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Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 AN ASSESSMENT OF WOODLAND HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY: A CASE STUDY APPROACH Paul Smith A thesis submitted to Sheffield Hallam University for the Degree Master of Philosophy JULY 2010 CONTENTS ABSTRACT 5 LIST OF FIGURES 7 LIST OF TABLES 7 LIST OF MAPS 8 LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS 9 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 10 ABBREVIATIONS AND CONVENTIONS 11 GLOSSARY 11 1 INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW 14 1.1 Research overview 14 1.2 Woodland: the historic background 18 1.3 Historic woodland research 24 1.4 Derbyshire woodland research 26 1.5 Woodland industry 28 1.5.1 Fuel 30 1.5.2 Charcoal 32 1.5.3 Whitecoal 36 1.5.4 Bark 37 1.5.5 Potash 38 1.5.6 Crafts 39 1.5.7 Mineral extraction 40 1.5.8 Coal 41 1.5.9 Metalworking 42 1.5.10 Management 43 1.5.11 Summary 47 1.6 Aims of Study 47 2 1.7 Objectives of the study METHODOLOGY 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Environmental survey 2.3 Archaeological survey 2.4 Historic survey CASE STUDIES: RESULTS AND ANALYSIS 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Ducksick Wood 3.2.1 Environmental survey 3.2.2 Archaeological survey 3.2.3 Historical survey 3.3 Cobnar Wood 3.3.1 Environmental survey 3.3.2 Archaeological survey 3.3.3 Historical survey 3.4 Bow Wood 3.4.1 Environmental survey 3.4.2 Archaeological survey 3.4.3 Historical Survey 3.5 Lea Wood 3.5.1 Environmental survey 3.5.2 Archaeological survey 3.5.3 Historical survey DISCUSSION 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Environment 4.3 Archaeology 4.3.1 Stone getting 164 4.3.2 Wood fuel 166 4.3.3 Metal processing 172 4.3.4 Woodland enclosure 173 4.4 The woodland resource 174 4.5 Later developments 182 5 CONCLUSIONS 184 BIBLIOGRAPHY 192 APPENDICES 203 APPENDIX 1: Soil pH results 203 APPENDIX 2: Gazetteer of case study archaeological features 205 2.1 DucksickWood 205 2.2 Cobnar Wood 207 2.3 Bow Wood 211 2.4 Lea Wood 215 APPENDIX 3: Summary of kilns, Q-pits and charcoal platforms 218 APPENDIX 4: Summary of Portland leases 219 APPENDIX 5: Domesday woodland analysis 221 APPENDIX 6: Analysis of charcoal samples 225 APPENDIX 7: Scarsdale wood consumption 226 4 ABSTRACT Woodland history in Derbyshire has not been extensively researched. Indeed the area between the rivers Derwent and Rother is archaeologically under­ recorded in the Historic Environment Record. Woodland research elsewhere has revealed significant archaeological remains. There is scope to increase the understanding of Derbyshire's ancient woodland heritage. Case study woods on two geological zones were selected for intensive study and several other woods less intensively. Archaeological, ecological and historical surveys were made of the woods. Features were recorded, located using GPS, mapped and presented in a Gazetteer. Possible evidence of former land use was revealed. Early exploitation of mineral resources was found, including possible Romano-British and late medieval quern stones. On the Coal Measures medieval iron working slags were found associated with charcoal platforms and Q-pits, possibly whitecoal production sites for lead smelting fuel. In woods located on the Millstone Grit remains of kilns and charcoal platforms were found, these are also thought to have produced whitecoal. These remains and contemporary documents illustrate the demand for fuel as industrialisation increased in the sixteenth century. Further evidence in the form of woodland boundaries, track ways and ecological change suggest increased exploitation using coppice with standards. There is evidence of different responses to woodland use between woods on the Coal Measures and those located on the Millstone Grits. The dominance of oak and the demise of other species is noted, documents record the importance of oak tan-bark and also the commercial use of many more species than can be seen today. Episodes of felling and re-planting have created woods very different in character to those of the seventeenth century; woodland flora is confined mainly to the margins. The findings demonstrate the importance of the woods to the local communities and industry as fuel and raw materials. Composite time-lines were produced combining the strands of research showing graphically the changes in woodland usage to the present. 6 LIST OF FIGURES 1: Charcoal burning methods 34 2: Coppiced woodland structure 44 3: Multi-disciplinary investigation 50 4: Ducksick Wood platform 24 drawing 72 5: Ducksick Wood pits 8, 9,10,11 73 6: Cobnar Wood Q-pit feature 1 92 7: Cobnar Wood lead slag feature 56 94 8: Bow Wood quern rough outs, features 56 and 57 118 9: Bow Wood typical kilns and platforms 123 10: Lea Wood examples of quern rough outs 148 11: Lea Wood examples of kilns and charcoal platforms 152 12: Lea Wood drawing of wall foundations 156 13: Lea Wood partial survey of Leawood Knol 159 14: Furnace fuel 177 LIST OF TABLES 1: Scarsdale: Monastic settlements 20 2: Ducksick Wood summary of tree species 65 3: Ducksick Wood summary of soil sample tests 66 4: Ducksick Wood summary of ground flora 68 5: Ducksick Wood summary of archaeological features 71 6: Ducksick Wood selective time-line 79 7: Cobnar Wood summary of soil sample tests 84 8: Cobnar Wood summary of ground species 85 9: Cobnar Wood summary of tree species 86 10: Cobnar Wood summary of archaeological features 87 11: Cobnar Wood selective time-line 102 12: Bow Wood tree species 105 13: Bow Wood summary of soil sample tests 109 14: Bow Wood ground flora 112 7 15: Bow Wood summary of archaeological features 113 16: Bow Wood summary of stone getting related features 115 17: Bow Wood summary of quern finds 117 18: Bow Wood whitecoal kilns 120 19: Bow Wood platform features with charcoal 124 20: Bow Wood platform features without charcoal 125 21: Bow Wood selective time-line 132 22: Lea Wood tree species 139 23: Lea Wood summary of soil sample test results 139 24: Lea Wood ground flora 141 25: Lea Wood summary of archaeological features 142 26: Lea Wood summary of quarry features 144 27: Lea Wood summary of quern finds 147 28: Lea Wood summary of whitecoal kilns 151 29: Lea Wood summary of charcoal platforms 153 30: Environmental summary 162 31: Industrial archaeology finds summary 164 32: Coal Measures woods fuel sites orientation 167 33: Gritstone woods fuel sites orientation 168 34: Wood fuel processing features 169 35: Portland documents duration of leases 175 36: Tree planting Moorland Coppice 1809-1813 176 LIST OF MAPS 1: Case study sites location 57 2: Derbyshire geology 58 3: Coal measures case study sites location 59 4: Millstone Grit case study sites location 60 5: Ducksick Wood location 61 6: Ducksick Wood archaeological features 70 7: Cobnar Wood location 80 8 8: Cobnar Wood surface geology 81 9: Cobnar Wood archaeological features 88 10: Bow Wood location 103 11: Bow Wood extent of study area 104 12: Bow Wood stone getting features 114 13: Bow Wood kilns, platforms and field features. 121 14: Lea Wood location 133 15: Lea Wood lithic, quern and quarry sites. 143 16: Lea Wood archaeological features. 150 LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS 1: Millstone Grit sample 41 2: Ducksick Wood aerial photograph 62 3: Ducksick Wood multi-stemmed oak. 64 4: Ducksick Wood Mercurialis perennis and Anemone nemorosa 67 growing on bloomery slag. 5: Ducksick Wood Mercurialis perennis and Anemone nemorosa 67 growing on ironstone workings. 6: Cobnar Wood north-east 83 7: Cobnar Wood: Mercurialis perennis and Anemone nemorosa 84 growing on iron bloomery slag 8: Cobnar Wood holloway 89 9: Cobnar Wood woodland boundary 91 10: Cobnar Wood lead slag and masonry 93 11: Cobnar Wood bloomery slag, ironstone and charcoal. 95 12: Cobnar Wood furnace base 96 13: Bow Wood multi-stemmed oak 106 14: Bow Wood small leaved lime feature 3 106 15: Bow Wood small leaved lime feature 2 107 16: Bow Wood mature beech beside boundary in east 108 17: Bow Wood southern slope 110 9 18: Bow Wood bridleway looking west 111 19: Bow Wood feature 61 slot in stone 116 20: Bow Wood quern 58 118 21: Bow Wood whitecoal kiln feature 32 122 22: Bow Wood revetted platform feature 60 126 23: Bow Wood holloway and wall 128 24: Lea Wood aerial photograph 134 25: Lea Wood beech and lime beside ride 136 26: Lea Wood relict coppice oak 137 27: Lea Wood sessile oak 138 28: Lea Wood stone slab 145 29: Lea Wood worked stone 146 30: Lea Wood quern rough out 149 31: Lea Wood orthostat wall feature 71 155 32: Lea Wood retaining wall 157 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks to Richard Carr for his help with the surveys; Joan Butt, Professor Ian Rotherham, Dr Paul Ardron, Dr John Rose and Dr Frank Spode at Sheffield Hallam University; to Clive Hart, Cliff Williams, Dr Jim Rieuwerts, Dr Lynn Willies and Dr Roger Doonan for advice.