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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 1947 and 1950, to the northwest of Stafford Barton.The catch meadow is not clearly visible on aerial photographs after 1950 or on digital images and may have since been levelled.

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 (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 RS 4451-52 11-APR-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356127.

Earthwork gutters are visible.

Royal Air Force, 1950, RAF/541/453, RAF/541/453 RS 4108-09 04-MAR-1950 (Aerial Photograph). SDV357845.

Earthwork gutters are visible.

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 catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1947 and 1950, to the northwest of Stafford Barton. 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 catch meadow covers an area of approximately 2.51 hectares of northwest facing slope. The system comprises a series of gutters which measure less than 2m in width and appear to tap a spring-fed stream that flows through Stafford Barton, approximately 45m to the east. It is unclear from the aerial photographs alone with which farm this water meadow system might have been associated with. Not being directly linked to a farmstead it probably operated as a ‘detached’ system. The catch meadow is not clearly visible on aerial photographs after 1950 or on digital images and may have since been levelled.

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 RS 4451-52 11-APR-1947.
SDV357845	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1950. RAF/541/453. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/541/453 RS 4108-09 04-MAR-1950. [Mapped feature: #76699 ]
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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