MMO751 - Post-medieval water meadow south of Blagdon Barn (Monument)

Two linear ditches, running southward from Blagdon Barn, are visible as earthworks on vertical air photographs, centred at SS 9805 3352. These features are likely to be post-medieval field gutters, possibly relating to a larger catch meadow irrigation system. [1,2] The earthworks form part of the site of a minor country house that was built here in the late 18th Century. It was described in 1792 as `a very neat house and gardens in this parish belong to Thomas Stawel, esq'. The site of the house is at SS 9859 3348 on the floodplain of the River Haddeo. Stretching down the valley from the house were a series of lakes and ponds culminating in a mock castle (actually a pair of workers cottages constructed to look like drum towers). The house was demolished in the 1820s. [3] The site was visited in March 2013. The former ditches are visible as slight linear terraces on the hillslope in permanent pasture. It is not clear how and where they were fed by the stream, the link not apparent. This was either destroyed by the construction of Blagdon Barn or if a contemporary water meadow system, it possibly had the advantage of picking up farmyard manure from Blagdon Barn to fertilise the fields. [4] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [5]