By 1806 the first farms were under cultivation in Gloucester as Sorell district was then known. Early land grants were given in 1812 to the following:

Robert Alloms or Allomes	Charles Anthony	William Baxter	Jacob Billett or Bellette
John or James Birchall	Richard Buckingham	James Davies	Frederick Dawes
J. Duncombe	William Fenner	Arnold Fisk	Mary Fogarty
Silas Gatehouse	James Grimes	William Hambly	James Hannaway
Jane Hobbs	William Hopley	Jane Horton (Gill),	A.W.H.Humphrey
John Ingle	Charles Jeffries	Thomas Kent	John Knox
Alexander Laing	I. Larsome	John Liddle	David Lord
Edward Lord	R. W. Loane	William McDowall	John Miles
George Morrisby	Robert Nash	Thomas Pennington	J. Prestage
Bartholomew Reardon	Walter Redpath	Mary Richardson	Thomas Riley
S. Sederick	James Turnbull	John Wade	M. Wicks
Charles Willis	J. Wilson	William Wilson	W. Wood
Thomas Richardson	Thomas Solly?

Sorell was a big farming community.  They transported crops and vegetables to neighbouring parishes to sell at markets. There were two wind mills called Nash windmill and Downwards windmill. Farming was an important part of Sorell history and the main thing that Sorell farmed was wheat and most of the wheat was transported to Sydney.

In 1815, so much wheat was being produced that a flour mill was built by Robert Nash.

John Birchall of Marsh Farm, began in 1816 a wheat delivery service from Pittwater to Kangaroo Point on his new schooner ‘Young William‘ at a rate of 1/6 a bushell.

In south, sheep dominated the Bream Creek area around the coastal flats with dairying the preferred industry on the rich basalt soils of the Ragged tier and at Nugent. Dairy properties were generally small family’s properties with produce being sold to the Bream Creek butter factory from 1899. Pigs were also raised at Bream Creek and sold at the Sorell sale yards.