2008

TG4501 : View towards Seven Mile House

taken 16 years ago, near to Fritton, Norfolk, England

View towards Seven Mile House
View towards Seven Mile House
... across reed beds and the River Waveney. For a closer view see > TG4501 : Seven Mile House. This land forms part of Pettingell's Level.
Pettingell's Level

The Pettingell family have lived on the Island for at least two centuries and their sector of marsh, an area encompassing about 430 acres, is known as Pettingell's Level. Their house is situated isolated on the marsh beside the dyke on the west bank of the River Waveney, and marked on modern maps as Seven Mile House, because it is 7 miles distant from Yarmouth. It is said to once have been a pub or lodging house for wherry-men.

Grass was the only crop and the only harvest was hay. The grazing season started in the early days of April when the cattle came down from the farms or directly from the markets, and it traditionally ended on 31 October.

The Pettigells were a family of marshmen, who apart from looking after their own smallholdings and livestock were also looking after the marshes, including the livestock from different owners grazing them. Until shortly after WW2, the families living on the Island used to make their own hay on the ronds, the strips of land situated between the natural river bank and the man-made embankments (the dykes) which usually run parallel to it. The ronds at the Pettingell Level were about 60 yards wide on each side of the river. When the water level in the river rose after the dredging and widening of the harbour at Great Yarmouth to enable access for larger ships, hay making became impossible as the resulting higher tides often flooded the ronds and swept away the cut grass. Only a small area adjacent to the house is today still accessible. All the other ronds are now used for growing reeds.


Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Evelyn Simak and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
Category: House
This photo is linked from: Automatic Clusters: · Seven Mile House [19] · Reed Beds [3] Other Photos: · Private farm track on The Island · Looking towards Seven Mile House · Seven Mile House ·
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TG4501, 84 images   (more nearby 🔍)
Photographer
Evelyn Simak   (more nearby)
Date Taken
Tuesday, 22 January, 2008   (more nearby)
Submitted
Tuesday, 22 January, 2008
Subject Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TG 458 014 [100m precision]
WGS84: 52:33.3252N 1:37.4839E
Camera Location
OSGB36: geotagged! TG 458 011
View Direction
NORTH (about 0 degrees)
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Image classification(about): Geograph (Third Visitor for TG4501)
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