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The farm in the 21st century...
The farm in the 21st century...
Today, Longbottom Farm is an 'agricultural unit' for the purposes of mixed grazing and growing hay (which is used to feed the animals in the winter months). As described on our conservation page, it is also the focus of a rewilding project - reflecting the current need to improve habitats and connectivity for wildlife within the UK.
When we purchased the farm in 2023, the farmhouse buildings were let at four separate properties. The fields were used variously for grazing horses/ hay and as a campsite - uses which appear to have persisted since the late 20th Century.
Aerial photo circa 2006
20th Century
20th Century
We have limited information on the Farm during the last century - but are aware from planning records that there were significant 'improvements' in the early 1990s - and it seems likely that a formal garden and equestrian facilities were implemented at this time. If you can help us fill in the blanks - please get in touch!
Our next set of references come from before, and just after, WWII. Firstly, from the national reconnaissance photos taken by the RAF after the war. In this image, Rowberrow Warren is unforested - and the land to the east of the farm is likely to have been heathland of the kind blanketing most of Black Down today.
There are also two photos (below) which are believed to date from 1940 - the duckpond and farmhouse set in open grassland.
RAF aerial photograph 1946-8
The farm from the south east - the previous owners report the boy arriving at the house one day and identifying himself as Edward Rimmer, then aged 92. He was able to date the photo, and reported walking from Shipham village to buy food (maybe even a duck) from the farm.
The duck pond - complete with ducks - and what appears to be a haystack in the background.
19th Century
19th Century
We’re not entirely sure when the Farm was built, but the house and outbuildings are in essentially the same arrangement as they were on the 1840 'Tithe' map – and the exterior of the farmhouse suggests it was built in the late-18th or early 19th century. The farm is of a style frequently seen in the Mendip area - but it has been suggested that the third floor (likely used for storage), may reflect the remoteness of the location and the need to maintain supplies through the winter months.
The Tithe map describes a ‘House, Garden, Mow, Pens and Paddock’ owned by Edward Tenant and occupied by Richard and William Carter. In the 1841 census, the occupants are recorded as Richard Carter (30, farmer), William (30), John (25), Hannah (30), Ann (25), Lewis (7), Mary (4) and Bevis (4 months), together with George Hearse (20), a male servant and Frances Hearse (14) a female servant.
In the 1851 census we find Richard and Hannah Carter together with Mary (now 14), Lewis (7) and Sarah (5) – the three children listed as scholars. The following entry, which it is presumed relates to the adjacent dwelling (Dairy Cottage), records Bevis James (25), Ann (35), Bevis Carter (10) and Hester (4). John Cross (25), Charles Glover (16), and William Heal (10) listed as farm servants. It seems that Lewis (aged 7 in 1841) may have died and a replacement son, also named Lewis, was aged 7 in the 1851 census.
Enclosure map - circa 1799. The Farm is not present, but the '20 acre' field within which it sits is clearly demarkated.
OS Map - circa 1817. A building is shown at the approximate location of the Farm.
OS Map - circa 1840. The Farm and arrangement of buildings is first shown, and remains broadly unchanged to this day.
Medieval and bronze age
Medieval and bronze age
Less than 100m from the farmhouse, Longbottom Camp is an historic enclosure dating back to the Bronze Age and/or Romano-British period. The site includes earthworks, trackways, and a round barrow, possibly used for settlement or livestock. It remained in use through the Iron Age and Medieval period, with connections to nearby settlements and field systems. Later, it was linked to Roman roads and may have even served as a WWII searchlight station. Today, its remnants offer a glimpse into the rich history of the Mendip Hills.
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