Common pasture land around Purton was enclosed by the 1739 Enclosure Act.  Prior to the Act commoners had rights to graze a set number of animals on the commons.  It was not a free-for-all,  but grazing was difficult to police and commons were frequently over-grazed and the quality of the grazing declined.  The Act allocated land to commoners in proportion to the grazing rights they already had; this land was enclosed by fences or hedges and became the property of the commoner.  They were then able to keep whatever stock they wished on the land and also improve the quality of the grazing.  After the enclosures a detailed map was produced showing who-owned-what in Purton parish.  The map has been studied in detail by Judith Rouse and her daughter Emma who was responsible for the photography and creating the images of the map (Emma Rouse BA Hons, MA, MiFA).