the Morning and working upon Maiden Newton Claims in afternoon |
22nd May |
Went to Maiden Newton and let part of New Road to be excavated at 4 ½ d per yard – and packing up my Troop articles ½ day £1 1s 0d |
1st June 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton in the morning respecting Road and doing Various Jobs in the afternoon charge 1 guinea |
5th June 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton and Measured the Road Work and returned to Mr Wm Jennings to see his Fish Pond #### |
7th June 1832 |
Making out advertisement of Meeting to receive requests for exchanges and whether Proprietors choose to pay by Rater or Sale of Land and working upon Ransom in afternoon. |
8th June 1832 |
Scaling Maiden Newton Down |
11th June 1832 |
Finished Scaling Maiden Newton Down and went to Ransom in the afternoon |
14th June 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton in the Morning and waiting on Dally in the afternoon respecting Road |
20th June 1832 |
Attending Commnr Valuing Downs 2 2 0 |
21st June 1832 |
Making Valuation of Maiden Newton Down and casting the same and preparing Rough Scheme ½ day & went to Ransom drank Tea at Mrs Willmott’s |
28th June 1832 |
receiving requests for Exchanges and paying in Money |
7th July 1832 |
Haymaking in the morning and went to Maiden Newton in the afternoon respg road |
11th July 1832 |
Working upon Maiden Newton Castings and Haymaking in the afternoon |
12th July 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton in the Morning respecting Road and preparing General Survey Book in afternoon for Allotting |
14th July 1832 |
Making general survey |
16th July 1832 |
Working on “Maiden Newton” General Survey and Haymaking |
19th July 1832 |
Making Section of the above and Estimate – went to Maiden Newton respg Road in the evening [In the previous entry he had been to Horn Hill to survey a road tunnel.] |
24th July 1832 |
Making reduced Sketch for Mr Bridge and went to Maiden Newton in the afternoon respecting Road |
25th July 1832 |
Maiden Newton Inclosure Finished General Survey hard days work |
28th July 1832 |
Preparing Allotting Book and taking up part of New Roads |
30th July 1832 |
At Maiden Newton all the day Measuring Excavations and Flints &c |
31st July 1832 |
Casting Excavations of Maiden Newton Roads &c &c |
8th August 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton measuring stones & gravel and measured Dally’s work again Casting Stones in the afternoon and making muster Roll of Troop |
14th August 1832 |
Went to Maiden Newton and let Dally the Haulage of the New Gravel went to Oileywell for Tea |
Next Owermoigne,1832.
Previous Kingsclere,1838.