1930s: Land Utilisation Survey

The GA established a Regional Survey Committee in the 1920s and running into the 30s when it worked on finalising the Land Utilisation Survey.
This was instigated by Laurence Dudley Stamp, who was to become GA President later.

He had previously completed other land use work, and was interested in the publication of a map of Northamptonshire, published by the OS after the work of a geography teacher called Mr. E. E. Field.

Dudley Stamp according to 'Billy' Balchin, "was quick to realise the potential value of a national Land Utilisation Survey for GB as a whole and immediately proposed through the GA committee the establishment of a central organisation at the LSE"

This had representatives from the GA, OS, Ministry of Agriculture and Education Authorities. The GA couldn't afford to fund the survey, and in 1930, it became a separate Association under the Directorship of L Dudley Stamp.

During the 1930s, the survey continued, with the rural areas being easier to complete. The Six Inch survey was completed first, followed by the One Inch survey, funded by county sponsorships and help from individual LEAs (remember those?)

The survey was carried out by teachers, pupils, Scouts and Guides, students, WI members and even nuns. Those involved were convinced that if the land could be used better, Britain would be better - some great pre-War optimism.
Once the surveys were undertaken, the maps were returned to the office. They were transcribed by hand, and Dudley Stamp went out to many parts of the country to check them for accuracy. The Survey was funded by the royalties from Stamp's books. As the maps from the survey were published, Stamp wrote memoirs for each county that had been covered.

Stamp estimated, according to Rex Walford, that a quarter of a million schoolchildren were involved in the Land Utilisation Survey. It was later repeated under the helm of Alice Coleman (more on that to come in a later blog post), and finally in 1996 (more on that to come later too). James Fairgrieve (another former President was also involved according to Fleure's reports on the Survey in 1953
The layer was made available online, so it can be accessed.
It can be seen in the Visions of Britain website.

Here is the layer for Ely, for example.


Some sections of the country have a more 'hand-drawn' look to them.

A later survey was featured in a piece by Rex Walford which I have blogged about and will appear here in time.

Reference
Rex Walford (2001) - Land Utilisation Survey is featured in detail on pp. 108-112

Stamp, L. Dudley. “THE LAND UTILISATION SURVEY OF BRITAIN.” Geography, vol. 16, no. 1, 1931, pp. 44–51. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40557799.

Fleure, H. F:  (1953) https://www.jstor.org/stable/40564702 "Sixty years of geography and education"