The period of the most profound landuse change in history is the "Agricultural Revolution". This revolution occured at slightly different times in different areas of course. In the book, Catching Up With the Market Economy, it is shown that a particular estate was several decades behind other parts of the Scottish lowlands in this respect. Here is an introduction to a snapshot of one aspect of landuse in 1817 -- what types of people were living on the estate at that time.

The Scarboro Heights Record V11 #2

The family groupings in Table Two should not be interpreted as family lineage. We are only attempting to discover trends in the tenant structure at the time of litigation, 1817-1821. (Some apparent trends are indicated by the various headings in the Table.) Unfortunately, detailed Stockbriggs family histories (other than a genealogical sheet on the Wharries and the author's research into the McCowans) were not available to the author: such genealogical studies would probably be of some benefit in tracing the evolving relationship between people and the land in the Upper Nethan valley. Some occurences in the Coalburn area (slightly to the east) for the surnames of interest have not been included in Table Two. It must be remembered that several of the surnames in Table Two were very common in Lesmahagow Parish, particularly Brown and Greenshields.

In Table Two, we are only concerned with the families who were listed as tenants during that period of litigation, 1817-1821 (see Table One). Many other families had also lived on Stockbriggs estate at various times for various durations and in various roles. In particular, farm labourers and coalminers on the estate, 1817-1821, are not shown in Table Two.