Gosterwood History

This is the story of Forest Green, a hamlet whose origin is vague, but whose charm is in its siting, almost equidistant from Dorking, Guildford and Horsham. The expansive common-land is sheltered on the north by the greensand ridge, running from east to west, with Leith Hill as the apex and Holmbury Hill slightly lower. Early settlers on these hills were known to be Saxon, but the weald was sparsely populated, as deep clay and streams from the hillside rendered it impassible in the winter, while the hard-baked soil of summer was not conductive to settlement.

The Domesday Book

There is mention in Domesday Book of a Manor, Hoclei, which may have been Gosterwood. Certainly the Manor of Gosterwood is of very early derivation. Following the Norman Conquest and deed without date, a Daniel de Gostrode granted to Maurice de Gostrode and his wife Maud, all his heritage of Gostrode.

The Evelyn Family

When the name changed from Gostrode to Gosterwood seems uncertain, it was probably a gradual emergence over the centuries. It was part of the Manor of Wotton rather than a separate manor in its own right. From 1444 until 1593, families named Bardsey, Wyatt and Hill owned the Manor, then described as a "moated Grange." In 1593, Richard Hill conveyed to George Evelyn Esq., from whom it descended with the Evelyn Wotton Estate until it was sold by the Evelyns in two parts, the first including the house in about 1922, the second, comprising the fields on the east side and the wood in 1972.

The advent of the Evelyn family was significant: by the end of the 16th Century, George Evelyn was established on the north side of Leith Hill at Wotton House. The Evelyn Estate, still a major land owner today, was formed in 1579, and by 1625 included Forest Green. His son, John Evelyn, the diarist (1620-1706) and his descendants, thus had tenure over all the properties from 1629, be they manor, farm or small dwelling, about 7,000 acres in all.