Blackaton Deserted Medieval Settlement, Dartmoor, Devon

A large-scale survey of the deserted medieval settlement site on Blackaton Down was undertaken in January 2006 by English Heritage's Archaeological   Survey and Investigation team at the request of Dartmoor National Park Authority. Blackaton Down lies towards the eastern edge of the main Dartmoor massif, some 2.5km nor th-west of Widecombe-in-the-Moor, and contains approximately 50 hectares (123 acres) of relict landscape. The deserted settlement site known as Blackaton or Easter Blackdon is located on the lower, west-facing slopes of Blackaton Down and is surrounded by an extensive area of multi-phase field system.

The survey recorded a possible 17 building s and building platforms on the site, several of which can be interpreted as forming distinct groups or farmsteads. The earthwork remains indicate that there were a variety of building types ranging from longhouses to barns and small ancillary buildings. The archaeological evidence suggests that the settlement developed over time, possibly growing from a single holding to a relatively substantial settlement before undergoing a period of contraction and eventual abandonment. It cannot be known for certain when the settlement was abandoned but evidence from similar sites on Dartmoor suggests that abandonment was most likely to have occurred during the 14th century, if not later. Documentary information indicates that the site had been abandoned by the mid-16th century when the area was recorded as ‘ye Commens of Blakadon’. RAF 63992 July 1964 © English Heritage (NMR) RAF Photography 

Aerial photographs show that the settlement site lies within a complex agricultural landscape. On the lower slopes of Blackaton Down, immediately surrounding the settlement, are strip fields or lynchets defined by steep earth and stone scarps. These fields would have been intensively worked and would have provided the main source of vegetable and cereal food for the inhabitants of the settlement. Beyond the strip cultivation are a series of larger, irregular fields which would have provided a managed system of grazing for livestock. Some of the fields contain narrow ridge and furrow ploughing which can be seen to overlie the medieval field system. This type of narrow ridge and furrow ploughing is thought to be early post-medieval in date, possibly dating from the 16th or 17th century, and almost certainly represents an attempt at improving the commons for the cultivation of crops. Much of Blackaton Down was enclosed in the later 20th century and is now mainly composed of improved pasture with some arable cultivation, adding yet another layer to this continually evolving Dartmoor landscape.

For further information, contact Elaine Jamieson at English Heritage's Exeter office on (01392) 824901 or email elaine.jamieson@english-heritage.org.uk