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Summary

A possible catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1946, to the south of Peadhill.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to Modern - 1540 AD to 2013 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS, RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS 4336-37 04-NOV-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356902.

The possible catch meadow is visible as a series of earthwork ditches.

Ordnance Survey, 1966, OS/66184 V, OS/66184 V 062-63 22-JUL-1966 (Aerial Photograph). SDV357044.

The possible catch meadow gutters are no longer visible and have probably been completely levelled.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R., 2014-2015, East and Mid Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV356883.

A possible catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1946, to the south of Peadhill. Most catch meadow systems are believed to date to the post medieval period, although it is likely that they were first developed in the medieval period. Catch meadows provided a simple, inexpensive and effective form of irrigation. When irrigation was required water was diverted from a source such as a pond, river, spring or spring-fed stream and passed along the meadow slopes via one or more of the gutters, which was then caused to overflow. The lower, roughly parallel gutters then ‘caught’ and redistributed water passing it evenly over the surface of a meadow below. The gently flowing water prevented the ground freezing in winter and encouraged early growth in spring, thereby providing extra feed for livestock, particularly important during the hungry gap of March and April. The possible catch meadow covers an area of approximately 0.44 hectares of southeast facing slope, approximately 120m to the southeast of the farmstead of Peadhill. The system comprises a series of gutters which measure less than 2m in width and appear to tap a spring-fed stream to the northeast of the system. Whilst the water meadow was likely associated with the farmstead of Peadhill, it probably operated as a ‘detached’ system. The catch meadow was not visible on aerial photographs of 1966 and appears to have been completely levelled.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV356883	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R.. 2014-2015. East and Mid Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project. AC Archaeology Report. Digital.
	Linked documents:1
SDV356902	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS 4336-37 04-NOV-1946. [Mapped feature: #67951 ]
SDV357044	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1966. OS/66184 V. Ordnance Survey. Photograph (Paper). OS/66184 V 062-63 22-JUL-1966.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6530 - The East and Mid-Devon Rivers Catchment NMP project (Ref: ACD613)

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