Half Moon Public House

Contents

The Half Moon public house and blacksmith’s shop were part of a larger estate up until the final closure and disposal in 1961.

1814 – Inclosures

Plan of holdings included with the Half Moon

Despite the objective of consolidating property, Edmund Badcock (the owner of the Half Moon) came out of the Inclosures process with two well separated pieces of land, each of which was oddly shaped:

Description of holdings included with the Half Moon

The following is the definition of the land which Edmund Baldock held at the end of the Inclosures process in 1814:

And we assign, set out and allot unto Edmund Badcock the four pieces of land hereinafter described, namely:-
First One piece of Land marked on the Map hereto annexed No 127 containing 3 acres, 1 rood and 27 perches with a Messuage called the Half Moon Blacksmith’s Shop and other Buildings standing thereon …;
Second One other piece of Land marked on the Map hereto annexed No 125 containing 2 acres and 35 perches …;
Third One other piece of Land marked on the Map hereto annexed No 120 containing 5 acres and 21 perches …;
Fourth One other piece of Land marked on the Map hereto annexed No 119 containing 1 acre, 2 roods and 20 perches with a Cottage standing thereon …;
And we direct the said Edmund Badcock to make and keep in repair the Fences next hereinafter described, namely: In the first, second and fourth allotments against the Attleburgh Road and against the allotments to Robert Wright, and in his third allotment against the allotment to Sarah Clarke;
And whereas the said Edmund Badcock stands admitted to two acres of Land (late Squires) which are held of the Lord of the Manor of Bury Hall in Great Ellingham by Copy of Court Roll,
Now we declare that the whole of his second allotment containing 2 acres and 35 perches shall be held by the said Edmund Badcock of the Manor of Bury Hall in Great Ellingham by Copy of Court Roll in lieu of the Copyhold hereditaments to which the said Edmund Badcock so stands admitted and in respect of the Rights of Common appendant or appurtenant thereto;
And whereas the said Edmund Badcock stands admitted to a Cottage and 20 perches of Land (late Elsy’s) which are held of the Lord of the Manor of Shadwells otherwise Cockerells in Morley by Copy of Court Roll,
Now we declare the the whole of the fourth allotment containing 1 acre, 2 roods and 20 perches with the Cottage standing thereon shall be held by the said Edmund Badcock of the Lord of the Manor of Shadwells otherwise Cockerells in Morley by Copy of Court Roll in lieu of the Copyhold hereditaments to which the said Edmund Badcock so stands admitted and in respect of the Rights of Common appendant or appurtenant thereto.

Summary

Piece No	Area a-r-p	Comments
119	1a 2r 20p	Copyhold of the Manor of Shadwells otherwise Cockerells
120	5a 0r 21p
125	2a 0r 35p	Copyhold of the Manor of Bury Hall in Great Ellingham
127	3a 1r 27p	The Half Moon and Blacksmith’s
Total	12a 1r 23p

1815 Survey of Deopham

This survey showed that Edmund Badcock owned and occupied the property that included the “Half Moon Public House, Outbuildings, Blacksmiths Shop & Garden”. His total estate was a little over 12 acres.
This survey also recorded a house & garden containing 18 perches owned by Edmund Badcock but occupied by Henry Rose.

1839 Death of Sarah Badcock

Under the will of Edmund Badcock (as recorded in the Court Roll of the Manor of Bury Hall in Great Ellingham – see here), Edmund’s Wife Sarah continued to have the use of all his property “for and during the term of her natural life”. Upon her death, the property was to be split as follows:

The Half Moon “with the Blacksmith’s Shop and other Buildings, Yards, Gardens, Orchards and Land thereto adjoining and belonging and containing together six acres (more or less)” were left to his son William Badcock.

Legacies of £10 a piece to his daughters Rebecca, Elizabeth and Caroline. These legacies were to be funded by the sale of “his two Cottages in Deopham then or late in the several occupations of James Foster and — Bush, with the Outbuildings, Yards and Gardens thereto adjoining and belonging and containing together six acres (more or less)”.

1843 Tithe Map

The 1843 tithe map and analysis shows that the Halfmoon public house was owned by William Badcock and occupied by William Knights. The land that made up this entity is listed as below; these plots are ringed in green on the following map.

The land and cottages which formed part of Edmund Badcock’s estate in 1814 further along the Attleborough Road are no longer part of William Badcock’s holding having been sold off to pay his sisters’ legacies.

1878 Auction

Context of the Auction

The Half Moon with the Blacksmith’s shop had passed to William Badcock on the death of his mother in 1839.
William Badcock’s will dated May 3^rd 1873 and proved on November 19^th 1877 contained the following instructions:

I appoint my 2 Illegitimate children whom I had by my Housekeeper Harriet Mayes, namely W^m Badcock Mayes of Norwich, Labourer to a Stone Mason and Richardson Badcock Mayes of Norwich, Journeyman Stone Mason & W^m Blyth of Lothian Street in the Hamlet of Heigham in the County of the said City, Plasterer, to be the executors of this my Will;
I authorize, empower and direct my said Executors and the Survivors or Survivor of them, and the Executors and Administrators of such Survivor as soon as conveniently can be after my decease to sell, dispose and convey, surrender and assure
All my Messuages, Lands, Tenements and Real Estate in Deopham in Norfolk whether the same be Freehold, Copyhold or of any other Tenure, either together or in parcels and either by public Auction of private Contract for such price or prices as to them of him shall appear reasonable and to give Receipts for the Purchase Moneys thereof.¹

Auction Particulars

It would appear from the following advertisement from the Norwich Mercury of June 15^th 1878 that the Half Moon pub’s estate was still much the same as that at the time of the above tithe map, totalling 7 acres.

Sale details

An Indenture dated October 12^th 1878 confirmed the sale for £1,200 by:

William Badcock Mayes of Lakenham, Norwich, labourer to a stonemason and William Blyth of Heigham, Norwich, plasterer
to
Elijah Crosier Bailey of Norwich, Gentleman.

A third son, Richardson Badcock Mayes, was named in the will as an executor but died before his father.
The premises transferred were:

All that piece of Freehold land situate in the parish of Deopham in the said County of Norfolk marked on the map annexed to the Award of the Commissioners acting under the Deopham Inclosure Act No 127 containing 3 acres, 1 rood & 27 perches with a Messuage called the Half Moon Blacksmiths Shop and other Buildings standing thereon …;
And also all that piece of land situate in Deopham aforesaid marked on the Map annexed to the said award No 125 containing 2 acres & 35 perches …, which last mentioned piece of land was by the said Award declared to be Copyhold of the said Manor of Bury Hall in Great Ellingham;
And also All that piece of Freehold land also situate in Deopham aforesaid marked on the Map annexed to the said award No 130 containing 1 acre, 1 rood & 35 perches …,
as all the said premises are now in the occupation of of Messieurs William Cann and Company, Brewers, or their undertenants or however otherwise the same are bounded or abuttalled, tenanted or ought to be described.

These three pieces are outlined in red on the extract from the Inclosures Map referred to above (this extract indicates the piece numbers, but of course the ownership of most plots had changed since it was drawn up in 1814):

Summary

Piece No	Area a-r-p	Comments
125	2a 0r 35p	Copyhold of the Manor of Bury Hall rented to Messieurs William Cann and Company
127	3a 1r 27p	Containing a Messuage called the Half Moon Blacksmiths Shop rented to Messieurs William Cann and Company, Brewers for £41 p.a. for this and piece no 125 above
130	1a 1r 35p	The auction advertisement says this piece was in the occupation of George Chenery at a rent of £4 p.a. as an undertenant of the brewery.
Total	7a 0r 17p

Receipt for the sale

1962 – Sale by the Brewery

Terms of the sale

The Half Moon was sold by Steward and Patteson of Pockthorpe Brewery in Barrack Street, Norwich on June 21^st 1962 for £2,650. The purchasers were Arthur Herbert Brown and his wife Olive Grace Brown of New Inn, Market Deeping in Lincoln. His profession was recorded as Hotel Manager. The purchase was completed by means of a mortgage of £1,400 from the Peterborough Building Society.
The following covenant was included as part of the terms of the brewery’s sale:-

… that no part or parts of the property hereby conveyed shall at any time be used for the sale or manufacture or storage thereon of any intoxicating liquors or beer or aerated waters cordials or fruit juices of any description or for the purpose of malting and that no building thereon or at any time to be erected thereon shall at any time be used or occupied as an Inn, Public House or Hotel or as a Club at which intoxicating liquors or beer or aerated waters cordials or fruit juices of any description shall be sold or supplied.

There is a full copy of the Conveyance here.

Land included in the Sale

The Half Moon itself is described as:-

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land at Deopham Green in the Parish of Deopham in the County of Norfolk situate next and on the Western side of the Deopham to Attleborough Road;
Together with the detached dwellinghouse and outbuildings erected thereon or on some part or parts thereof and lately known as “The Half Moon” Deopham Green aforesaid but now or shortly to be delicensed;
TOGETHER WITH the adjoining pieces or parcels of land …

Reproduced with the permission of the National Library of Scotland

Summary

Field Numbers on the Ordnance Survey Map	Acreage
58	2.993
62	1.928
63	1.432
106	0.427
Total	6.780

After being delicenced

The Browns paid off their mortgage in 1965.
Arthur Brown, who was by then living at Furze Hill, Cromer, died in 1970 leaving his widow Olive Brown as one of the executors.
On September 6^th 1982 Olive Brown sold all the land attached to the Half Moon, but excluding the pub itself, to Harold Green of Lime Tree Road in Norwich. The price was £5,750. The land sold is defined on the plan below.

On the same day of this sale, the land was sold to John Browne of Mill Farm Deopham for the same price.
On October 25^th 1982 the former Half Moon land was split again with the part outlined in red below being purchased by John and Anita Moore from John Browne, and the part outlined in blue being purchased by Robert and Beverley Keep. These two transactions are defined on the plan below:

On January 20^th 1984 John Moore sold the land behind the right-hand cottage to Adrian and Alison Skipper of Crows Hall Lane in Attleborough:

The cottage itself had never been part of the Half Moon estate; the Skippers purchased the right hand half of the cottage from John Moore in a separate transaction on the same day as the land behind their part of the cottage, i.e. on January 20^th 1984

2025

Photos: G. Sankey, 9/2025

Footnotes

This extract from William Baldock’s will has been taken from the “Abstract of Title” held by the Norfolk Records Office – their ref MC 295. ↩︎

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Date	Change
31/8/25 to 4/9/25	Published as separate page and revised