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Summary

A possible water meadow is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as series earthwork ditches on the west-facing slopes of a combe to the west and north of Higher Warcombe Farm. Such water-meadows, known locally as catchwork, catchmeadow or field-gutter systems, are usually found on combe or hill slopes and are designed to irrigate pasture by diverting water from a spring or stream along the slope via a series of roughly parallel channels or gutters. When irrigation was required the gutters were blocked, causing water to overflow, thereby irrigating the slopes. This film of water prevented the ground freezing during the winter and raised the temperature of the grass in the spring, thereby encouraging early growth, particularly important during the hungry gap of the March and April.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• WATER MEADOW (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Full description

Royal Air Force, 19/05/1947, RAF/CPE/UK/2082, NMR RAF/CPE/UK/2082 4073-4 19-MAY-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV350392.

Narrow roughly parallel but irregular ditches are visible.

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/106G/UK/1655, NMR RAF/106G/UK/1655 3033-334 11-JUL-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV349996.

Narrow roughly parallel but irregular ditches are visible.

Ordnance Survey, 1989, OS/89114, NMR OS/89114 669-670 04-MAY-1989 (Aerial Photograph). SDV350315.

The south eastern corner of the possible water meadow has been impacted by expansion of the farm building complex.

Next Perspectives, 2010, Next Perspectives PGA Tile Ref:, PGAs Next Perspectives PGA Tile Ref: SS4745 08-APR-2010 (Aerial Photograph). SDV349899.

Further northwards expansion of the farm building complex has probably further impcated on the possible water meadow gutters.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S., 2011 - 2012, North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV349018.

A water-meadow of probable 19th century date is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onward as earthworks centred on circa SS47654587 the west of Higher Warcombe Farm.
Such water-meadows, known as catchwork, catch-meadow or field-gutter systems, are usually found on combe or hill slopes and are designed to irrigate pasture by diverting water from a spring or stream. The water is carried along the valley sides via one or more channels or gutters and when irrigation was required the gutters were blocked, causing water to overflow from gutter to gutter, thereby irrigating the slopes. This film of water prevented the ground freezing during the winter and raised the temperature of the grass in the spring, thereby encouraging early growth, particularly important during the hungry gap of March and April.
The visible gutters cover an area of around 1.8 hectares on the combe slopes to the north of the farm. The system might have been supplied with water from a spring that rises at a location formerly within the farmstead, now located in the garden of Warcombe Cottage. The possible gutters are less regular in plan than many catchmeadows but this might reflect the uneven nature of the local topography. It is also possible that one transcribed feature, centred on circa SS47654587, might simply be the course of a footpath or a footpath adapted from a former gutter.
By 1989 the highest two possible gutters have potentially been levelled or damaged by the construction of a farm building at circa SS47704580. Further expansion of the farm complex between 2001 and 2010 resulted a new building at circa SS47694586 which probably further impacted on the highest two earthworks. However, tree planting and scrub vegetation obscures the remaining possible gutters and their current condition is unknown.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV349018	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S.. 2011 - 2012. North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty National Mapping Programme Project. AC Archaeology Report. ACD383/2/1. Digital.
	Linked documents:1
SDV349899	Aerial Photograph: Next Perspectives. 2010. Next Perspectives PGA Tile Ref:. Pan Government Agreement Aerial Photographs. Digital. PGAs Next Perspectives PGA Tile Ref: SS4745 08-APR-2010.
SDV349996	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/106G/UK/1655. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR RAF/106G/UK/1655 3033-334 11-JUL-1946.
SDV350315	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1989. OS/89114. Ordnance Survey Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR OS/89114 669-670 04-MAY-1989.
SDV350392	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 19/05/1947. RAF/CPE/UK/2082. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR RAF/CPE/UK/2082 4073-4 19-MAY-1947.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6132 - North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty NMP Project

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