A MAP OF BINGHAM FOR 1586 (12)
Identification of street and road names
We are confident that within the constraints imposed by the data and the methodology that we have achieved a reasonably authentic map of the open fields and common lands of Bingham in 1586. There is a good correspondence between the furlong areas on the map and the calculations described. Quite often boundary information included reference to a gate (road or street) name. In the village area matching the 1586 name with the modern name was fairly straightforward, as Bingham Town centre was planned in the 14th century and the layout has not changed.
Street names
| 1586 Chappell Lane Chappell Gate West Moor Lane Old Market Place No reference Nottingham Gate Husband Street Fisher Lane Tithby Road Church Gate/Church Gate Lane Church Lane Goodwyn Lane Selby Lane (N) Selby Lane (S) Spybie Lane Road bend No reference (South Field was boundary) Nottingham Gate (E) Guye Lane East Moor Lane |
2010 Chapel Lane/Kirkhill/Fairfield Street Newgate Street Moor Lane Market Place Market Street Nottingham Road Long Acre/Long Acre East Fisher Lane Dowsty Gate Church Street Church Lane East Street Cherry Street Jebbs Lane Fosters Lane/Grantham Road bend The Banks Grantham Road Dark Lane Cogley Lane |
Deadmans Lane featured as the east boundary of John Wright’s homestead (43) and the west boundary of Cow Close (60.6), part way along the north side of Long Acre East. A footpath is shown on the 1883 but was too far east and would have run through Cow Close (as we mapped it) which would be unlikely. The route we show still divided properties in 1883. The line we chose also ends at a point in East Street (Goodwyns Lane) opposite Brian Goodwyn’s homestead whose southern boundary was ‘The north end of Deadman's Lane’.
Kirk Lane might have been an alternative for Church Lane but more likely was the lane around the north and east of the churchyard which we know was there in 1776.
We were able to identify the most likely candidates for four key roads (gates) in the parish:
1 Cropwell Gate
The resulting layout of West Field forces the route of the old Cropwell Gate well to the south of where we expected it to be, but the implied route follows a tithe map foot path.
2 Dowsty Gate
Research on the internet showed the derivation of Dowsty to be dusty and one site (a Newfoundland English Dictionary!) referred to a miller with a dowsty poll (a (head covered with flour). Thus we decided this would be the lane leading up to the mill on the hill in South Field – the present Tithby Road. An alternative to this somewhat poetic derivation rests on sty meaning a footpath (as in Cropwell Sty, encountered in Furlong 17, South Field) but leaving the contribution of Dow unresolved.
3 Wyverton Gate
Certain furlongs are noted as west or east of Werton Gate (a common abbreviation for Wyverton at the time) and one actually crossed it, but it had always been assumed that this would be the southern section of Tithby Road, leading as it does past the entrance to Wyverton Hall. However, the final arrangement of furlongs did not allow this and a tithe map footpath from Fisher Lane to Wyverton became the prime candidate. A second candidate footpath shown on both tithe and 1883 maps lay further east, might have given better access to the eastern part of South Field, but is shown in 1841 as leading to Barnstone not Wyverton. It could still have been used for access even though it crossed holdings, as with a couple of examples at East Bridgford.
4 Constable Meare
Meares was a term used for a boundary, possibly but not exclusively along a road or a track. Hence Cropwell Mear furlong could have been alongside the boundary with Cropwell parish or could have been along a lane leading to it. Constable Mear was bordered east and west by furlongs that fitted with the present Granby Lane. But there was also a domain meadow by the same name, which may well have been an allotted grazing area along the lane.