NHER 1461 (Monument record) - Medieval to post medieval oyster beds

7 June 1946.
Group of circular and rectangular basins in this marsh visible on aerial photographs and on ground.
Probably saltpans, date unknown.
R.R. Clarke (NCM)
E. Rose (NAU)

See (S1).
R.J. Rickett (NAU) 2 February 1990

January 1998.
Land now used as caravan park, no surface sign of features.
B. Cushion (NLA) 7 January 1998.

March 2002. Norfolk NMP.
Series of earthworks of oyster beds and interconnecting channels, located on former salt marsh, visible on RAF aerial photographs from 1946 (S2) and 1953 (S3) to (S4). A caravan park now covers these earthworks and therefore only early photography of the site exists. The oyster beds can be seen on the RAF 1946 verticals, however no great detail can be ascertained. The 1953 RAF Floodlight photography revealed the clearest views of flooded features.
This site consists of at least 19 oblong and rectangular troughs, some of which are partially surrounded by low banks, up to 2m wide. The beds vary from 8.5m to 14m in length and from 3m to 10m wide. The main group run from TF 6651 3732 to TF 6651 3742, in a linear arrangement alongside a sinuous feeder gulley. A second group of at least five beds are located at TF 6656 3741. These appear to have been truncated by the field boundary to the north. To the south of this group further oyster beds and linears could be seen on some of the floodlight photography, however none of these additional features could be rectified and mapped due to the limitations of individual photographs.
A third group is potentially indicated by two very narrow beds at TF 6642 3726, adjacent to an east to west drainage channel. The whole site lies on the seaward side of the 'new' sea bank depicted on the 1871 Heacham Enclosure Award map (S5).
These beds are likely to have been part of the larger site, NHER 1462, to the immediate south at TF 6644 3707, now separated by major drains. Both sites are likely to be post medieval in date and may be the fattening grounds recorded at being at Heacham Harbour in 1872, mentioned by Brian Cushion (NLA) in relation to NHER 1460,a third oyster site 2km north along the coast.
S. Massey (NMP), 14 March 2002.