Monday 4 November 2013 - Every Field Tells A Story

A West Sussex field in the fading light of an early November day may seem rather mundane, but this plot of ground at Itchingfield has a little history of it's own... On the Tithe Map of 1839, this field is named as Lower Stapple Gate Field with an area of 13 acres, 1 Rood and 36 Perches. It was owned and occupied by the then Parish Rector, The Rev Edward Elmes as part of the Parish Glebe Land. Then as now, it was a meadow which included an area of rough woodland at the north end, close to the church. The field has since 1839 been enlarged by pushing the boundary further south by removing the original hedge and creating the newer one that can be seen at the far left of the picture. The tall trees in the middle are part of a narrow wood locally known as a Shaw or Row - a reminder that many fields in this part of SE England were carved out of dense woodland as far back as Saxon times. As the title suggests, every field tells a story.