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Summary

Shilston Barton's designed landscape contains many formal features possibly dating from 1650-1750. Some of these features, particularly the terraces north of the current house, are visible on aerial photographs and lidar derived images.

Location

Protected Status

• SHINE: Earthworks and features of landscaped garden at Shilstone Barton dating from the 17th to 19th century and sites of former orchards dating to the 19th century or earlier to the south at Croppin's Coombe

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX65SE/27/4

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• GARDEN (Early Medieval to XVIII - 1066 AD to 1800 AD)

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1890, Devon County Council RAF/CPE/UK/1890 FS 2194-2195 10-DEC-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV169268.

The terraces are visible as earthworks.

Devon Gardens Trust, 1999, Devon Local Register, 126 (Un-published). SDV170167.

Currie, C. K., 2000, Archaeological Recording of Garden Features at Shilston Barton (Report - Survey). SDV342848.

Shilston Barton's designed landscape contains many formal features possibly dating from 1650-1750. Water features are located to the south of the house with the main focus being a rare 'Water Theatre' or grotto. Other formal elements include three small ornamental ponds and a rustic cascade.

Currie, C. K., 2001, Water, water, every where!, 1 (Article in Serial). SDV342859.

The designed landscape at Shilston contains many formal features that might place it in the period 1650-1750. It is possible that there was some later alteration and evolution particularly in the 19th century when various features were rebuilt or modified. One of the main foci of the design is atripple arched building built over a series of springs at the head of the Shilston valley. The landscape also contained three small ponds with formal elements in their design. Between two of the ponds are the remains of a rustic cascade.

Gray, A., 2009, Devon Rural Archive. A New Research Resource, 33 (Article in Serial). SDV347400.

Shilstone has a remarkable and complex 18th century water garden.

Devon Gardens Trust, 2013, Devon Gazetteer of Parks and Gardens of Local Interest (Reg/Local list of Historic Parks and Gdns). SDV354335.

Clark, J., 2013, Shilston Barton (Un-published). SDV358181.

A cursory glance at the landscape could suggest that there is little of any interest to the garden historian. There is a lack of established planting and ornamental trees with exception of one Veteran Chestnut and several Evergreen Oaks of c 1800. However, the ornamental landscape at Shilston is extremely intriguing because of four surviving features. First, there is a series of terraces above the current house which may be linked with the medieval building. Second, a stone built rectangular kitchen garden has an ornamental tower and, more interestingly, an unusual raised walk along the length of the back south-west facing wall. The tower appears to have been built in the early nineteenth century but the walkway would have been a curious feature to build at that date. But the main area of interest lies with the series of three rectangular stone-sided ponds descending the valley. The history of these ponds is all the more interesting because the survival of the fourth principal garden feature: this is a three vaulted water chamber built into the hillside between the site of the medieval house and the first of the ponds. The chamber is extremely well built and must have been expensive to build in both its design and execution. Behind it is an older chamber built deeper into the hillside.

Google, 2019, Google Earth Pro, EARTH.GOOGLE.COM 26-MAR-2005 ACCESSED 12-JUN-2020EARTH.GOOGLE.COM 26-MAR-2005 ACCESSED 12-JUN-2020 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363088.

One set of steps has been installed and the turf has been stripped to facilitate groundworks.

Google, 2019, Google Earth Pro, EARTH.GOOGLE.COM XX-XXX-2010 ACCESSED 12-JUN-2020 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363088.

The terraces are under new pasture and 5 sets of steps are visible.

Environment Agency, 2019, National Lidar Programme, LIDAR Environment Agency DTM 25-FEB-2019 (Cartographic). SDV363691.

The landscaping of the garden, particularly the northern terraces, is clearly visible.

Hegarty, C., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2019-2021, The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping Survey. Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (AI&M, formerly NMP) (Interpretation). SDV362982.

A series of terraces to the north of Shilston Barton house are probably part of a post-medieval designed landscape.
The terraces are visible as somewhat eroded earthworks under pasture and scrub-vegetation on aerial photographs of 1946.
Enhancement of the terraces is visible on digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2016. One set of steps has been installed and the turf has been stripped to facilitate groundworks.
By 2010 five sets of steps have been installed and the now remodelled terraces are under fresh turf.
The current form of the terraces and scale of surrounding landscaping is most clearly apparent on visualisations derived from lidar data captured in 2019.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4544 - Excavation in the Gardens at Shilston Barton
• EDV8098 - The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping (formerly NMP) Survey, Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (Ref: ACD2040)

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