MMO2725 - Post-medieval water meadow west of Kedworthy Farm (Monument)

A post-medieval water meadow system, known locally as a catchwater meadow, is visible on aerial photographs as a series of earthworks. This may have been an integrated system connected to the farmyard at Kedworthy.

A post-medieval water meadow system, known locally as a catchwater meadow, is visible on aerial photographs as a series of earthworks in a field immediately west of Kedworthy Farm, Brayford. Centred at approximately SS 7064 3701 three gutters are visible, following the contours of the west facing slope above Coxley Wood. The gutters extend across two fields, covering an area of approximately 1.5 hectares. A spring is visible to the south of the gutters, and this may have supplied water to the system. This system may also have been connected to the farmyard at Kedworthy, suggesting that this was an integrated system which also distributed liquid manure as fertiliser to the fields. A series of approximately parallel gutters were used to distribute flowing water evenly over the surface of the meadow in order to prevent freezing in winter and encourage early growth in spring, thereby providing extra feed for livestock. Most catchwater meadows are believed to date to the post-medieval period, although it is possible that they were first developed in the medieval period. [1-3] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [4]