Location: NZ122248

The complex prehistoric and industrial archaeology of Cockfield Fell as shown on an enhanced lidar image.

Three non-defensive enclosures (two rectilinear and one oval) may be late prehistoric along with the remains of field systems and possible unenclosed round houses. A poorly preserved square-walled enclosure with attached remains of a small rectangular building is probably medieval.

Coal mining began here in the 14th century revealed by the dark depressions of a large number of small bell-pits, Larger and deeper pits with associated spoil heaps continued later. Deeper mining is responsible for the marks of mining subsidence over much of the area. In the 18th century shafts gave way to drift mines and tramways were built to transport coal from the pits to a local railway following the valley of the River Gaunless, completed in 1830. A branch line was built across the fell in 1863 crossing the River Gaunless and former railway by an impressive viaduct.

Sandstone quarries were opened close to the village. More dramitic were quarries crossing the fell following a whinstone dyke, used for road stone. Part of the east quarry has been infilled but revealed by its huge fan-shaped spoil heaps on its N side.

Scheduled Monument: 1002314

3D Lidar landscape on Sketchfab: https://skfb.ly/pGDPI

Roberts, B. K. (1975). Cockfield Fell. Antiquity 49. Vol 49, pp. 48-50.

Strangely what brought me back to Cockfield Fell (virtually this time), long after my visit in 2015 was the chance discovery on social media of Dixon's Experimental Canal supposedly dug here in the 18th Century. Was that actually true - there seemed to be nothing in the archaeology record? If so, where was it on the lidar image?

THe above appears on page 76 of the reserach document:
THE 1830 S&DR HAG GERLEASES BRANCH LINE HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT AUDIT
The Friends of the Stockton & Darlington Railway and Archaeo-Environment Ltd. March 2022

The rectangular cut feature so described is located at NZ 1177 2546 and clearly shown on the lidar image.between the long cut of the Haggerleases stone quarry and the ruin  of Millfield Grange. The drain running north from the north side of the pond is also shown. Other areas of disturbance close-by are recorded on the HER and Historic England as quarries, or drifts to mine stone underground.

Measured from the map, the rectangular cut (labelled as a pond on large scale later OS maps) is approximately 27m (90 feet) long and 5m (16 feet) wide.

The entry for the feature on the Historic England Aerial Mapping Explorer is given below:

Monument Number 1052156

Hob Uid: 1052156 
Location :
County Durham
Cockfield

Grid Ref : NZ1177025470

Summary : A small rectangular pond of post-medieval date is visible as earthworks. The feature remains extant on the latest 2015 vertical photography.

More information : On Cockfield Fell at NZ 1177 2547, outside the area of RCHME large-scale survey (1a) and not noted by Roberts (1b), is a large rectangular pond of post-medieval date on the lip of a steep north-facing slope. It still holds water. (1)

The small post medieval rectangular pond is visible as an earthwork on air photographs and lidar, centred at NZ 1177 2547. The pond is first depicted on the 1897 edition Ordnance Survey map and is probably associated with mining on Cockfield Fell. The feature is defined by a rectangular depression with an embankment on the downward slope. It remains extant on the latest 2015 vertical photography. This feature was mapped and recorded as part of the Stockton and Darlington Railway Heritage Action Zone Aerial Investigation and Mapping project.
(2)

"In the late 1760s, moving coal was often the hard part. A canal offered a huge advantage: heavy loads could be shifted with a fraction of the effort compared to carts and rough tracks across the fell. Dixon cut a short trial section and even set a flat-bottomed boat on it to prove the concept."
George Dixon's Canal by Northern Perspectives UK on YouTube. 

Canals, coal and the birth of Dixie.
The Northern Echo,15th June 2002.

"Back on the fell, brother George was doing all kinds of experiments. He was producing gas from coal, and his house in Cockfield became the first in the country to be so illuminated.

But George was frustrated. He had inherited the mines, but apart from keeping him in interesting experiments they were not much use, unless he could find someone to buy the coal.
Cockfield Fell, up the Gaunless Valley, is miles from anywhere, so George resolved to build a canal from the fell to the River Tees around Winston. Then he would dig the Tees out and sail his boats to Stockton, and from there on to the huge London market.

To prove he could do it, he dug a stretch of canal on the fell and built a flat-bottomed boat to sail on it. When it worked, he was so excited that he called his friend, landowner Lord Barnard, of Raby Castle, to come and have a look at it.
But Lord Barnard was not impressed. He was not going to contribute financially to any such barmy project, and he certainly was not going to have waterways wandering across his land.

Undeterred, George called a meeting of entrepreneurs in the Post House, in Post House Wynd, Darlington. The meeting included the grandfathers of Edward Pease and Jonathan Backhouse, who later played key roles in creating the S&DR.

That 1767 meeting instructed a surveyor to draw a canal between Winston and Stockton, passing through Cockerton.
Although the canal was never dug because of the expense, it was the first time anyone had thought of linking the coalfield of south Durham to the sea.

The idea resurfaced in the early 19th Century. The plans were resurrected and modified, and ended up as the Stockton and Darlington Railway, linking the coalfield with the sea."

And in the same reference:

"COCKFIELD Fell is probably England’s largest ancient monument. It is a wonderful and windblown place, with all of the North- East’s history laid out amid its lumps and bumps.

From pre-Roman farmsteads to very early factory farming of rabbits, from the first inland deep mine in the country to 400 or more bell pits, from the canal that inspired the Stockton and Darlington Railway to a steaming express line built by one of the greatest Victorian engineers – all is there on Cockfield Fell."

Bleak and charmless – the fell is a hard place to fall for. The Northern Echo, 5th February 2009.

There’s no flower blooming fair,
Upon Cockfield Fell
That with fragrance fills the air,
Upon Cockfield Fell.
And far distant be the day,
When again I’ll wearied stray,
O’er that unfrequented way,
Upon Cockfield Fell

There are no leafy trees
Upon Cockfield Fell,
To protect me from the breeze,
Upon Cockfield Fell.
There no pleasant streamlets flow,
There the vagrant bees ne’er go
For no pretty flowers blow,
Upon Cockfield Fell.

The 'Roman Graves' on Cockfield Fell

Keys to the Past: D57309

One of the main archaeological features removed by the DTM algorithm (retained on DSM as can be seen by comparing the images below) are five small rectangular banked enclosures, apparently open on their northern side.
Historic England (Monument Number: 882410) claims there are six of these but their eastern one (from aerial photographs) doesn't show up well on the lidar.

They are located on both sides of an old trackway close to a prominent coal shaft at NZ 1219 2495. There are no other similar structures visible on the surrounding fell.

The banks are said to be known locally as 'Roman Graves' and some have been dug into with apparently no finds made. The external banks are recorded as being 0.6m high. The enclosures are all roughly the same size, varying from 7.0m-9.0m internally by approximately 6.0m-8.0m transversely, the longer axis being generally E-W. All are distinguished by containing within them from one to five parallel earthen banks up to 0.4 m high (?stalls for horses).

It seems to have been suggested that they may have been pillow mounds (artificial rabbit warrens) but there seems to be no evidence for that and they are probably more likely associated with coal mining or other industrial activity.

The large almost square enclosure is described here (HE: 22089) and not considered as Roman or Romano-British.

LIDAR (DSM & DTM, 1m) copyright Environment Agency (2022).

Enhancement of the LIDAR was carried out using tools made available in the QGIS plugin, Relief Visualization Toolbox. Kokalj, Žiga & Hesse, Ralf. (2017). Airborne laser scanning raster data visualization: A Guide to Good Practice.