Prior to 1800 most of the land around Kentmere was unenclosed common land, but at that time farms began to be bought by wealthy people from outside the area. They set about enclosing the land and improving the farms that they now owned. Lime from a quarry located above Kentmere Hall was used to condition the soil, and field drains were added to make the land more suitable for agriculture. The Wilsons, who owned Kentmere Hall, drained Kentmere Tarn in the 1830s, hoping that the reclaimed land would be of good quality. However, these alterations to the landscape had unexpected consequences for the mill owners further downstream who relied on the steady flow of the River Kent to maintain their operations. The loss of bogs which had released water into the river, maintaining its steady flow, meant that the flow fluctuated widely, interrupting operation of the mills.