Catalogue description Part of the Morehouse estate, purchased from Laura Farncombe-Tanner in 1924

Part of Franklands and Clevewaters, purchased by William Tanner in 1815

On 11 June 1686 a settlement was executed by Thomas Woodyer gent and his wife Dorothy on the marriage of their son Thomas Woodyer with Margaret Polley; among other property, a capital messuage called Clevewaters in Wivelsfield and the manor of Franklands in Wivelsfield, Cuckfield, Lindfield, Ditchling and Fletching were settled to the use of Thomas and Dorothy for life, with remainder to Thomas and Margaret and their male heirs; should the male line fail, the heirs of Thomas Woodyer the elder were enabled to recover the property by a payment of £500 to any daughter of the marriage

By his will of 13 July 1721, Thomas Woodyer the younger left his personal estate to his only child Alice, wife of Anthony Guidott gent, provided that she release her right to the £500 payment to her father's nephew John Woodyer, the son of his late brother John Woodyer

On 16 Feb 1736 Alice, then a widow, released her right to the payment of £500 to her grandfather's heir male, his grandson John Woodyer of Lasham, Hants, clerk, who barred the entail on the estate by a deed of 3 and 4 May 1736 followed by a recovery, and on 1 Aug 1737 mortgaged the estate to Edmund Harris of Little Queen Street, St Giles Mx, coachmaker, for £1000; the deed includes a field-by-field description. On 20 Sep 1739 the mortgage was assigned to Margaret Hoby of Somerly, Hants, spinster, with a further charge of £200

On 27 and 28 Jul 1752 John Woodyer and his wife Sarah sold Clevewaters to Francis Warden of Butlers Green in Cuckfield gent for £1455, of which £1200 was paid to John Marriott esq and his wife Mary, late Margaret, late Margaret Hoby. On 25 Jan 1762 Jac-Gar-Downing, a trustee of the settlement on the marriage of John and Margaret of 26 Mar 1745, promised to join with the rev Philip Hoby bt, the other trustee, to assign the mortgage term as Francis Warden should direct

By his will of 1 Oct 1784, Francis Warden bequeathed his real estate to trustees for the benefit of his godson, Warden Jefferson, now Warden Sergison who, with the trustees, mortgaged his estates for £2,300 to Thomas Walley Partington of Offham in Hamsey esq on 24 Dec 1787. On 2 Sep 1791 the surviving trustees conveyed the estate to Warden Sergison absolutely

Clevewaters was among the estates settled on 9 and 10 July 1792 on Warden Sergison's marriage with Mary Ann Kerr of Northampton spinster, eldest daughter of William Kerr of Northampton, doctor of physic. On 5 Feb 1793, Thomas Partington of the Inner Temple esq, executor of Thomas Walley Partington the mortgagee, reconveyed the estate to Thomas Charles Medwin of Horsham gent in trust for Warden Sergison according to the trusts declared in the marriage settlement of the previous year

Mary Ann Sergison died without issue on 14 Sep 1804, and on 1 and 2 Feb 1805 Warden Sergison mortgaged his estate to Michael Harmes of Rudgewick, gent, for £2000. Harmes died on 15 Mar 1807 and on 2 and 3 June his daughters, Catherine and Mary Harmes of Warnham and their mother Dorothy, reconveyed the estate to Sergison, who on 30 July mortgaged it to Thomas Ellman of Brighton, gent, and his trustee John Ellman of Glynde, gent, for £2500

Warden Sergison died on 9 July 1811, and his will of 8 Dec 1806 was proved in PCC by the two acting executors, Thomas Athorpe of Old Windsor esq and John Thoyts of Maidenhead esq on 24 Oct. On 11 and 12 Apr 1814 they were joined by William Sergison of Cuckfield Place, clerk (formerly William St Pritchard) and his wife Ann, William Sergison's sister, to convey Clevewaters and Franklands (190a 1r 35p occupied by Joseph Jeffery) with a cottage and premises at Birch Green in Wivelsfield formerly used as a millwright's shop and formerly part of the waste of Franklands manor, to Anthony Tanner of Wivelsfield gent and his trustee John Champion Waller of Cuckfield gent for £6442, of which £2500 was paid to Thomas Ellman's executors (named) in discharge of the mortgage of 1807 (5/13)

On 24 and 25 Aug 1815 Anthony Tanner sold Upper, Middle and Lower Pit Fields (28a 2r), the part of Clevewater which lay W of the road, to William Tanner of Morehouse, gent, for £1020 (5/14-16)

Cottage at Lunts Hill, purchased by Richard Tanner in 1844

On 16 May 1843 Stephen Bean the parish clerk Wivelsfield, aged 66, who had lived in the parish for 47 years, made a declaration concerning the title of a freehold cottage and garden (1r 20p) at Lunts Hill on the east side of the road, which for the last 30 years had been in the possession of the churchwardens and overseers. An order for sale of the cottage, occupied by John Bristow, and of another at Lyhoth Common occupied by Thomas Jeffery, was made by the Poor Law Commissioners on 25 Sep 1843, and on 31 Jan 1844 a conveyance was executed by the Guardians of Chailey Union, Thomas Attree and John Cook churchwardens and Henry Wells and John Martin overseers of Wivelsfield to Richard Tanner of Morehouse, gent, for £62 (5/17-20)

Cagelott, purchased by William Tanner in 1847

The estate consisted of freehold, leasehold and copyhold portions, amounting in all to 21a 1r 18p; for a map drawn by William Figg in 1828, see PAR 514 26/2

In 1749 the freehold portion was described as

A messuage called Cage Lott otherwise Cage Croft, a barn, garden, two orchards, a piece of land called Southwish Mead and a piece called The Lidd, in all 11a

In 1847 the leasehold portion was described as

The easternmost part of a field called The Lag (1a); N

William Tanner; E: road from Wivelsfield Common to The Birth

S: Wivelsfield Charity land called Baldwins; W: the rest of

The Lag

The southern part of a field called The Three Acres (1a 1r)

N: the rest of the field, and to Baldwins; E: Baldwins; S

Road; W: a pond, and to a tenantway leading to The Southwish

In 1847 the copyhold portion, held of the manor of Balneath, was described as

A croft of customary land called Southwish (8a, recently measured as 7a 2r 36p), rent 1s 4d; N,S,W: William Tanner; E: the freehold above

For a conveyance of Cagelott, Southwish Mead and The Lidd in 1583, see AMS6112/5/1 for an abstract of deeds of Cagelott among the papers of the Mercer family, from which some of the information in this list is derived

On 28 May 1599 Henry Standen of Wivelsfield leased an acre to Thomas Potter of Plumpton yeoman for 997 years from 29 Sep 1599 at a rent of 2d

On 29 May 1643 Elizabeth Easterfield of Wivelsfield widow and Richard Easterfield of Wivelsfield leased a close of 1a 1r to Richard Potter for 1000 years from 29 Sep 1643 at a rent of 1d (5/32)

Stephen Potter sold his freehold and copyhold lands to Walter Hurst of Wivelsfield yeoman, who, by his will of 23 Aug 1688, proved 16 Nov 1690, bequeathed his house and land to his son John Hurst in tail, with remainder to his grandson Walter Carpenter. John Hurst mortgaged the house and 22a, part of which was called Butchers Field, occupied by William Hobbs yeoman, to John Turner of St Andrew Holborn gent for £60 on 8 Feb 1700; he was admitted to the copyhold on 18 Aug 1701. The estate was said to be worth £12 a year. By deeds of 14 Jan and 17 Jan 1702 John Hurst and his wife Elizabeth, their mortgagee John Turner and Walter Hurst's grandson Walter Carpenter of Ditchling, butcher, sold the house called Cagelott and land called Southwish Mead and The Lidd to Nathaniel Coppard of Wivelsfield, tailor the tenant of Fanners - see AMS1756, for £195 (AMS1758/2,3; 2124)

On 10 Feb 1702 Walter Hurst's executor Richard Turner of Keymer gent, his son John Hurst of Wivelsfield tanner and the mortgagee John Turner assigned the two leasehold terms to Nathaniel Coppard for £40; the land was called Butchers Crofts and Severalls, and lay near the freehold house occupied by William Hobbs which Coppard had bought from John Hurst (5/21)

On 6 Mar 1702 Coppard mortgaged the freehold and leasehold to Joan Wade of Cliffe singlewoman for £150 (5/22)

On 26 and 27 Mar 1702 Coppard sold the estate to Walter Carpenter of Ditchling, butcher, for £190, and the mortgagee John Turner assigned the term to Richard Turner of Oldlands in Keymer, yeoman and Nicholas Marchant of Ditchling, yeoman, in trust for Carpenter on the payment of the outstanding sum (AMS1758/2); the leasehold was assigned for £40 on 27 Mar (5/23). Carpenter had already been admitted to the copyhold at a court held on 13 Mar 1702 (AMS1758/3)

On 15 and 16 Mar 1703 the estate was sold by Walter Carpenter and his wife Ann to Israel Paine the younger of Brighton, shipwright, for £290, of which £150 was paid to discharge the mortgage; Miss Wade assigned the term to Richard Masters the younger of Brighton mariner and John Scutt of Brighton brewer in trust for Paine on 13 Mar (AMS1758/2), the leasehold was assigned to Paine for £40 on 16 Mar 1703 (5/24) and on 28 Aug 1704 he was admitted to the copyhold (AMS1758/3)

On 5 Jun 1703, in advance of his marriage to Mary Humphrey of Brighton spinster, Israel Paine executed a bond to her uncle, William Scrase of Steyning gent, and to John Scutt of Brighton, brewer, that the Wivelsfield land would be her jointure (AMS1758/2)

On 23 Mar 1713 Paine obtained a licence to lease his copyhold, estimated at 7a, for a term of 11 years (AMS1758/3)

On 18 July 1717 Paine contracted to sell the estate, occupied by Jesse Bartlemore and Thomas Pierce, to Richard Webb of Keymer, gent, for £300; Webb was to bear all costs, except those relating to Mary Paine's jointure. The conveyance was executed on 1 and 2 Oct (AMS1758/2), the leasehold assigned for £40 on 2 Oct 5/25) and Webb admitted to the copyhold on 12 Nov 1717 (AMS1758/3)

On 12 Jan 1749 the steward of Balneath manor gave a receipt for 5 guineas for a heriot on the death of Martin Richard Webb (AMS1758/3)

Under a partition of Webb's estate between his two daughters, Mary Mercer of Lewes widow and Sarah wife of Israel Paine the younger of Brighton yeoman on 29 Sep 1749, the estate, occupied by Henry Burtenshaw, passed to Mary Mercer for details, see AMS6108/26 (5/32)

By her will of 4 Jun 1788, Mary Mercer bequeathed the Fanners estate at Wivelsfield, of which Cage Lott and its land was part, to her youngest son Joseph Mercer, who proved the will in PCC on 21 Mar 1797 5/32)

On 4 and 5 Dec 1807 Mercer, of Westfield, gent, sold Cage Lott and its land to William Davies of Ditchling, yeoman, and Thomas Beard of Rottingdean, gent, his trustees, for £650; on 16 and 17 Nov 1810 Davies sold the estate to Beard for £800 (5/26-31)

By his will of 24 Oct 1844 Thomas Beard bequeathed his farm at Wivelsfield, occupied by Richard Tanner, to his son Steyning Beard. The will was proved in PCC on 11 Jun 1847 and on 28 Dec 1847 Steyning Beard of Ovingdean gent sold the farm for £447 to the occupier, William Tanner of Patcham esq and his trustee George Farncombe of Bishopstone gent. Beard covenanted to surrender the copyhold tenement to Philadelphia Tanner of Patcham, spinster, in trust for William Tanner; she was admitted out-of-court at Lewes on 28 Dec 1847 (5/32-35)

House and land south of Morehouse, purchased by William Tanner in 1849

On 13 and 14 Oct 1800, William Tanner of the tan yard in Wivelsfield, tanner, sold a small piece of land containing 104 rods, recently divided from Tanner's land called Pepperhall which he had bought from Zachariah Miles on 24 and 25 Jan 1780, to John Picknall of Wivelsfield, yeoman, for £30; Picknall had recently built a house on the plot (5/36,37)

By his will of 14 Mar 1817, Picknall left his real property to William Farncomb the elder of Ditchling husbandman for life, with remainder to his son William Farncombe the younger, subject to a £10 annuity to his mother Sarah. The executors, William Tanner the younger of Patcham gent and John Attree of Theobalds in Wivelsfield gent, proved the will at Lewes on 25 Oct 1817 (5/38)

Sarah Farncombe died in about 1839, her husband William Farncombe the elder in Sep 1844, and their son William, intestate, on 8 June 1847. Their first child, John Farncomb, was born in Nov 1824. On 17 May 1849 he contracted to sell the house, occupied by Thomas Fielder, to William Tanner of Patcham, esq, for £200. A statutory declaration to support the pedigree was made by Mary Henty Farncomb of Wivelsfield, the widow of William Farncomb the younger, on 10 July 1849, and Tanner's solicitor, Somers Clarke of Brighton, obtained certified copies of the registers of several parishes. John Farncomb and his mother conveyed the house to Tanner and John Sidney McWhinnie of Brighton, gent, his trustee, on 10 July 1849 (5/39-45)

The whole estate

By his will of 15 Apr 1865, William Tanner appointed his wife Philadelphia Tanner, his brother-in-law Thomas Neve, Thomas's sons Charles and George Neve and his nephew John Farncombe executors and trustees. He bequeathed his estate to his wife for life, with remainder to his daughter Philadelphia, wife of William Farncombe, in tail male, with a provision that any person inheriting the estate should add the surname Tanner to their own. Thomas Neve died on 17 Feb 1867, Philadelphia Farncombe died on 28 July 1869 leaving six children, and the testator died on 20 Apr 1870. The executors proved the will at Lewes on 14 June 1870, and the testator's widow died on 16 Apr 1874 (5/50)

By 1924 the estate had passed, by virtue of the entail in William Tanner's will, to Laura Farncombe-Tanner of Fishers, Wakes Colne, Essex, spinster (b 7 June 1856), who had survived her two brothers William (d unmarried 2 Sep 1923) and George (d unmarried 8 July 1919)

On 20 June 1924 Miss Farncombe-Tanner enfranchised an 8a freehold tenement called Danlands, held of the manor of Franklands by a rent of 6d, for a payment of £13 10s to the Sergison trustees. On 25 June she made a declaration concerning the descent of the estate, supported by eleven birth, marriage and death certificates. On 3 July 1924 Miss Emily Farncombe-Tanner was admitted to the copyhold tenement of Balneath manor called Southwish, part of the Cagelott estate (see 5/21-35), as the youngest sister and heir of her brother William, and on 11 July the tenement was enfranchised by William Wilson Grantham esq for a payment of £50 9s 8d (5/46-49)

On 16 July 1924 the larger part of the Morehouse estate (plan and schedule on deed) was conveyed by Laura Farncombe-Tanner to Charles Hales of Abbots Leigh, Haywards Heath esq for £9300, and on 5 Aug she was joined by her sister Emily to convey the enfranchised copyhold tenement. In 1926 part of the estate was conveyed to East Sussex County Council (5/50-52)