Record Details

NHER Number:42381
Type of record:Monument
Name:Probable pre-19th century drains on Winterton Dunes

Summary

A rectilinear arrangement of former drains, which probably pre-date the 19th century, is visible as earthworks on aerial photographs. The orientation of the drains is at odds with the pattern of enclosure depicted on 19th century maps, suggesting that they are likely to relate to an earlier, but probably still post medieval, attempt at land drainage. Ridges, superficially reminiscent of ridge and furrow, visible immediately to the south of the drains may represent contemporary agricultural features.

Images - none

Location

Grid Reference:TG 4852 2115
Map Sheet:TG42SE
Parish:WINTERTON ON SEA, GREAT YARMOUTH, NORFOLK

Full description

January 2006. Norfolk NMP.
Two fragmentary drains aligned at a right angle to each other, are visible as earthworks on aerial photographs (S1)-(S3), with their junction at TG 4848 2110. They are not depicted on any of the consulted historic maps (although the southern end of the northwest-to-southeast ditch appears on modern maps), the earliest of which to be drawn at a suitable scale is Winterton Enclosure Map (S4) dating to 1811. The fact that the orientation of the drains is at odds with that of the boundaries depicted on this map suggests that they probably represent the remnants of an earlier, pre-19th century system of drainage, still of post medieval date given their rectilinear layout. The relationship between these drains and others mapped to their northwest (e.g. NHER 42382) is not known.

Several ridges or closely spaced banks are visible as earthworks on other aerial photographs, (S5) and perhaps also (S6), immediately to the south of and aligned parallel to the northeast-to-southwest drain. These superficially resemble ridge and furrow and while their location, on Winterton Dunes, suggests that they are almost certainly not ridge and furrow they may represent further post medieval agricultural activity and/or efforts to drain the area. They are so closely spaced that only their extent has been mapped, rather than the individual ridges.
S. Tremlett (NMP), 9 January 2006.

Monument Types

  • BANK (EARTHWORK) (Unknown date)
  • DITCH (Unknown date)
  • DRAIN (Unknown date)
  • DRAINAGE DITCH (Unknown date)
  • BANK (EARTHWORK) (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • DITCH (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • DRAIN (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
  • DRAINAGE DITCH (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Associated Finds - none

Protected Status - none

Sources and further reading

<S1>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1944. RAF 106G/LA/17 4002-3 28-MAY-1944 (NMR).
<S2>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1946. RAF 106G/UK/1634 4047-8 09-JUL-1946 (NHER TG 4821B & TG 4821A).
<S3>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1952. RAF 540/705 5152-3 09-APR-1952 (NMR).
<S4>Map: Glegg and Pratt. 1811. Winterton Enclosure Map.
<S5>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1945. RAF 106G/UK/859 3120-1 29-SEP-1945 (NMR).
<S6>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1963. RAF 543/2331 (F22) 0087-8 25-JUL-1963 (NMR).

Related records - none

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