Although Willaston had a number of farmsteads in the Middle Ages, most of the surrounding landscape was uncultivated. However, this began to change as more and more common land began to fall into private ownership during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The process (known as 'enclosure') brought major changes to rural communities such as Willaston, as individual plots of land were fenced off and used for arable farming, meadows and the grazing of livestock. The Sneyd family were absentee landlords but they owned most of the lands in Willaston from 1533 to the late 19th century.