When carrying out research into residents of the village, many references can usually be found in parish records, censuses and newspaper articles, but in the case described below, the subject’s name only occurred once. His case was investigated because of the nature of his involvement in Wickhamford life, as he owned Field Farm, one of the four farms in the village, but appeared to take no role in local life.
Referred to as Field Farm in this article, the property was known in the early/mid-20th century as Orchard Court and earlier, ca 1900, as Wickhamford Farm. The name Field Farm had previously been used in the 19th century.
Field Farm in a 1941 record
When the National Farm Survey was undertaken, early in the Second World War, Field Farm, Longdon Hill, Wickhamford was being run by Charles M. Oldaker and consisted of 253½ acres of land used for vegetable crops and grazing for cattle and sheep. The document shows that Oldaker was a tenant and that the farm was owned by “J. Payton of Ashleigh, Homer Road, Birmingham”. This was Joseph Payton, but his name does not appear in any other references found concerning the village. Field Farm was put up for auction on 9th May 1927 by the then owner, Emily Carter. She was the widow of the previous owner, Benjamin Carter, who had died in October 1926. Whether this was the occasion when it was acquired by Joseph Payton has not been confirmed.
Joseph Payton’s Life
Joseph Payton was born on 17th December 1871 and was the son of a carpenter of the same name. In 1891, he was living in Aston, Warks., with his parents and employed as a clerk. He married Jennie Saice in late 1898 and in 1901 they lived in Aston with a two-year-old son, Ernest, and an adopted daughter, Eva Goodyer, who was not yet a one-year-old. At the 1911 census, Joseph and Jennie were staying with her sister’s family, the Lermits, in Bidford-upon-Avon, Warks., and Joseph was now a “Commercial Secretary at a Rolling Steel Mills”. His career progressed and in 1921 his census occupation was recorded as “Director Steel Rolling Mills” and he was employed by District Iron & Steel Co. Ltd of Smethwick, Staffs. That year, he was elected President of the Staffordshire Iron and Steel Institute.
In December 1927, Joseph Payton was a beneficiary in the Will of his brother-in-law, Edward Stanley Lermit, sharing £8,727 12s 11d with Florence Lermit, Edward’s widow, who was his wife’s sister. (This amount was the equivalent of £488,000 in 2026.) Joseph inherited this money just after the auction to sell Field Farm. If the property did not sell at the auction, he may have made an offer, once he had received his inheritance money?
When the 1939 Register was taken, Joseph and Jennie Payton lived at 42 Homer Road, Solihull, Warks. Joseph Payton died on 16th November 1951, whilst still living at that address. Probate was granted to his widow and the sum recorded was £41,234, equivalent to £1 million in 2026. Jennie Payton died in 1967, aged 94.
Post-Payton ownership of Field Farm
Col. Dennis Cooke Voelcker, previously of the Indian Army, bought Field Farm in 1953 and spent money on improving the farm buildings, connecting water, sewage and electricity supplies and the installation of modern cooking equipment and heating.
Conclusion
As stated at the start of this article, no information has been located to link Joseph Payton’s life to Wickhamford, other than the Field Farm ownership for around 20 years. The purchase of the property seems to have been only for financial purposes.
Tom Locke, September 2026