MMO2657 - Post-medieval ditch or leat west of West Lodge (Monument)

A probable post-medieval ditch or leat is visible on aerial photographs as an earthwork in a field immediately west of West Lodge, Wootton Courtenay. Centred at approximately SS 9543 4279, the ditch curves in an S shape, running approximately northwest to southeast and roughly following the contours of the slope. The ditch measures some 120 metres in length and up to 3 metres wide, although it may have been spread by plouhing. It appears to drain into a stream to the south, which in turn drains into the River Avill. There is no ditch shown at this location on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map, suggesting it was out of use by the time of publication in 1889. The precise function of this ditch is uncertain - it may have been a drainage ditch, similar to that seen in the adjacent field (MMO2656) or it may be the remains of a water meadow system. Catchwater meadows, as they are locally known, used a series of approximately parallel gutters located on a slope 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. This large ditch may well have been a "feeder" ditch or headmain for such a system, now lost through ploughing. [1-4] Lush mark showing former stream course. [5-6] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [7]