Do you remember the ‘Hens Nest Road’ that ran from the village of East Whitburn to the village of Bents before it was developed with new houses? If so, then you will be sure to remember East Whitburn Mains. It was the Farm with the Big red barn that was situated about a quarter of a mile from East Whitburn on your Right hand side.
East Whitburn Mains Farm
If you take a little trip up the Hen’s nest Road in East Whitburn today, sat amongst a plethora of New built houses, you will find the Old Farmhouse from the East Whitburn mains farm. Well, perhaps not so old. But the last surviving building of the farm would be a better description. When the farm was still in operation, the active farmhouse was a relatively new one. You could still see the old house though. A grand 18th century manor building that had been long used as a farmhouse.
The History of the Farm
The Execution of East Whitburn mains
But sadly, that was all swept away when the farmland was developed into a mixture of housing and Crofts in the 1990s when the Crofters Bill was passed. Woodland Trust bought many farms out with a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) to make these developments. Part of the lands were subsequently sold to Individual crofters, some to housing projects and the rest turned into community woodlands. Now, the acres and acres of arable farmland you saw back at the turn of the 1990’s is now almost completely wooded.
Amongst these farm that got the chopping block was East Whitburn Mains. In 1992, the woodland Trust CPO’d the farm for a Million Pounds. I remember the farmer at the time, Bob Findlay telling me about it on the day of the compulsory purchase. As a Kid, the Sound of a Million pounds sounded amazing but looking at it now, it really was a pittance compared to what the land was worth and for how much it was become worth since then.
With all the large housing developments and Big Croft houses, the land must be worth a pretty penny nowadays. I remember the farmer being less than impressed as he explained the forced sale through a series of expletives.