Hassocks history: the Turners of Oldland

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By Richard Ware

The Oldland farm estate and its restored windmill look out over Keymer from the greensand ridge. For over 300 years, ‘Oldland’ belonged to nine generations of one family, the Turners, originally from Horsted Keynes.

Little is known about the first two generations, but in the third generation, Thomas Turner acquired many other farms and mills in the area, becoming the highest-rated local landowner by 1621. His son, Richard, acquired a coat of arms and rebuilt the Oldland mansion in brick. Subsequent generations dissipated the wealth, selling land and taking on debt to fund their gentry lifestyle. They quarrelled about money, on several occasions taking family disputes to the Court of Chancery in London.

By the 1820s, the remaining estate was heavily mortgaged. The last Turner, another Thomas, struggled to make a living. He leased a sheep farm at Sompting, which failed because of falling agricultural prices, then worked as a land agent for the Marquis of Bristol in Suffolk, and later became clerk to the trustees of the workhouse at Firle. However, he also found time to play cricket and give evidence to a House of Lords committee. Along with his cricket scores, some of his letters survive, recording his marriage to one cousin and a bitter dispute (over a horse) with her brother.

Only after his mother’s death in 1847 could Thomas afford to live at Oldland. He finally sold it and moved to Tunbridge Wells in 1863, but as a parting gift, he paid for a stained-glass window in Keymer Church, commemorating ancestors who had lived in Keymer since Tudor times.

Hassocks history - Parklands Road

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By Jonathan Taylor

‘Parklands’ was the name of a small estate with a large villa fronting Keymer Road, on the site now occupied by the forecourt of National Tyres and Autocare. Parklands Road was built along the western edge of the estate from which it takes its name. However, when it was first built, Parklands Road was called Bonchurch Road. The name was changed in 1907, after owners and occupiers of the road petitioned Keymer Parish Council. It’s not clear why the road was named after Bonchurch, a village on the Isle of Wight, nor why people objected to the name.

It is sometimes said the road was built to house those constructing the London and Brighton Railway, which opened in 1841. In fact, it appears to have been a speculative investment, and the road was not actually built until the late 1870s or early 1880s. At the time, Parklands was owned by James J G Saunders (1833-1889), a Brighton councillor, builders’ merchant and contractor. It is therefore possible that the road was built by Saunders; if not, it must at least have been built with his involvement. The first tenants were typically tradesmen: builders, painters, plasterers, and carpenters – the sorts of people who would have been Saunders’ customers and subcontractors.

Bonchurch Road and Woodsland Road were the first purely residential roads to be laid out in Hassocks, which until then had comprised little more than Keymer Road and the Station Approaches. Initially, terraced houses were built only on the east side of Bonchurch Road. The houses on the west side of the road were not built until about 1900. In the 1950s, the road, now called Parklands Road, was extended further south (where there had been allotments) and then east to join Windmill Avenue, to complete the road we know today.

Lack of drainage was a major problem on Bonchurch Road. The residents relied on cesspools, which required regular emptying, and frequently overflowed. It was reported to a Local Government Board Inquiry in 1896 that ‘the contents of [the cesspools] had to be carried through the houses [in Bonchurch Road] when emptied. If such an arrangement were continued, sooner or later a serious outbreak of fever might occur …’.

The problem was eventually solved by installing a proper system of sewers in Hassocks. This sewerage scheme was authorised in 1899 and completed in 1901. In the April 2023, Hassocks Life featured the sewer vent pipe on Lodge Lane in a local history article; that pipe would have been part of this scheme. Perhaps Bonchurch Road was renamed Parklands Road to disassociate it from the unsanitary conditions that had existed before the sewer system was installed.

A little history of Keymer Lodge in Hassocks

In February 2023’s issue of Hassocks Life we asked if anyone knew any information about ‘Keymer Lodge’ indicated by a remaining pair of gate piers off Keymer Road. Reader Jonathan Taylor has kindly provided the following insight, which we’ve tried to illustrate for you to see clearer.

By Jonathan Taylor

Keymer Lodge was easternmost of a pair of large semi-detached houses on Keymer Road. It must have been built before 1874 and demolished after 1955, judging from its appearance on the large scale maps held by the National Library of Scotland (www.maps.nls.uk).
To the east of Keymer Lodge was a large, detached house – Highlands – on the site now occupied by The Poplars. Highlands Close presumably got its name from the house. A trace of the driveway to Highlands survives as a depression in the ground just to the east of the Keymer Lodge gateway.
The other semi-detached house, to the west of Keymer Lodge, appears to have been accessed from Willowbrook Way, and its original gate piers survive as the entrance to 12 Willowbrook Way.

Do you have any history questions, or facts to ask or share? Get in touch via our email address: editor@hassockslife.co.uk.

A history of Oldland Mill in Keymer and two Jubilees

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Left: 1887 Mill in celebratory mood Right: 2022 Jubilee Celebration

By Stephen Waite

In the week leading up to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee weekend celebrations, Oldland Mill Trust volunteers worked enthusiastically to ‘dress’ Oldland Mill, recreating the spectacle of the Mill dressed for the 1887 celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.

If you look carefully at the two pictures, past and present, you will notice a number of differences. In 1887 the site of the Mill was devoid of trees, making the mill much easier to operate back then, than it would be now. Modes of transport and costumes also differ. Amongst the people gathered at the Mill in 1887, in addition to the local dignitaries, would have been Jesse Washington White, the miller. Jesse started working at the Mill around 1869, and organised the celebration at the Mill for the 20th June 1887, providing bunting and the large Union Flag affixed to the top of the Mill. Jesse live at the Mill House and died, aged 50, in 1891.

Adastra Hall and the history and community that built what it is today

Janet Bell throws light on the past, present and future of this community focal point.

Photo by Deirdre Huston

Adastra Hall is owned by registered charity, Hassocks Community Association, with its day-to-day management delegated to a committee of volunteers. Several of the original cohort of visionaries who were involved with the task of raising funds, and commissioning the building which is still in existence today, remain active on the committee, although one can’t be surprised that they feel ready to hand the baton on. Val Purdew, now the Chair of Hassocks Community Association, and an active member of the committee, is retiring from her role at our AGM. She was heavily involved in all the initial fundraising, as was Stella Jenner, the Treasurer who still has an eagle-eyed overview of our finances. I asked Stella for anecdotes about the early days - and what a mine of information she is…

The original motivators were a local couple, Dick and Bett Hall. Hoping to replace the wooden hut in the park that was then serving as a community space, they got elected to the Parish Council (who own and manage Adastra Park) to make their case. In 1976, a first public meeting was called and Mr B. Hewer, a representative of Hurstpierpoint Village Hall, came to talk about how our neighbouring village had achieved their smart new building. That got the ball rolling and so began ten years of community effort to raise funds. Hassocks Community Association was registered with the Charity Commission and an executive committee was formed.

Local professionals, an architect and a solicitor in particular, gave the benefit of their skills and contacts. A couple of local councillors were also very supportive, and able to offer guidance about government grants. There was still a need for significant funds to be raised by the good people of Hassocks and it was important that there was local buy-in. I don’t imagine you could have lived in Hassocks at the time and not known there was a campaign on to replace the village hall!

Pick up a March issue of Hassocks Life to read how the community came together to fundraise for their adored Adastra Hall. Also, more amazing old photos.

If anyone has a bit of time to spare and thinks they can offer anything to the committee, we would love to hear from you!
To find out more, see: www.adastrahall.co.uk or contact Janet: 01273 842527 / janetb545@gmail.com

A Hassocks Excavation Part 1 - unearthing Clayton Mills

Photo: Oxford Archaeology

In the first of a two-part series, Deirdre Huston talks to archaeologist, Edward Biddulph, about uncovering our local history.

Many of you know Clayton Mills. Perhaps you live there, or maybe you’ve jogged along the footpath, walked your dog around the fields, played on the old bike tracks in the copse, or taken a shortcut along the banks of the stream. Some of you will remember the fields before the present housing estate was built, but did you know that, in 2005 and 2007, Oxford Archaeology carried out excavations at this site?

Like most archaeological work, this was a result of the housing development: it was a condition of planning permission being granted that some archaeological investigation took place in order to mitigate the development’s impact and was funded by Barratts. I spoke with Edward, a Senior Project Manager at Oxford Archaeology, to learn more about what was learned during the project and the processes involved.

First, there was an initial desk-based assessment of existing archaeological work in our area, using the local authority database of heritage records.
Next, during an on-site evaluation, trenches were sunk across the site and yielded evidence which suggested there would be a reasonable chance of finding evidence of past activity.
Finally, a larger excavation was undertaken, involving a team of ten or so archaeologists in the field and an office-based team behind the scenes who wash, process and mark finds, such as pottery, animal bones, tiles or marked flint. (Artefacts made of leather and wood tend not to survive unless in extraordinary circumstances.) The team also analyse environmental samples to find tiny bits of seed, charcoal or grain which give clues to environment use, for example, telling us what crops may have been grown. From this evidence, the archaeologists are able to put together a picture of what human activity may have occurred in this location in the past.

This dug up some interest? Well look out for the January copy of Hassocks Life to read more and find out what Hassocks was like during the Bronze age!

A Hassocks Excavation Part 2 now available here.