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Summary

A possible water meadow of probable 19th to 20th century date is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onward as earthwork ditches on the south slopes to the east of Killicleave Farm, with which it is probably associated. Known locally as catchwork, catch-meadow or field-gutter systems, such water meadows are typically found on combe or hill slopes and are normally supplied with water by tapping warm springs or streams.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to XX - 1540 AD to 1904 AD)
• WATER MEADOW (Post Medieval to XX - 1540 AD to 1904 AD)

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

The western end of the gutter to the south of the drive are depicted.

Ordnance Survey, 1904 - 1906, Second Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map (Cartographic). SDV325644.

Both the western and north-eastern sections of the upper gutter or head-main are depicted.

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/106G/UK/1655, NMR RAF/106G/UK/1655 3167-3168 11-JUL-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV349996.

Earthwork ditches are visible east of Killicleave Farm.

Ordnance Survey, 1989, OS/89114, NMR OS/89/114 647-648 04-MAY-1989 (Aerial Photograph). SDV350315.

The earthwork ditches remain visible.

Environment Agency, 2006, LiDAR data JPEG image (1 metre resolution), LIDAR SS4246 Environment Agency D0059631 04-APR-2006 (Cartographic). SDV350492.

The main elements of the earthwork ditches remain visible.

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

A possible water meadow of probable 19th to 20th century date is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onward as earthwork ditches on the south slopes to the east of Killicleave Farm, with which it is probably associated.
Known locally as catchwork, catch-meadow or field-gutter systems, such water meadows are typically found on combe or hill slopes. They irrigate the pasture slopes with water diverted from warm springs or streams by passing it along a the top of the slope in a water channel or ‘headmain’ and, when irrigation was required, causing the channel to overflow, the water passing evenly own the slope via a series of lower roughly parallel water channels or ‘gutters’.
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 western ends of the gutter, to the south of the drive to the farm, are depicted on the Ordnance Survey First Edition 25 inch map. The north-eastern, longer section of gutter is depicted on the Ordnance Survey Second Edition 25 inch map. Only the lower, subsidiary gutter at circa SS53044675 is not depicted on either historic map. This might support the interpretation that the water meadow was a 19th century creation which developed and continued in use into the early years of the 20th century. However, catch meadows often evolved over time and many were recut and replanned over many years, so the Ordnance Survey evidence might reflect only a relatively recent incarnation and this system may have had older origins. The earthworks remain visible on aerial photographs of 1989 and can be seen on digital images derived from Lidar data acquired in 2006.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV325644	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1904 - 1906. Second Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map. Second Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map. Map (Digital).
SDV336179	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1880-1899. First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map. First Edition Ordnance Survey 25 inch Map. Map (Digital).
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
SDV349996	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/106G/UK/1655. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR RAF/106G/UK/1655 3167-3168 11-JUL-1946.
SDV350315	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1989. OS/89114. Ordnance Survey Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). NMR OS/89/114 647-648 04-MAY-1989.
SDV350492	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 2006. LiDAR data JPEG image (1 metre resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR SS4246 Environment Agency D0059631 04-APR-2006. [Mapped feature: #62606 ]

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

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

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