Until the late nineteenth century Harpenden was predominantly an agricultural village, with farmsteads and blacksmiths on the High Street and other farmhouses scattered about the parish. In our Local History Centre archives we have several ringbinders of photos and information on Harpenden farms and agricultural life. Please contact us if you would like to help make this information accessible in pages on this website.
Aldwickbury Farm
Photos from the 1950s
Annables Donkey Wheel
Dink the Donkey replaced by a mechanical pump
Claygate Apple Farm
Article in Harpenden Free Press, 11 March 1955
Claygate Orchards
From Harpenden Free Press, March 1955
Farming and Conservation at Thrales End - 1907-2007
Report of a talk to the Society by Ian Pigott in June 2007.
Farmsteads on Harpenden High Street
Home Farm, Yew Tree Farm and Bowers Farm
Ox Lane Nurseries
Extract from Miss C.M. Clutterbuck's "Manland" Scrapbook, 1980s
The Annables Herd
From an undated cutting in the Harpenden Free Press, late 1940s
The Pathology Labs
Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Fisheries labs at Hatching Green
The Straw Hat and Education
from the Parish Magazine August 1960
Watercress Beds
Beds fed by springs alongside the River Lea