18th Century Fields

Eighteenth Century Fields

Graham Robbins

A map of Scrooby made in 1777 shows some forgotten place names; names we might find useful today as they help us see landscape features which have become unnoticed and anonymous.

A rough sketch copy of the 1777 map showing some of the names on the map and included in the accompanying document, the Enclosure Award.

One of the contrasts within the landscape surrounding Scrooby is that between higher drier areas and lower wetter land. Older names are very sensitive to elevation. The area of the village to the west of our Chapel Lane is the called Upper Closes on the map, and the land further to the south-west is Backwith Hill.

Before modern drainage there was a real contrast between the low-lying meadows and carrs, and the higher drier agricultural fields.

There is a string of names for the old low-lying wet meadows and carrs: West Bear Meadow, Bradley Meadows, Otter Pitts, Ings Meadow, Gale Carr, Flag Carr, Gaol Butts.

The names of the old agricultural open strip fields on the more elevated land are also indicated: Bradley Field, Hill Field, Butt Field, Hempland Field, Pease Field, Middle Field, Farr Field and Folly Field.

There are also several commons. The largest runs north from the village along the old course of the river, through what is now called The Winz, out onto the higher drier expanse of Scrooby and Harworth Common.

A second lower-lying wetter common runs from the east of Scrooby southward to Scrooby Top.