MMO3594 - Post-medieval water meadow west of Woodford (Monument)

A post-medieval water meadow system, known locally as a catchwater meadow, is visible on aerial photographs as a series of earthworks west of Woodford, Nettlecombe. Centred at approximately ST 0604 3850, a number of gutters are visible following the contours of the hillside above a pond named Island Pond and a small stream. The gutters cover an area of some 14.9 hectares, and may have been constructed as a landscape feature associated with Nettlecombe Park rather than with any specific agricultural purpose in mind. The system does not appear to be connected to any local farmyards, suggesting that this was a detached system which only distributed water to the fields and not liquid manure or other fertilisers. Catchwater meadows used a series of approximately parallel gutters to distribute flowing water evenly over the surface of the meadow in order to prevent freezing in winter and encourage early growth in spring, thereby providing extra feed for livestock. Most catchwater meadows are believed to date to the post-medieval period, although it is possible that they were first developed in the medieval period. [1-3] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [4]