The Amateur Historian Volume 7 Number 7 August 1967

By Batley, James C.

pp 214-216

Informal account of the work of the Bourne Society (East Surrey) in fieldwork, oral history projects, photographic and other recording work, and history trails. Batley suggests that all societies could, with profit, expand their activities to cover personal reminiscence; the field study of local transport; archaeological excavation in relation to the locality; records and pictures of buildings; annals of places brought right up to date; and biographies of 'worthies'.

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By Knightbridge, A.A.H.

pp 219-222

A study of 16th century inventories of church goods, which were compiled particularly during the periods in the late 1530s and late 1540s when confiscation of church goods was ordered by Henry VIII and the government of Edward VI. The surveys, and the compiling of the inventories, were conducted under the auspices of a series of Commissions. Very few complete returns remain, but the remaining documents show how commissioners were instructed to make new surveys and to ensure that all goods mentioned in previous surveys were in place or accounted for. They also sought to make valuations of the goods, since religious significance was regarded as completely irrelevant. Contemporary evidence suggests that goods were often concealed by the clergy or others, to avoid detection. Surviving returns give a very valuable picture of the state and quality of church furnishings, and allow regional and local variations to be identified.

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By Harley, J.B.

pp 223-231

This article includes a bibliography of published examples of estate maps, as well as detailed comment upon the development of mapping of land and property. Harley notes the following major phases: i) in the medieval period, estates were generally described in words rather than being depicted in cartographic form, but some comparatively crude and unsophisticated plans do exist - typically, they are drawn in sketch form and lack scale, measurement or consistent orientation; ii) in the 16th century and through the 17th century a revolution in surveying techniques led to the development of most of the key features associated with cartography almost to the present day, so that proper scale, alignment, orientation and measurement became general, and most cartographers began to use standard symbols to indicate features and land uses. The need for estate cartography developed as landowners demanded clearer definitions of their territory, especially when legal disputes occurred and maps or plans were shown in court; iii) the 18th century was the 'golden age' of land surveying, and map printing and engraving techniques also improved - coverage also extended to remoter areas and to Scotland and Wales; and iv) private estate cartography declined in significance in the 19th century as public mapping (tithe maps and the Ordnance Survey) achieved pre-eminence. The content of estate maps also changed during the periods outlined; in rural areas, estate maps increasingly showed very detailed topographical information, evidence of land ownership, acreages and plot or parcel boundaries, village plans and indications of building size and form, and field-names. They also became minor works of art, since decoration was also a motive for their preparation. Harley notes that mapping of more prosaic land uses and sites, such as industrial developments and mine workings, was often more practical but less decorative (see also 07 06 196-208; 07 08 265-274; 08 02 61-71; 08 03 86-97; 08 05 167-179).

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By Swann, Brenda

pp 232-240

The registration of common land was an issue of major topical interest when this article appeared. In the paper, Swann seeks to trace the historical development of the commons themselves and also to chart the process whereby registration was introduced. She discusses common rights, such as those of common pasture, taking of wood and turf, and right to fish, and then explains the decline in the role of the commons as a result of, for example, agricultural changes and enclosure. In the 19th century many commons were de facto administered by parochial or township officers and this led to a growing emphasis upon these lands as a community asset, so new enclosures were more strongly resisted. Movements to preserve and protect commons and open spaces appeared at the end of the 19th century and since then a series of government enquiries and legislation has reinforced the protection which commons enjoy.