Firing Ranges on Cannock Chase

 

Firing Ranges on Cannock Chase - An update from Historic England’s Aerial Investigation and Mapping team

Walking east from the Sherbrook Valley towards Rugeley Quarry you are likely to come across the large banked earthworks of a number of First World War firing ranges. Located between the Brocton and Rugeley training camps, these ranges served the 40,000 men who passed through the camps at any one time, and were variously designed to be used for rifle, machine gun and pistol target practice. Whilst the First World War training remains on Cannock Chase are extensive, it was not the first instance of military training in the area. Away from the First World War complex, there is a Victorian firing range located in Etchinghill. The stop butt (high bank or wall behind the target functioning as a backstop screen to intercept the ammunition) for the Victorian range and two of the yard markers (firing points) are still visible as earthworks today. It is interesting to compare the U-shaped stop butts of ranges dating to this period with the straight broad banks typical of the First World War ranges.

 

Figure 1: Lidar showing the U-shaped stop butt at Etching Hill Range (left) and the long linear stop butt bank of First World War firing range ‘D’ (right). Chase Through Time 2016 lidar. Source Staffordshire CC/Fugro Geospatial BV 2016 © Historic England

 

Many of the First World War ranges are difficult to identify from aerial photography because the majority are situated within dense woodland. In these cases the lidar - with its ability to ‘see’ through the trees (to a certain extent) - has allowed us to identify and confidently attribute more features to the ranges than had previously been recognised. Some of the more subtle features may be masked on the ground by the dense under growth and so have, until now, been difficult to associate with the earthwork butts up to 600 yards away.

 

Figure 2: Mapping produced by the Historic England aerial investigation team, depicting the First World War ranges identified from lidar. © Historic England

 

The historic aerial photography has been particularly useful. It was assumed that, as they were such massive constructions, the extant earthworks of the butts were in their original form. So, we were really surprised to see that range ‘E’, which was used up until the 1990s, has been significantly altered. If you look closely at the lidar in Figure 3, you can see the slightest traces of the original layout.

 

Figure 3: Firing Range ‘E’ through time (clockwise from top left): RAF/58/1386 F21 0055 12-MAR-1954 Historic England RAF Photography; MAL 70062 067 11-AUG-1970 © Crown copyright. (DTI); OS/89374 024 11-JUL-1989 © Crown copyright. Ordnance Survey; extract from the Chase Through Time 2016 lidar. Source Staffordshire CC/Fugro Geospatial BV 2016 © Historic England

 

When one of the analytical field survey training weeks was hampered by Storm Doris in February 2017, we spent a profitable (though wild and windy!) morning carrying out a walkover of the rifle ranges area with project volunteers, hoping to investigate some of the complex sites which had been identified through the aerial mapping. That morning we spent time looking at the topography and how the features sat within the landscape in order to better understand how they functioned. One of the firing ranges (‘F’) we found particularly difficult to decipher from an aerial perspective because its layout was dramatically different to the rest of the ranges. Being able to walk around the site enabled us to begin to recognise how the range had developed over time, and the expert knowledge of our local volunteers pointed us towards documentary references and helped shape our interpretation of how the site functioned.

 

Figure 4: Volunteers puzzling out some of the features for Range ‘F’ © Historic England

 

We want your feedback! If you have a particular interest in First World War (or earlier) training landscapes and can help by adding further information, interpretations or examples similar to the site mentioned in this post, please leave a comment below.

 

Cara Pearce,

Aerial Investigator, Historic England

 

Find out more about Historic England’s contributions to the wider project here: https://historicengland.org.uk/research/research-results/recent-research-results/west-midlands/cannock-chase/

 

Positive local engagement at the Remembering the Chase history event – highlights from Historic England’s project information stall

Historic England’s Cannock Chase project team were asked to host an information stand at the ‘Remembering the Chase’ living history event held on June 24-25th this year. Our stall explained the techniques we have been using to map and record the archaeology of the Chase (including some excellent geophysics and earthwork survey fieldwork by the trusty project volunteers) and presented highlights from what we are finding out so far. Marquis Drive Visitor Centre was transformed by encampments and costumed reenactors (historic and prehistoric). Despite some rather challenging wet weather over the weekend, the event was well attended and we had a really positive response from those who made it over to our stall in the information marquee. There was a high level of engagement with what we have been doing and with what we had to show - at times queues of people were waiting to ask us questions, read the information boards and look at examples of the project lidar and local aerial photographs.

From Neolithic crafts to First World War munitions workers, poetry to veteran motorcycles – there was something for everyone at the Remembering the Chase history event. All images © Historic England

It was very rewarding to interact with interested locals of all ages by showing them highlights from the upstanding archaeology – sometimes about places and stories they already knew, other times about new insights from the research. Visitors often shared their own knowledge or childhood memories with us, and many asked insightful questions about the data which prompted fresh ideas and interesting discussions. Having the opportunity to show many of our most committed project volunteers what the aerial mapping is revealing and to discuss some of the landscape patterns and puzzles with them was especially useful and enjoyable.

On the Sunday we also hosted at visit from the local Young Archaeologists’ Club (http://www.yac-uk.org/) who were very impressive when it came to trying our ‘can you spot…?’ lidar challenges – well done YACsters!

Historic England’s Chase Through Time information stall and the Remembering the Chase history event. All images © Historic England

A big THANK YOU to all those who came and spoke to us at the stall, squinted through our stereoscope and tested themselves with our lidar games, and to Gary for organising and coordinating the whole weekend.

We want your feedback! If you have a particular interest in any of the sites, techniques or themes that we have presented in earlier posts, or that you saw or discussed with us at the Remembering the Chase weekend event, please leave a comment below.

Rebecca Pullen, Archaeological Investigator, Historic England

Find out more about Historic England’s contributions to the wider project here: https://historicengland.org.uk/research/research-results/recent-research-results/west-midlands/cannock-chase/

‘In the Footsteps’ project

The Friends of Cannock Chase, Staffordshire County Council, the New Zealand Government and the Chase Project have joined forces to commemorate the New Zealand Rifle Brigade (NZRB) on Cannock Chase during the Great War.

The ‘In the Footsteps’ project (known as Nga Tapuwae in Maori) is launching an ambitious crowd funding project (hosted by CrowdfunderUK) which hopes to raise £12,500 in just four weeks.  If successful, the project will design, commission and erect an evocative interpretation panel at the Marquis Drive Visitor Centre on Cannock Chase.  This panel will tell the story of the NZRB on Cannock Chase and remember their sacrifice during the Great War.  If successful, the panel will resemble the panel below at Messines, Belgium.

The New Zealand Government have already pledged £1,000 to the fund raising effort and so our Crowdfunding target is £11,500.  The interpretation panel will make use the iconic New Zealand ‘silver fern’ design which was developed as part of the Nga Tapuwae (In the Footsteps) trail.  This trail tells the story of New Zealand soldiers throughout the theatre of the Great War and our panel would become a permanent part of that network.  If you want to find about more about Nga Tapuwae you can visit the webpage at https://ngatapuwae.govt.nz/.

Anyone wishing to find out more about the project or who would like to make a donation can click on the link to www.crowdfunder.co.uk/in-the-footsteps.  Please do pass this page on to friends and partner groups.  We have just four weeks to raise £11,500 and to make this commemoration of Staffordshire’s historic links with New Zealand and the soldiers of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade a reality.

Using earthwork survey to record First World War practice trenches in the Sherbrook Valley - An update from Historic England's archaeological investigation team

Earlier this year project volunteers took a closer look on the ground some of the earthwork features identified in the lidar and other aerial sources.

A number of two-day sessions were run by archaeological investigators from Historic England (specialists in researching and recording remnants of historic landscapes) to train local volunteers in the use of basic archaeological survey techniques so that they can continue to add to the growing body of knowledge about the history of the Chase.

Volunteers learned how to produce detailed measured drawings of the earthworks using traditional survey methods - tapes to create baselines, right angles and off-sets, and simple levelling tools to record profiles - as well as how to create short written descriptions and how to take record photographs.

Volunteers measuring the military practice trenches using tape and off-set techniques © Historic England

The first site that we tackled together is near the southern end of the Sherbrook Valley, and it showed up really well in the lidar data. It comprises an L-shaped arrangement of narrow military practice cut in the classic 'Greek key' pattern (a crenelated outline). Beside the trench there are also lots of circular pits surrounded by doughnut-shaped mounds.

Digital terrain model (DTM) from the lidar, showing the military practice trench (centre) and circular pits. Chase Through Time 2016 lidar. Source Staffordshire CC/Fugro Geospatial BV 2016 © Historic England

First the area surrounding the site was explored to better understand its context. Then using long tapes as baselines we took a series of measurements at right angles from these to record the top and bottom-line of the trenches, pits and any associated mounds of earth. By carefully plotting these measurements onto a drawing board we were able to produce an accurate plan. We used a scale of 1:100 (1cm on paper = 1m on the ground) to draw the site, this allowed us to capture as much subtle detail as possible and also provided a straightforward starting point for learning how to draw to a set scale.

Because this method of survey only collects dimensions in 2D, the volunteers added 3D data by taking a number of spot height readings across the site and to record a profile (measured height/depth model) across one of the best sections of the trench.

Extract from one of the earthwork survey field drawings and an inset showing how measurements were plotted using a set square and metric scale rule © Historic England

The separate pencil field survey sheets were scanned and digitally traced to create a single metrically-accurate drawing. Symbols known as 'hachures' (like tadpoles with triangular heads) are used to show how steep, gentle, prominent or vague the slopes are – the 'heads' are drawn at the top of the slope with the 'tails' running downwards. Our spot height measurements were also incorporated to better explain the depth and shape of the trench.

The completed digital survey drawing © Historic England

This group of features would have been used during the First World War to train young soldiers before they were sent into battle. The width and depth of this practice trench (about 0.9m x 0.6m, ie 3ft-wide and 2ft-deep) suggests that it was a ⅓-scale model. This was quite common - although this is the best example we have found, other instances of the same scale are known elsewhere on the Chase.

Extract from a postcard showing solider posed in a practice trench on Cannock Chase which appears to be of a similar small scale to those we surveyed  © Arthur R Lloyd Collection

Spending time recording these features in detail meant that useful observations were made. For example, it is clear that the north-west and north-east sides of the L-shaped trench arrangement represented those facing the enemy; the earth dug out to create the trench was piled up along this forward side to make a protective parapet of sorts, much like that in the image above. The uneven nature of this mounded earth, often in distinct separate heaps, shows where each man created an individual pile of soil while he was shovelling.

Volunteers also noticed that the shape of the trench itself was quite complicated. As well as the classic rectangular wiggles of the 'Greek key' pattern, there are deep rounded niches projecting from some of the corners on the front side, these have been interpreted as imitating forward gun-firing or grenade-throwing positions. Smaller rectangular ramped niches projecting back at various points along the rear side might have indicated where the communication trenches would have joined the front line and could also have proved access down into the practice model.

One of a fascinating set of wartime postcards hand-drawn by Erskine Williams on display digitally at the Museum of Cannock, this one shows how the full sized practice trenches at Brocton Camp were used for grenade-throwing © Daphne Jones, reproduced by kind permission of Daphne Jones

The circular pits appear to simulate shell holes and would have provided obstacles and positions for occupying during simulated manoeuvres. How they were created is trickier to prove. The earth mounded around their tops is too neat and uniform to have been created by explosives dropped from the air; however, could they have been created by controlled explosions or might they have been dug by hand to mimic holes left by shells or grenades?

Working in all weathers - taking spot heights with the dumpy level in falling snow! © Historic England

With their hard work the volunteers have created a valuable new record to feed into the project, helping to better understand the wider patterns of land use in Cannock Chase. This is only a tiny fragment of the extensive First World War training areas found across Cannock Chase. We may return to look at some of the other good examples of practice trenches and other features simulating battlefield scenarios, in future blog posts.

More information

With Alidade and Tape: Graphical and plane table survey of archaeological earthworks | PDF download page: https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/with-alidade-and-tape/

The Light Fantastic: Using airborne lidar in archaeological survey | PDF download page: https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/light-fantastic/

Identifying First World War trenches | Home Front Legacy 1914-18, case study webpage: http://www.homefrontlegacy.org.uk/wp/case-studies/identifying-first-world-war-trenches/

Jones, D (1992) Bullets and Bandsmen: The story of a bandsman on the Western Front | the story of Erskine Williams illustrated with his autobiographical sketches, written by his daughter

We want your feedback! If anyone has a particular interest in First World War training landscapes and can help by adding further information, interpretations or examples similar to the site mentioned in this post, please leave a comment below.

Rebecca Pullen,

Archaeological Investigator, Historic England

Find out more about Historic England's contributions to the wider project here: https://historicengland.org.uk/research/research-results/recent-research-results/west-midlands/cannock-chase/

Free summer event on the Chase

Geophysics Survey and training - update and some preliminary results

For 3 days in April volunteers took part in further survey training on the Chase,led by the Historic England geophysicist Andy Payne. 

The two sites we surveyed were at:

i) Sheepwash Farm or Smart’s Buildings in the Slitting Mill Lane area of Cannock Chase District where the aim was to investigate the sites of one or more probable burnt mounds.

ii) A trial geophysical investigation of the accessible parts of the interior (where surface vegetation permitted) of the hillfort at Castle Ring, Cannock Wood .

 

(Photo credit : CTT Volunteer Zoe Mead)

Earth resistance and magnetometer surveys were undertaken at both sites.

To summarise the results really briefly, Andy think's we’ve confirmed that the southern of the three mounds visible in the Lidar in the southern field at Sheepwash Farm is almost certainly a burnt mound but the others are more doubtful. There’s also an interesting area of anomalous magnetic response (intense but not ferrous) in the field to the north where other burnt mound activity was suspected.

 

At Castle Ring as well as the previously known site of the Medieval ‘hunting lodge’ that is visible in the form of stone wall footings exposed on the surface following a previous excavation, the resistance survey appears to have detected remains of a further probable buried masonry structure to the south but on a different orientation as well as potentially associated linear boundaries perhaps defining paddocks (as previously suggested from the RCHME earthwork survey undertaken in the late 1980s.

By comparison the magnetometer coverage at Castle Ring was disappointing with very few clear features identified and a very marginal magnetic response in general that probably reflects the less than ideal underlying geology in the form of superficial deposits of Devensian glacial Till overlying Carboniferous Pennine Middle Coal Measures formation.

 As a result, the interpretation of the magnetometer data can at best be very tentative. In addition to a very sparse scatter of possible pit or other occupation features, there may be one ring gully just about detected towards the eastern side but this is all very much “eye of faith”. Areas of localised strong ferrous disturbance may relate to some of the possible WW2 structures referred to in the earthwork survey report.

Andy and his team will start working on the formal Historic England Research Report Series reports on the results in due course and will keep us informed on progress with these.

CANNOCK COLLIERIES 1

Hidden within the woods to the north of the Cannock Chase visitor centre are the remains of Fair Oak Colliery number 2. This coalmine is almost impossible to see on the aerial photographs but the airborne laser scanning data (lidar) provides a good view of the spoil heap and some other remains of this mine. 

 

Chase Through Time 2016 lidar. Source Staffordshire CC/ Fugro Geospatial BV 2016 © Historic England

 

Old Ordnance Survey maps can provide us with some useful information about sites such as this. The first edition map tells us that the mine was in operation by 1882. It also gives the name of the mine, shows the shafts, buildings and the tramway that linked this mine to the nearby Fair Oak Colliery number 1. We also know that the mine had closed by 1902, the date of the second edition of the map. We will need to do further research to find out the exact dates that the mine was in use and to understand what different activities took place in the mine buildings. If anyone has an interest in mining on Cannock Chase and can help in answering any of these questions, please leave a comment below.