Transactions Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
TRANSACTIONS OF THE WOOLHOPE NATURALISTS' FIELD CLUB HEREFORDSHIRE "HOPE ON" "HOPE EVER" • ESTABLISHED 1851 VOLUME XLVI 1988 PART I TRANSACTIONS OF THE WOOLHOPE NATURALISTS' FIELD CLUB HEREFORDSHIRE "HOPE ON" "HOPE EVER" ESTABLISHED 1851 VOLUME XLVI 1988 PART I TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Proceedings, 1988 Ancient Bridges and a Hereford Bridge Brotherhood, by George Charnock 12 The Leech Pool, Clifford: A Five-Year Survey, by the late J. D. P. Graham 27 Chaplains, Chantries and Chapels of North-West Herefordshire c. 1400, by P. E. H. Hair 31 Nos. 57 to 59 High Street, Bromyard, by Vera and Roy Perry 65 Kington Orders an Organ, by J. B. Sinclair and R. W. D. Fenn 69 Alfred Watkins and The Old Straight Track, by L. V. Grinsell 76 Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club 1988 All contributions to The Woolhope Transactions are COPYRIGHT. None of them A flint axe-head from near Bredenbury, by J. D. Hurst - 82 may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the writers. Applications to reproduce contributions, in whole or A Bronze Age Vessel from near Leintwardine, by J. D. Hurst 83 in part, should be addressed in the first instance, to the editor whose address is given in the LIST OF OFFICERS. Identification of a Domesday Manor, by Elizabeth Taylor 84 A 'Lost' Domesday Manor, by J. W. Tonkin 86 The Fonts at Ledbury, by the late S. F. Gavin Robinson - 87 REPORTS OF SECTIONAL RECORDERS Archaeology, 1988, by R. Shoesmith 89 Botany, 1988, by P. Thomson using Herefordshire Botanical Society Records 94 Buildings, 1988, by J. W. Tonkin 96 Geology, 1988, by P. Cross 99 Herefordshire Field-Names, 1988, by G. Sprackling 100 Industrial Archaeology, 1988, by J. van Laun 107 Mammals, 1988, by W. H. D. Wince 119 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Page Ornithology, 1988, by Beryl Harding 121 The Leech Pool, Clifford City of Hereford, Conservation Area Advisory Committee, 1988, Map 28 by Joe Hillaby - - - - - - 124 Table 1 27 Archaeological Research Section, 1988, by M. T. Hemming 130 Chaplains, Chantries and Chapels 36 Natural History Section, 1988, by Beryl Harding 132 Map Churches and Chapels c. 1400 Nos. 57 to 59 High Street, Bromyard Weather Statistics, 1988, by E. H. Ward - - - - 137 Pl. I Hall open truss - lower part 138 List of Members - - - - II Hall open truss - upper part III Only remaining wind-braces IV Edge-halved and bridle-butted joint on wall-plate V Cusped raking-braces above solar VI Front post with principal and brace jointed to it VII Principal rafter re-used as purlin Fig. 1 Plan and sections 67 A flint axe-head from near Bredenbury Fig. 1 Neolithic axe-head (2/3) 82 A Bronze Age Vessell from near Leintwardine Fig. 1 Bronze Age pottery (') 83 The Fonts at Ledbury Pl. VIII 17th-century font discovered under floor in Ledbury Church LIST OF OFFICERS 1988-89 President - Mr. R. C. PERRY President-elect - Mr. E. H. WARD Vice-presidents - Mr. G. CHARNOCK Mr. J. G. HILLABY Mr. C. E. ATTFIELD Mr. J. W. TONKIN Central Committee Mrs. V. E. PERRY, Mr. H. J. POWELL, Revd. R. W. SMITH, Mrs. M. M. VOSS (to retire 1989); Dr. Mrs. A. D. BRIAN, Dr. F. PEXTON, Group-Capt. G. REES, Mrs. R. RICHARDSON (to retire 1990); Mr. B. BUTCHER, Miss E. DAVIES, Mrs. B. HARDING, Mrs. J. E. O'DONNELL (to retire 1991). Hon. Secretary - Mr. J. W. TONKIN Hon. Assistant Secretary Mrs. M. TONKIN Hon. Treasurer - Mr. D. C. HAMER Hon. Auditor Mr. H. S. BERISFORD Hon. Librarian Mr. B. J. WHITEHOUSE Hon. Assistant Librarian - Mr. J. G. HILLARY Hon. Field Secretary - Mr. & Mrs. E. H. WARD (jointly) Hon. Editor - Mr. J. W. TONKIN Hon. Assistant Editor - Mr. R. E. KAY (Archaeology) SECTIONAL RECORDERS Archaeology - Mr. R. SHOESMITH Botany - Mr. P. THOMSON Buildings Mr. J. W. TONKIN Deserted Medieval Villages - Mrs. R. E. SKELTON Entomology - - - Dr. Mrs. A. D. BRIAN Geology - Dr. P. CROSS Herefordshire Field-Names - Mr. G. SPRACKLING Industrial Archaeology Mr. J. van LAUN Mammals - Dr. W. H. D. WINCE Ornithology Mrs. B. HARDING Address of Address of Address of Hon. Secretary: Hon. Asst. Secretary: Hon. Editor: Proceedings, 1988 Mr. J. W. TONKIN Mrs. M. TONKIN Mr. J. W. TONKIN Chy an Whyloryon Chy an Whyloryon Chy an Whyloryon, Wigmore Wigmore Wigmore SPRING MEETINGS Leominster Leominster Leominster HR6 9UD HR6 9UD HR6 9UD FIRST MEETING: 9 January: Mr. G. Charnock, president, in the chair. The Sectional Recorders for Archaeology, Botany, Buildings, Entomology, Geology, Articles intended for inclusion in future issues of the Woolhope Club Transactions Industrial Archaeology, Mammals and Ornithology gave their reports. These and the should be submitted to the editor whose address is given under LIST OF OFFICERS. reports of the Archaeological Research Section and Natural History Section for 1988 are Notes for Contributors to the Transactions will be sent on request. printed on pp. 89-136. SECOND MEETING: 6 February; Mr. G. Charnock, president, in the chair. Dr. B. Swann gave an illustrated talk on 'The History and Present Distribution of Herefordshire Commons,' She explained that commons were owned by someone and that to be a common at least one of the following six rights must apply (1) grazing (2) estovers (wood) (3) turbary (peat) (4) piscary (fish) (5) pannage (beech mast and acorns) and (6) in the soil (gravel and marl). The Statute of Merton of 1236 gave the lord of the manor the right to enclose land but sufficient land had to be left for the free tenants. Enclosure con- tinued by agreement, by private acts and after 1660 by parliamentary acts. These were ex- pensive and by 1797 over 1,000 enclosures had taken place. In 1801 the first General Enclosure Act was passed which brought down the costs. Enclosure went on until the last act was passed in 1914. The Law of Property Act of 1925 gave the public right of access to commons in urban areas and landowners could make land common. A Royal Commis- sion, 1955-8, on commons referred to one million acres in England and half a million acres in Wales, but the tithe-map surveys of the 1840s had shown two and a half million acres. Under the Registration Act of 1965 all commons had to be registered. At this time many rights were bought out: thus commons were still disappearing. In 1873 in Herefordshire there were 10,000 acres of common land and by 1986 there were only 5,000 acres, consisting of 197 commons. There were eleven of over 200 acres, nine between 100 and 200 acres, 111 under five acres of which forty-three were under one acre. At the same time forty-two village greens were registered. Of the six rights men- tioned above grazing was the most common. Examples of commons are Ballsgate, Bring- sty, Bromyard Downs, Broadmoor, Clifford, Sellack and Westhope Hill. THIRD MEETING: 5 March: Mr. G. Charnock, president, in the chair. Mr. John van Laun gave an illustrated talk on 'The Evolution of Railways.' He ex- plained that the first recorded railway was used in the building of the Corinth Canal in 600 B.C. and that the Greeks were already using the 4 ft. 81/2 ins. gauge in 480 B.C. Medieval Germans used dogs to haul trucks on a 'railed way', one in which grooves had been worn 1 2 PROCEEDINGS PROCEEDINGS 3 by use. Flanged wheels on wooden rails replaced the grooves, but at Ironbridge came the In Monmouth members visited 83-5 Monnow Street where Mr. Stephen Clark gave tramway with the flange on the rail. He pointed out the technical differences between an account of the archaeological work in Monmouth in recent years by the Monmouth tramways and railways, flanged rails, flanged wheels and grooved rails, and the impor- Archaeological Society and explained the present site which occupies two burgage plots tance of Blaenavon in 1799 with the flange on the wheel. He referred to the use of em- and the different layers and occupation of the site dating from the 12th century which has bankments and the development of the self-acting inclined plane at Redbrook on Wye and produced quantities of pottery, bones and organic material and also the first piece of the part played by Crawshay Baily's engine at Brynmawr. In the days of the steam tram- Chester Ware from South Wales. In situ were seen two cooking pots containing food re- ways and railways the need for a pond every two miles for water for the engine was a mains. disadvantage. The inventions of Robert Stephenson in 1825-30 and the building of the The final visit was to the church dedicated to St. Mary. It was rebuilt in 1882 by G. E. Stockton to Darlington railway were the beginnings of the modern system which was developed and improved by Isambard Kingdom Brunel whose Kilsbury Tunnel which Street but the tower is 14th century. Of particular interest are the stained glass windows by opened in 1837 made the trunk line from London to Birmingham possible. C. E. Kempe and the screen and furnishings of the chapel of the Good Shepherd by Carod in 1928. SPRING ANNUAL MEETING: 26 March: Mr. G. Charnock, president, in the chair. SECOND MEETING: 19 May: SEVERN VALLEY AND WOLVERHAMPTON Mr. Charnock reported on the year's activities and said that the winter lectures on a variety of subjects were well attended. The six summer field meetings and the week's visit After coffee at Dunley members travelled to the railway station at Bewdley and after based at Newcastle were well supported as in recent years.