Historic Environment Review 2016 Rapid Coastal Zone Recording Porlock Houses 2016: Assessment Survey the Old Rose and Crown
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September 2017 Historic E nvironment Review Welcome to our Review of work in the historic environment of Exmoor National Park in 2016. In recent years there has been focus of work on historic buildings and this is reflected by the contents of this review as well as being the focus of our Annual Archaeology Forum held in Brushford in October 2016. The spotlight is also on Dunster (see pages 6 & 7) where much new information has come to light through research and volunteer activity as well as recording during development. As always we have reports on a number of projects demonstrating the huge dedication and support Exmoor’s receives from groups and individuals. Northern Devon In The Tithe: A View of Agriculture in the Early Victorian Period I was first introduced to the Tithe Survey some fifty years ago as agree, then an Assistant Tithe Commissioner heard the a schoolboy visiting the Devon Record Office. In my conflicting pleas and made a binding Award. In northern retirement, I have returned to the Tithe Survey and embarked Devon rather more Tithes were agreed than awarded. upon a study of a selection of parishes across the modern local The Tithe Survey comprises two elements: an Apportionment, government districts of North Devon and Torridge. with every parcel of land numbered and its owner, occupier, The Tithe Survey was carried out between 1836 and 1845 as field name, land use and size recorded; and the actual Map part of the commutation of a tithe in kind (originally one tenth (usually at a scale of 3 chains to the inch, or the equivalent of of the produce) to a payment in cash. In much of England as the modern 1: 1250 plan. I have transcribed the entries, Parliamentary Enclosure of open fields occurred, the tithe had holding by holding and converted the acres, roods and been changed to a cash payment and finally in 1836, perches to decimal acres. I have now covered all of the Devon Parliament agreed that for the rest of England and Wales, this parishes within the Exmoor National Park, except North too should be the norm. A Tithe Commission was set up and Molton, which is easily the largest of the parishes. Of course, the method of survey and processes of reform were stipulated the former Royal Forest, the modern Exmoor parish, had no by Parliament. Parishes were to be mapped and the land-use Tithe Survey as there was no parish church to be supported by surveyed and a valuer would make an estimation of the cash payment for each parcel of land. If a parish meeting agreed tithe. I hope to write a paper on the Devon Exmoor parishes these figures, then the Tithe was Agreed and the Tithe to go with other papers on the Tithe that I have published in Commissioners simply approved the survey. If the parish The Devon Historian. meeting, including all the landowners and occupiers could not John Bradbeer, North Devon Archaeological Society Paracombe Tithe Map 2 Historic Environment Review 2016 Rapid Coastal Zone Recording Porlock houses 2016: Assessment Survey The Old Rose and Crown. This survey of Exmoor’s coastal heritage, funded by Historic The Old Rose & Crown opposite the Church was England, increased the number of recorded features along the probably an inn from early times and still has built in coast by 350. It includes an overview of coastal change from benches, a first floor function room and a washroom the Palaeolithic period onwards and an assessment of the complete with copper. It was closed as a public house degree and nature of threat posed to the sites. in 1887, reportedly because of rowdyism! High cliffs At the far end of the block is a small shop which was provide a robust known as "Cape's Stores" (now part of Sanctuary Cottage) defence against but which has been re-aligned since the time of the tithe coastal flooding, map (1841). This was run from 1887 by Mr & Mrs Cape and although sites later on by Maria Cape alone. In some old trade directories, on the narrow they are shown to have been “grocer and corn dealer” and foreshore such there are still bins for grain in a store at the rear. as lime kilns, Sanctuary Cottage was recorded in 1982 (see “Capes boat houses and Stores” vernacular building record in Somerset Record fish weirs are Office). Ovolo moulded beams and a spice cupboard vulnerable. The with carved initials IH and AH dated 1624 suggest it is a cliffs themselves 17th century building. This middle part of the block was suffer localised minor collapses and sites under threat on the a bank around 1900 or so. cliff slope and cliff tops have been identified. The low lying The Old Rose & Crown itself is difficult to date because of areas of Lynmouth and Porlock contain the greatest many alterations that have been made over the centuries. concentration of sites that are at risk of erosion or flooding. There are suggestions that it was originally a medieval The assessment covers a wide range of sites including open hall. In an upstairs corridor a ceiling retains the line prehistoric settlements and burials, submerged forest, Roman of an earlier roof. In the main room is a beam which rests fortlets, medieval settlements, mining remains and standing on corbels in places and has the appearance of an early buildings, as well as piers and harbours, fish weirs, lime kilns, jetty beam which could have supported the wall of a coastal look outs and World War II pillboxes and defences. solar, or private room, above an inner ground floor room. Wrecks along Exmoor’s coast are poorly located and Other features - an old window and door frames appear understood. 15 Scheduled Monuments and 190 Listed to be of 16th or 17th century date. Buildings are included in the 1426 historic assets recorded, as Apart from buildings which are yet to be surveyed, it is well as six Conservation Areas and eight Principal hoped to extend the study to Porlock Weir and to outlying Archaeological Landscapes. All monument records created or farms in order to obtain a more comprehensive enhanced by the project are on Exmoor’s Historic understanding of the history of the settlement. Help with Environment Record and are available via our website: any aspect of the history of Porlock and with our recording www.exmoorher.co.uk. or research, would be very welcome. Thanks are expressed Further work and research priorities for the Exmoor coast have to the many who have helped with surveys and to owners been identified with reference to the Historic Environment who have allowed access into their property. Research Framework for Exmoor as well as the South West An exhibition was held at the Visitor Centre in September Archaeological Research Framework (SWARF) and the 2016 of the 11 buildings investigated so far, and also Maritime Archaeological Research Agenda for England. These displayed at the ENPA Annual Archaeological Symposium will help to inform future research, as well as a Phase 2 in October together with a presentation update. fieldwork project for the Exmoor coast. Mary Ewing The Exmoor RCZAS report was produced by Fiona Pink from AC Archaeology who worked full time on the project at SANHS Building Research Group 2016 Exmoor National Park. It was submitted to Historic England in 2016 and is planned for final publication in 2017. As part of our coastal activities a weekend CITiZAN event was held on Porlock beach in September 2016 with a small band of local volunteers trained to record and monitor the sites of the area, particularly features exposed at the submerged forest in front of the shingle ridge. CITiZAN, (the Coastal and Intertidal Zone Archaeological Network) is a project set up to train volunteers and local groups to record and monitor coastal sites www.citizan.org.uk Historic Environment Review 2016 3 Exmoor Mires Partnership Being out on site for mires restoration works is a good opportunity to get to know the landscape, to see remote sites and understand the subtle relationships of archaeology. At Warren Farm, the archaeology varies from hidden prehistoric standing stones and barrows in the molinia to 19th century agricultural improvements by the Knight family, such as the leats, canals and a railway, as well as drainage ditches themselves. We discovered a previously unrecorded standing stone, which may be part of a wider setting of stones which now lie recumbent. Research work has continued at Codsend and Hoar Moor, an area rich in archaeology. After mapping as much as possible using aerial photographs and topographic models, we commissioned a walkover survey by Hazel Riley. A huge range of archaeological features were recorded, giving us The stone of the circular enclosure covered in summer vegetation new understanding of the development of the area over at Codsend Moor time. The post-medieval landscape at Codsend and Hoar May, and has written a series of poems for the project around Moor can now be understood as an agriculturally active the peatlands, people and archaeology. This has brought a area, with small farm buildings and related sheep-folds and different perspective to the work we do on the moor. The drone preparing for Being the archaeologist for the Mires Partnership gives a flight at Codsend Moor unique opportunity to understand the moorland landscape in a whole variety of ways. It offers the chance to think about the fascinating ways that humans have changed the landscape, and allows us to reflect upon how we will take this landscape on into the future. shepherds huts going in and out of use.