Place Name
Thought to be a reference, albeit a misspelt one, to a 15thCentury landowner William Somercotes who, along with others, bought the manor or manor-farm of Ludgraves in 1423. This consisted of a messuage, 120 acres of land, 80 acres of meadow, and 80 acres of woodland. The local area was part of Monken Hadley rather than East Barnet parish, and in Monken Hadley church, the earliest brass is to Philip and Margaret Green and Margaret Somercotes, dated 1442, and moved from an earlier building. It seems possible that William was Margaret’s father. The surname itself refers to someone living at, near, or owning cottages (cotes/coates) used only in summer. This is infill and laid out over the former grounds of Ludgrove House.
