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Summary

A catch meadow system of post-medieval to early 20th century origin is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1946 and 1987, and on visualisations derived from lidar data captured in 2005 and 2013 at Woodtown.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX37NE/528

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1540 AD to 1932 AD (Between))

Full description

APH, Untitled Source (Migrated Record). SDV216240.

Earthworks in area of woodtown farm. Some appear to be part of a leat system. Recorded from the air by f. Griffith in 1987 (aph).

Untitled Source (Aerial Photograph). SDV216241.

Aph=dap/hu 15/(12/1/1987).

Untitled Source (Aerial Photograph). SDV216242.

Aph=dap/hv 2-4/(12/1/1987).

Devon County Council, 1838-1848, Tithe Mosaic, approximately 1838-1848 (Cartographic). SDV349431.

The earthworks do not correspond to any depicted features. The plots are recorded as ‘Water Leat Hill’, ‘Great Little Meadow’, ’Homer Meadow’ and ‘Baiks Park Meadow’.

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

The earthworks do not correspond to any depicted features.

Royal Air Force, 1946 - 1949, Royal Air Force Aerial Photographs (Aerial Photograph). SDV342938.

The ditches are visible as earthworks.

Environment Agency, 2000-2019, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution) EA: Tamar Aerial Survey project area, LIDAR Environment Agency LAST RETURN 20-FEB-2005 (Cartographic). SDV363954.

A series of narrow curvilinear ditches are visible as earthworks.

Cornwall Archaeological Unit, 2001-2002, Tamar Valley National Mapping Programme Transcriptions and Database Records, RAF/3G/TUD/137/5056 11-APR-1946 (Interpretation). SDV346287.

A field system of unknown, but potential medieval, date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1946.

NERC, 2013, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution) Tellus: Tamar Aerial Survey project area, LIDAR Tellus LAST RETURN 01-JUL-2013 to 31-AUG-2013 (Cartographic). SDV363955.

A series of narrow curvilinear ditches are visible as earthworks.

Hegarty, C., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2016, Backlog Recording of the Tamar Valley National Mapping Programme Survey (Personal Comment). SDV359374.

The earthwork ditches, which are aligned with the steep south facing slope, most likely form part of a post-medieval catch meadow system. The earthworks have been previously interpreted as a field system, which seems unlikely.

Google, 2019, Google Earth Pro, EARTH.GOOGLE.COM 01-JAN-2001 ACCESSED 26-APR-2021 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363088.

The ditches are visible as earthworks.

Hegarty, C., Houghton, E., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2020-2021, Tamar/Lidar; A Single Source Approach to Landscape Survey and Socially Distanced Community Archaeology Area 1 (AI&M project) (Interpretation). SDV363945.

A series of narrow curvilinear ditches are visible as earthworks on visualisations derived from lidar data captured in 2005 and 2013. Most of the ditches align closely to contours across several south-west and south-east facing fields either side of a shallow combe at Woodtown. A narrow curvilinear bank is also visible.
The ditches do not correspond to any features depicted on the available historic maps. A stream is depicted running from the north and diverted into several streams through the valley. The plots are recorded as ‘Water Leat Hill’, ‘Great Little Meadow’, ’Homer Meadow’ and ‘Baiks Park Meadow’ in the Tithe Apportionment. They are visible on aerial photographs dating from the 1940s and from the late 20th to early 21st century.
The ditches are interpreted as gutters of a former catch meadow of post-medieval to early 20th century origin, that tapped the stream flowing from the north. Some ditchesare visible which do not follow the contours of the slope and are proably drainage channels possibly dug to stop the catch meadow functioning after it passed out of use. These ditches have not been transcribed.
Catch meadows abstracted from springs or streams and redistributed it along channels or gutters to irrigate combe slopes rather than valley floors. Originating in the medieval period they were in widespread use in Devon in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Some of the ditches had been previously transcribed by the Tamar Valley NMP, and have been re-transcribed based on recent lidar data.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6911 - Tamar Valley National Mapping Programme
• EDV8345 - Tamar/Lidar; A Single Source Approach to Landscape Survey and Socially Distanced Community Archaeology Area 1 (AI&M) (Ref: ACD2380)

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