The house now known as Jacobs Well Cottage is an open hall house built around 1500 so it was certainly there in 1686 even though Daniel Sarll omitted it from his map because it was not part of the estate of William Crosse. From the size of the blank area on the map it seems likely that it was a separate farm, although we have been unable to identify its owner.

In fact we continue to remain in the dark about the ownership of this property during the next 150 years until it appears on the Tithe Map of 1838/41 - which shows clearly that there were still only two habitations in the vicinity of the crossroads at that date. In the accompanying Apportionment it is described as "House and garden" (next to Ash Hill Meadow), together with "Yard and outbuildings" (where Natty's stable now stands), all in a property of some 23 acres owned by John Bicknell and occupied by William Taylor. Part of this property was an acre plot to the East of Blanchards Hill described as "in Jacobs Well Meadow". This was the largest of 5 plots, with 3 different owners, the other plots being called "in Jacobs Well field" - the first known occurrence of the name.

However the census of 1841 does not record a William Taylor and all the men listed as living in this locality were described as agricultural labourers; so if this land was being farmed the farmer may have have lived elsewhere or been absent on Census day. In 1851 one building was said to be "Uninhabited" and the indications are that it may have been this building, and we also cannot identify this building in the 1861 census.

Then in 1877 the Particulars of Sale for the auction of Sir William Bovill's properties describe one plot as being "situate opposite Jacobswell Farm". The accompanying map confirms that this was the property we are discussing and describes it as belonging to the late Mrs Bicknell, presumably the widow of John Bicknell mentioned above.

Four years later, in 1891, Jacobs Well Farm is specifically named in the census return. The occupier was Charles Hart, aged 32, farmer of 44 acres, who came from Woking; the rest of his family were his wife Annie and their seven children ranging in age from 15 to 3 years. Since all of them had been baptised in Woking it seems likely that he had only recently taken over the farm. At the 1877 auction he had bought the plot mentioned above, on which a cottage was built to house the family of his cowman, as well as a plot adjacent to the farmhouse.

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