Tithe map

The term Tithe map is usually applied to a map of an English parish prepared following the Tithe Commutation Act of 1836. This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods. The map and its accompanying schedule gave the names of all owners and occupiers of land in the parish. Individual tithe owners sometimes prepared maps for their own use to show who owned what land. These maps are sometimes also called tithe maps.

Tithes

Main article Tithes

The payment of one tenth of local produce to the church had been established before the Norman Conquest. This was originally in kind - every tenth stook of corn, etc. It originally supported the local priest, but in some cases, the right to receive the tithe was acquired by an organisation such as a monastery or college who paid a curate. With the dissolution of the monasteries, the right to receive tithes were acquired by individuals. Tithes themselves were controversial - particularly among non conformists who resented supporting the established church - and payment in kind was not convenient for either the farmer or the tithe owner.

Conversion to cash payments

Over time, in some parishes, the tithe owner came to an agreement with the tithe payers to receive cash instead of farm produce. This could be for a stated period of time or indefinitely. During the period of parliamentary enclosure, the enclosure act frequently abolished tithes in return for an allocation of land to the tithe owner. However, in many parishes, tithes continued to be paid in kind.

The 1836 Act

The Tithe Commutation Act of 1836 and an amending act in 1837 established a process by which tithes could be converted to money payments. This required the drawing of an accurate map (the accuracy of which was certified by commissioners) showing all the land in the parish. The map was accompanied by a schedule showing the owner, occupier and a description of the land in the parish including individual fields. (The description may be short - house and barn, arable, etc.) Two copies of these maps and schedules were prepared, one of which was held centrally by the Tithe Commissioners and the other locally in the parish church.

The maps

The map (and schedule) held by the commissioners passed to the Inland Revenue and these are now held in the National Archives at Kew (class IR29). Although the maps do not always survive, the local copy is now usualy held in the county record office. Prior to the publication of large scale Ordnance Survey maps in the late nineteenth century, tithe maps were frequently copied (in whole or part) for other purposes - for example to accompany plaaned railways or as part of the title deeds for a sale. They frequently provide the earliest evidence for the field system in the parish.

Sources and Further Reading

• William Foot, Maps for Family History (Public Record Office Readers Guide No 9, PRO Publications, 1994)
• J B Harley, Maps for the local historian (Blackfriars Press, reprinted 1977)
• Roger Kain and Hugh Prince, Tithe Surveys for Historians (Philimore, 2000)
• Lionel Mumby, Short Guide to Records, No 20 (The Historical Association, undated)