Monument record MLI52862 - Cherry Willingham Settlement

Summary

The settlement of Cherry Willingham

Type and Period (4)

Protected Status/Designation

  • None recorded

Full Description

The settlement of Cherry Willingham is notable for the clear evidence of its poverty and decline in the 14th and early 15th centuries, yet today it is one of the largest settlements on the fringes of Lincoln. In the early 14th century subsidies it already had less than half the average number of taxpayers for the wapentake and in 1342 the inhabitants were exempted from tax 'because of their poverty'. However, with 63 persons aged over 14 years in 1377, it had clearly not succumbed to the Black Death despite its size. It was exempt from the parish tax in 1428 with fewer than 10 households, but had only small relief in 1448 and nil in 1463. Throughout the later medieval and early modern period it was never more than a small settlement of 15 to 20 households; the railway was driven through in 1848 without a station being built. Since the Second World War the village has expanded rapidly, with a population of 445 (129 houses) in 1951 and 2827 in 1981 in burgeoning housing estates that have infilled and overlain almost all the areas of earthworks visible on early RAF aerial photographs, except the fishponds. {1}{2}{3}{4} A watching brief was undertaken during groundworks on land to the north of 19 Church Lane prior to development. Three sherds of medieval pottery dating to the late 12th to 15th century, which may be the result of manuring, were found. {5}{6} A watching brief was undertaken during groundworks on Church Lane prior to development. A foundation of a structure or building was uncovered. It had two axis at a 90 degree angle and appeared to have a yard or trackway against it. There were some fragments of 13th to 16th century tile within the wall fabric. Ditches and pits were also uncovered, and some contained 13th to 16th century pottery. These features were above the layer sealing the Anglo-Saxon features and are tentatively dated to the medieval period. {7}{8}

Sources/Archives (8)

  •  Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1946-71. RAF POST WAR COLLECTION. 3G/TUD/UK197 5468, 1946.
  •  Bibliographic Reference: P.L. Everson, C.C. Taylor and C.J. Dunn. 1991. Change and Continuity: Rural Settlement in North-West Lincolnshire. Archive notes.
  •  Article in Serial: A.J. White (ed.). 1979. 'Archaeology in Lincolnshire and South Humberside, 1978' in Lincolnshire History and Archaeology. vol.14, pp.79-80.
  •  Map: Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England. 1992-1996. National Mapping Programme. TF0372: LI.538.5.1-4.
  •  Report: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Dec 2004. Watching brief on land to the north of 19 Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. CWCL04.
  •  Archive: Lindsey Archaeological Services. Dec 2004. Watching brief on land to the north of 19 Church Lane, Cherry Willingham. LCNCC 2004.94.
  •  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 0307 7240 (651m by 318m)
Civil Parish CHERRY WILLINGHAM, WEST LINDSEY, LINCOLNSHIRE

Related Monuments/Buildings (1)

Related Events/Activities (2)

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Record last edited

Mar 21 2021 8:35PM

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