Monument record MLI50499 - Fishponds east of St Peter's Church, Cherry Willingham

Summary

Medieval fishponds east of St Peter's Church.

Type and Period (1)

  • (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Full Description

PRN 50499 A group of small fishponds lying on the edge of Cherry Willingham village. No direct contemporary reference has been found to the fishponds, but they were probably attached to the manor held from the 12th century to the early 15th century by the Marmion family of the fee of Gant. Two ponds are shown on the tithe map, with the field-name 'cross homestead'. The earthworks fill the shallow valley to the east of the church and they provide, in a simple manner, complex options in water management. Two approximately parallel leats separated by a bank 1m high served to channel water from a spring (now a small pond). The west channel, apparently the original stream bed, feeds a pair of ponds with a common downslope dam 1m-1.5m high. A second dam-like bank 1m high at right angles to the channel, along the north side of the east pond, may have allowed water to be ponded in the west channel to form an irregular and shallow elongated pond, as well as forcing water into the west pond. A gap, and presumably sluice, at the east end of the main dam allowed the ponds to discharge. A straight east leat branched at its southern end to provide an avoidance channel into what is now a hedge-lined dyke, as well as access to the main east pond. Irregular ponds and hollows to the west of the earthworks perhaps result from small-scale extraction of sand and clay, but the oval cattle pond seems to have obliterated a small rectangular pond shown on the tithe map. It was perhaps linked with and fed by surviving ditches, and may have been part of the fishpond complex. {1} In 1999 an evaluation of land off Church Lane placed some trial trenches over the site of these fishponds. Some ditches associated with the fishponds were found, as was a general scatter of medieval pottery from the site. Some, but not all, the features associated with the fishponds had been recorded during geophysical survey over part of the site. {3}{4}{7} During an extended watching brief during development on the site further features associated with the medieval fishponds were recorded in plots 1 to 3. {5}{6} A watching brief was undertaken during groundworks on Church Lane prior to development. Evidence of the fishponds, which contained frequent organic material (reeds) and occasional animal bone fragments, was uncovered in the watching brief. These were compared to the plan of earthworks made in 1999 (see source 1) the features corresponded reasonably well. At least two of the ponds contained pottery dating from the late 12th to the 13th century. {8}{9}

Sources/Archives (9)

  •  Bibliographic Reference: P.L. Everson, C.C. Taylor and C.J. Dunn. 1991. Change and Continuity: Rural Settlement in North-West Lincolnshire. pp.51,89; Fig66; ARCHIVE.
  •  Map: Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England. 1992-1996. National Mapping Programme. TF0372:LI.538.6.1-3,1994, .
  •  Report: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. Jan 2000. Phase VII, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. CWCA99.
  •  Archive: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. 2000. Phase VII, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. LCNCC 188.99.
  •  Report: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. Feb 2000. Phase VI, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. CWCL98.
  •  Archive: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. 1998. Phase VI, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. LCNCC 178.98.
  •  Report: Pre-Construct Geophysics. 1999. Land off Ladymeers Road.
  •  Report: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. Jan 2004. Watching brief on Phase VII, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. CWCB99.
  •  Archive: City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit. Jan 2004. Watching brief on Phase VII, Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. LCNCC 271.99.

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Location

Grid reference Centred TF 0331 7239 (176m by 193m)
Civil Parish CHERRY WILLINGHAM, WEST LINDSEY, LINCOLNSHIRE

Related Monuments/Buildings (1)

Related Events/Activities (5)

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Record last edited

Mar 21 2021 8:35PM

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