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Therfield Heath
Therfield Heath covers an area of 420 acres. Although it once belonged to the Church of England, the Heath is now owned by the Therfield Regulation, and is managed by the Conservators of Therfield Heath and Greens, a locally elected body established by Act of Parliament in 1888.
The Heath’s status as common land has protected it from urban and agricultural development, thus preserving an important historic site and a valuable wildlife haven. It now provides a fascinating area for study, and is one of the best sites for informal recreation in Hertfordshire.
Although Royston is the closest settlement, most of the Heath lies in the parish of the much older village of Therfield. The name Therfield comes from the Old English words for dry place, reflecting the freely draining nature of the underlying chalk.
The Heath was once much more extensive than it is today, stretching as far as Therfield, Kelshall and Odsey. Most of the original area was cultivated following the Enclosure Act of 1849 but other small fragments, such as Rush Green near Therfield, still retain their status as common land.
The chalk rock beneath the Heath was laid down around one hundred million years ago when this area lay beneath a warm sea. The remains of tiny animals fell to the sea bed and were compressed over millions of years to form a band of chalk up to 90 metres thick. Twenty million years ago the same earth movements which formed the Alps caused the calk to dip towards the south east. Over the last million years successive ice ages formed the dry valleys. The last ice sheet retreated from here about twelve thousand years ago, only a few thousand years before the first humans settled.
The Heath’s status as common land has protected it from urban and agricultural development, thus preserving an important historic site and a valuable wildlife haven. It now provides a fascinating area for study, and is one of the best sites for informal recreation in Hertfordshire.
Although Royston is the closest settlement, most of the Heath lies in the parish of the much older village of Therfield. The name Therfield comes from the Old English words for dry place, reflecting the freely draining nature of the underlying chalk.
The Heath was once much more extensive than it is today, stretching as far as Therfield, Kelshall and Odsey. Most of the original area was cultivated following the Enclosure Act of 1849 but other small fragments, such as Rush Green near Therfield, still retain their status as common land.
The chalk rock beneath the Heath was laid down around one hundred million years ago when this area lay beneath a warm sea. The remains of tiny animals fell to the sea bed and were compressed over millions of years to form a band of chalk up to 90 metres thick. Twenty million years ago the same earth movements which formed the Alps caused the calk to dip towards the south east. Over the last million years successive ice ages formed the dry valleys. The last ice sheet retreated from here about twelve thousand years ago, only a few thousand years before the first humans settled.
On the heath
Graham Palmer sent us these two short YouTube films about Therfield Heath. The first, "on the heath", is a lovely collection of photos from the heath and surrounding areas. The second, "on the edge", explores images of the Heath over time and some thoughts from some of the people using this precious area over the Covid 19 pandemic lock downs of 2020. Thank you to © Graham & James Palmer 2023 for creating these and sharing them with us.
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