REPORT ON THE MARCH 2006 MEETING

Village Archaeology

The speaker at the March meeting of the Alston Moor Historical Society was Tom Clare, who gave a very detailed and well illustrated presentation on the subject of Village Archaeology. The countryside abounds in the sites of medieval villages but to the untrained eye these probably go unnoticed in most instances. Tell tale signs can be seen on the ground by way of humps and bumps, and sometimes remains of building walls, indicating the outline of buildings or enclosures long since demolished. These outlines are best seen from the air although driven snow also highlights contours of the ground. In many cases new villages have been built on the sites of medieval, or even prehistoric, sites. The trained eye can spot building work from different periods enabling the component parts to be dated.

In medieval times and with an expanding population, settlements were established away from existing villages, sometimes on marginal land. These were often to be abandoned when the population levels reduced e.g. following plague and catastrophes, and the people returned to re-populate more productive land. The vacated villages were eventually left to decline into ruin. However traces can still be seen. One reliable sign is the existence of plots of land used by the early villagers for the growing of crops. They were granted strips of land, typically measuring one chain by one furlong. The chain was a much used measurement and even today this 22 yard unit is still in evidence. It can be found in gardens, village shop frontages and even some of the original plots which escaped consolidation into larger fields. The land was ploughed on the ‘ridge and furrow’ style, usually 8 yards wide and 1 yard high.
Traces of the ridges are still highly visible and can be found in many places.

The focal point of the medieval village was the manor house with walled compounds and gardens. These buildings were often fortified to defend against hostile attack. Not every village would have had a church although a mill was a usual facility. Another standard feature was the pound, or enclosure, used for stray animals awaiting collection, or those passing through. Villages were invariably situated on at least one drove way which facilitated the movement of animals and goods. These would feature points for distribution, loading and unloading. The Scandinavian word for enclosed land is ‘ton’ – a name ending of many village names in the UK. Cockpits and archery butts, important features of community life, can also be identified in certain places.

The Chairman, Richard Turner, thanked Mr. Clare for giving us such a lucid insight into a complex subject. The next meeting of the Society will be the AGM on the 5th April at 7.30 in the Masonic Hall, Alston. At this meeting there will also be a talk by Alastair Robertson on the Roman site at Whitley Castle. More information can be found on the website at www.alstonhistory.org.uk.