Desk Research: How do
you find WW1 remains?
An introduction to the local Historic Environment
Records
by Keith Elliott, Secretary of the CBA North Region and
formerly Northumberland Historic Environment Record
Assistant (now Warwickshire Assistant Historic
Environment Officer)
What is a Historic Environment Record
(HER)?
• comprehensive records of all known archaeological finds, sites and
landscapes of all periods, types and forms in defined geographical
areas
• successors to Sites and Monuments Records (SMRs)…
• …but have increased our coverage to include Modern (including
WW1 sites), buildings and landscapes, finds and
palaeoenvironmental information
• records of archaeological work carried out – even where no
monuments located or finds were made
• data has two components; a mapped location and database entry
What information do HERs collect?
• all archaeological periods – from Palaeolithic to Cold War –
compiling information from many sources
• cropmarks and earthworks, extant and ruined buildings,
structures and sites from documentary records
• core information is period, type or form
• nationally agreed database terms to allow easy searching, e.g.
“battery” or “battery” + “Modern” for sites and pieces of work…
• …as well as with/without geographical information, e.g. parish
• use a unique number to identify the site
Database entry and mapping (overall)
What do HERs do?
• HERs are tools – we are the
evidence base for assessing
planning applications, and
stewardship applications
• repository for reports derived from
planning work
• can be used for much more – such
as by all researchers of time, period
and/or place, as the basis for
projects, education and tourism
• We rely upon the return of info!
Where can I access HER information?
• HERs are located in local authority
areas, though some work across a
number of local authority areas
• They are usually located in planning
sections
• HERs nationally are listed on the
Heritage Gateway website, some
are online… (where complementary
information can be also found)
• …most of the North East’s HERs
are all available in some way online
What information do HERs hold?
• The core of our information is in our database and mapping packages
• We also hold some sources ourselves; particularly aerial photographs, old
OS mapping, some journal and book publications
• HERs receive reports (grey literature) from developer-funded work, as well
as information from other research, e.g. Historic England National
Mapping Programme and Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment, the Portable
Antiquities Scheme etc
• The HER is a signpost to where further details can be found
Where and who are the local HERs?
• There are six HERs with some North East
coverage
• These are;
• Northumberland (Northumberland and National
Park)
• ‘Tyne and Wear’ (the former Tyne and Wear
County)
• Durham (County Durham and Darlington Borough)
• Tees Archaeology (Hartlepool and Stockton)
• Redcar and Cleveland (Redcar and Cleveland)
• North Yorkshire Moors National Park (a small
snippet)
What information can I access?
• As noted already some local HER information is online;
• Northumberland and Durham has some available through the Keys to
the Past website – searchable by period, type, county with interactive
(as points)
• ‘Tyne and Wear’ through the Sitelines website – searchable by period,
type, area, borough, but with no mapping
• Tees through links of the Tees Archaeology website – searchable by
period, with mapping of locations, and with summary details of period,
type and name
• Information can also be requested by contacting the HER direct –
this is best expressed if you can write down what information you
would like
Northumberland and Durham
Tyne and Wear
Teesside
What information can you get?
• An HER report from the database entries with the unique HER
number
• The entry will typically show the period, type and form of the sites…
• …crucially this will also the source/s used (which might be from one
source to many)
• An annotated map showing where the sites are
• There may be other sources that the HER can highlight, such as
aerial photographs
• Information can be requested through a number of ways – email,
post, telephone and fax
Database entry and mapping (specific)
• These are the
Blaeberry Hills
practice trenches
• First noticed from
APs in the 1980s
• Survey and
excavation 2008
“ [on the] ..moorland which found the
above the town, a
western set
position on which
• Historical research
was selected and
and AP work 2014
each company was
• Final report 2015?
given a length…”
What information do we have on WW1?
• All the local HERs have some information
on WW1 sites – we have a very good
history of recording such sites
• These include the main coastal defence
batteries, the military installations, practice
trenches and war memorials
• Much has come from the Rapid Coastal
Assessment Zone survey from aerial
photograph work carried out for English
Heritage
• Northumberland and Tees HERs have
prepared handouts of what is known for
WW1 sites in their coverages
• So is there anything to do?
Are there things to do?
• Yes – there are things to do;
• some of our sites are only ‘known’ through documentary records – we
don’t know if anything remains at them or some of the locations are
vague
• sites may be better classified than we know of them
• some sites have not reached our records at all – we just don’t know
about them at all
What information would we like on WW1?
• What would be particularly useful;
• more information on known sites (which are usually military ones)
• work for the ‘soft’ sites – the other sites that saw WW1 military use, like
a country house as a hospital, and the other short-lived sites
• work where Home Front Legacy topics coincide with HER Audit work
• field-visits would be useful to establish what remains at some sites
• visits to the local archives to check the locations of sites
• your highlighting in other projects the site-based aspects
• Contact your HER for specific topics that will suit you and them!
Local sources of information
• The HERs provide a signpost to what is ‘known’ – there are people
behind the machines!
• Other useful national sources are;
• War Office Northern Command, 1918. List of Lands and Buildings in
the Occupation of the War Department… *
• Regimental histories – e.g. Historical Records of the 18th (Service)
Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers (1st Tyneside Pioneers)
• Morris, J, 1925. German Air Raids on Great Britain 1914-1918
• Barclay, G J, 2014. The Built Heritage of the First World War in
Scotland http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/built-heritage-ww1.pdf
But bear in mind…
• HERs cover current local authority
areas, so remember
Northumberland, Newcastle, County
Durham and North Riding of
Yorkshire in all record searches…
• …but Berwick-upon-Tweed came
under Scottish Command during
WW1
• remember some sites continued on –
e.g. Post-Medieval into WW1
• there are a range of projects and
studies to tap into
Contact details
• Northumberland – Liz Williams, Heritage and HER Officer,
[email protected];
http://www.keystothepast.info/
• Tyne and Wear – Jennifer Morrison, Archaeology Officer,
[email protected]; http://www.twsitelines.info
• County Durham – Nick Boldrini, HER Officer,
[email protected]; http://www.keystothepast.info/
• Tees Archaeology – Rachel Grahame, Archaeologist (HER),
rachel,[email protected];
http://www.teesarchaeology.com/projects/HER/HER.html
• For the others see the Heritage Gateway website