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Summary

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches on the south facing slopes south of Shaugh Barton Farm, Luppitt parish.
Catch meadows are usually found on combe or hill slopes and are designed to irrigate pasture by diverting water from a spring or stream and passing it along the slope via a series of roughly parallel channels or gutters. When irrigation was required the gutters were blocked, causing water to overflow from gutter to gutter, thereby irrigating the slopes below.

Location

Protected Status

• SHINE: Catch meadow, 20th century or earlier, south of Shaugh Barton Farm

Other References/Statuses

• SHINE Candidate (Yes)

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to XX - 1540 AD to 1947 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 F20 2443-2444 11-APR-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356127.

Narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches were visible, water overflowing downslope from the ditches.

Environment Agency, 1998-2014, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution), LIDAR ST1702 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014 (Cartographic). SDV359177.

A single ditch or gutter remained visible as a slight earthwork.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R., 2016-2018, The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV359463.

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches on the south facing slopes south of Shaugh Barton Farm Farm, Luppitt parish.
Many 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 and often continued in use into the twentieth century. 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 the March and April.
The system at Shaugh Farm appeared to be in use in April 1947, with the effect of running water visible on the combe slopes. The system was probably supplied with water from a spring immediately south of the farm. However, the ditches were less regularly laid out than is typical for a catch meadow, not conforming closely to the contours of the combe. Instead, the gutters cross the contours at approximately 45 degrees. It is possible that the ditches or gutters also had a drainage function. With the exception of the lowest ditch centred on circa ST17560287, the earthworks were not visible on digital images derived from lidar data.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV356127	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1947. RAF/CPE/UK/1974. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1974 F20 2443-2444 11-APR-1947. [Mapped feature: #74350 ]
SDV359177	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 1998-2014. LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR ST1702 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014.
SDV359463	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R.. 2016-2018. The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project. Historic England Research Report. Digital.
	Linked documents:2

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7508 - The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme (NMP) project (Ref: ACD1228)

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