MMO2731 - Possible post-medieval drainage system northeast of Aclands Farm (Monument)

A small area of regular post-medieval drainage ditches is visible on aerial photographs on moorland to the northeast of Aclands Farm, Exmoor. Centred at approximately SS 7322, four parallel ditches running north to south are visible, connected to a pair of ditches running east to west. It seems likely that the four parallel ditches were designed to channel water across the east facing slope to the pair of ditches, which then directed the water down slope to the River Barle. The system is small, covering an area of only 0.8 hectares. The ditches were most likely cut in an attempt to drain the land some time after 1841. Aclands was built after this date according to Burton [2]. According to Orwin, many miles of drainage ditches were cut across parts of Exmoor, but failed to provide adequate drainage for much of the land to be enclosed. Other similar ditches are visible in the surrounding areas, some draining into natural streams and water courses, others appearing to drain into specially constructed leats. These ditches are believed to have been constructed as part of the Knight family's attempt at land improvement, and it is possible that this small system at Aclands was an attempt to copy their methods. [1-4] The full description from Burton states that most of the farmsteads on Exmoor had been constructed by c. 1850, with only three farms being constructed since. This includes Aclands Farm. [2] Aclands Farm does not appear on the 1st or 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey maps but is shown on the 1946-8 Royal Air Force aerial photographs. It is not clear whether the drainage system predates the farmstead, or if it is contemporary with it. The GIS mapping has been extended to reflect the evidence shown in the 1946-8 photographs. [5-7] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [8]