Monument record 6054 - Open Field System, Syresham

Medieval and/or post medieval ridge and furrow cultivation blocks, Syresham parish.

{1} The common fields of the parish were enclosed by an Act of parliament of 1765. No details are known except that there were alreadt 460 acres of old enclosures at the time and it is uncertain whether Crowfield hamlet had a separate field system. Ridge and furrow of these fields exists on the ground or can be traced on air photos over much of the parish except in the extensive areas of woodland or former woodland. It is mostly arranged in end-on and interlocked furlongs, many of reversed-S form. One of the more notable features are headlands which have been overploughed in ridge and furrow.

{4-5} Five medieval and/or post medieval ridge and furrow cultivation blocks, remnants of the former common open-field system, is visible on historic aerial photographs and remote sensing data as earthworks and was mapped as part of Historic England’s North Buckinghamshire Aerial Investigation and Mapping project (EBC18304). Located on the southern boundary of Syresham parish and centred at SP 462830 239950, these blocks are on a south and east-facing slope in fields west of Biddlesden House. Three blocks are visible as pasture on aerial photographs taken in the 1940s, but the remaining two blocks lie within woodland recorded on the 1884 dated 1st Edition OS map and were mapped only from remote sensing data. Aerial photographs taken in 2019 and recent remote sensing data indicate that one block has been plough-levelled, probably due to changes to post-war agricultural regimes.

<1> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1982, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, p.143 site 6 (checked) (Series). SNN77382.

<2> Baker G., 1830, The History and Antiquities of Northamptonshire, p.676 (unchecked) (Book). SNN77327.

<3> Hall D., 2001, The Woodland Landscapes of Southern Northamptonshire, p.33-46 (unchecked) (Article). SNN102520.

<4> Vertical Aerial Photograph, US-7PH-GP-LOC201 PORT 13049 06-MAR-1944 (Aerial Photograph(s)). SNN112695.

<5> Environment Agency, LIDAR Composite DTM - 1m, LIDAR SP63NW Environment Agency National LIDAR Programme DTM 1 Metre dated 2019 SP6239 (Digital Plots). SNN111710.

Record last edited

Aug 2 2024 4:00PM