The Sales of Oatlands

This long-term project is aimed at trying to trace the sales of the Oatlands Estate from 1822 (when the Duke of York first started 'selling-up' following the death of the Duchess in 1820). Prior to the Duke obtaining the freehold from the Crown by Act of Parliament in 1804, the Estate had always been the property of The Crown.

The estate remained fairly intact until it was broken up into building lots and sold off by means of public auctions in 1846 and it is as a result of these auctions that the village was born and grew.

Our aim is to try and trace properties and land backwards from the present deeds and forward from the sale catalogues and try and form as complete a picture as possible of how the village grew up.

If you have the deeds to your property and would be willing to let us copy them for research purposes then please contact us using the 'Contact Us' form on this site. We can also offer advice on the long-term preservation and conservation of any old deeds written on parchment.

So far we have traced one property in St Mary's Road from its present ownership back to the Estate Sale of May 1846 and we hope to be able to do this with many more properties. Some will not be possible but that won't stop us trying...