MSO8587 - Higher Leigh, Winsford (Monument)

Summary

The farm was in existence by 1784 and probably ceased to be worked as a farmstead by the end of the 19th Century.

Please read the Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record .

Type and Period (1)

Protected Status

  • None recorded

Full Description

Derelict buildings and grass marks suggesting a large low bank. It recorded as "Higher Leigh" on the Ordnance Survey map. [1-3] Not mentioned in Aston's list of deserted settlements. [4] The farm is in existence as "Leigh" by 1784 [5]. By the middle of the 19th Century it has become "Higher Lea" Farm, and consists of a farmhouse and a number of outbuildings. A track leads from the farm up to the unenclosed land on Winsford Hill to the west [6]. By the end of the 19th Century two cottages and a barn are depicted at Higher Leigh, and the access to Winsford Hill has gone, suggesting that the site is no longer in use as a separate farm [7]. Current large scale maps show that the cottages are derelict and the barn is in use, probably by Leigh Farm (formerly Lower Leigh), to the east [8]. [9] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [10]

Sources/Archives (10)

  • <1> Aerial photograph: 1971. HSL.UK.71-177 Run 91, September. 8696.
  • <2> Map: Ordnance Survey. 1962. 6 Inch Map: 1962. 1:10560.
  • <3> Unpublished document: McDonnell, R.. 1980. Gazetteer of Sites in the Exmoor National Park Identified through Aerial Photography. SS9032C.
  • <4> Article in serial: Aston, M.. 1983. Deserted Farmsteads on Exmoor and the Lay Subsidy of 1327 in West Somerset. Proceedings of the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society. 127. p100-101.
  • <5> Map: Day and Masters. 1782. County map of Somerset.
  • <6> Map: 1839. Winsford Tithe Map and Apportionment.
  • <7> Map: Ordnance Survey. 1854-1901. County Series; 1st Edition 25 Inch Map. 1:2500. 1890, Somerset 57(6).
  • <8> Map: Ordnance Survey. 1973. 1:2500. 1:25,000. SS9032.
  • <9> Unpublished document: Riley, H.. Field Investigators Comments. RCHME, 1 January 1998.
  • <10> Digital archive: Historic England. Various. National Record of the Historic Environment (NRHE) entry. 1095069, Extant 9 May 2022.

External Links (1)

Other Statuses/References

  • Exmoor National Park HER Number (now deleted): MSO11698
  • Local List Status (Unassessed)
  • National Monuments Record reference: SS 93 SW23
  • NRHE HOB UID (Pastscape): 1095069
  • Somerset SMR PRN (Somerset): 34257

Map

Location

Grid reference Centred SS 900 327 (89m by 107m) Centred on
Map sheet SS93SW
Civil Parish WINSFORD, WEST SOMERSET, SOMERSET

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Events/Activities (1)

Record last edited

May 9 2022 2:54PM

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