Theme 7: Understanding and Managing the Heritage Resource

Theme 7: Understanding and Managing the Heritage Resource

For those that live here, the Wolds is a place of repeated visits to favoured and known locales. But for many others, it is a ‘through-place’ experienced more fleetingly experienced on the way to the coast. Day-trippers and holiday-makers have different interactions to those that work the land and deal with the challenges of all its seasons and topography. Whatever the nature of their engagement, it was the continued presence of these traces of past lives which enabled people to have a special kind of ‘deep time’ connection with the Wolds.

Yet, the demands of the present – novel farming methods, pressure to build or convert historic buildings, and the need for new infrastructures to make a modern living here – pose challenges to our heritage resource.

Below are set out a number of research questions and strategies that are associated with the theme Understanding and Managing the Heritage Resource.

Understanding and Managing the Heritage Resource

7.1 What are the methods through which the heritage resource of the Yorkshire Wolds has been recorded, collected, curated, analysed and disseminated? Which individuals, institutions, facilities and projects have shaped this resource most significantly? How have changes to geo-political boundaries, cultural institutions and heritage legislation impacted this resource? How did the rescue archaeology of the post-War era develop and through whom (e.g. the Granthams), and how has the developer-funded model of commercial archaeology affected the character and volume of archaeological knowledge from the Wolds? How can the range of archives, finds and study collections relating to the Wolds be mapped to achieve a more coherent overview of study resources available? How can diverse records from film and photography to oral history recording, folklore and popular memory as well as modern mapping technologies be brought into the scope of research?

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#value, #understand, #diversify, #conserve, #inform, #skill, #innovate
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An assessment of the current heritage resource of the Yorkshire Wolds needs to take account of the county boundary split between East and North Yorkshire, which affects the way in which heritage data are collated and curated (e.g. in the HERs of Hull, York and an assessment of the current heritage resource of the Yorkshire Wolds needs to take account of the county boundary split between East and North Yorkshire, which affects the way in which heritage data are collated and curated (e.g. in the HERs of Hull, York and Northallerton) and shapes how planning advice is given. Catalogues of antiquarian and archaeological materials, as well as documentary and other archive materials, should be collated to reveal the numerous institutions which curate finds, data and records from the Wolds at a regional level (e.g. Yorkshire Museum, Hull and East Riding Museum, Southburn Museum, Beverley Treasure House, Malton Museum and the Yorkshire Film Archive) as well as market town libraries and collections (Driffield, Pocklington), and national institutions (e.g. British Museum, Natural History Museum, Society of Antiquaries). Stand-alone biographical studies of key figures (Mortimer, Greenwell, Maule-Cole, Dakyns, Fox-Strangeways) can reveal the extraordinary legacy, methods and motivations of early antiquarians for which the Wolds is renowned, building on some seminal studies here. Personal or local-based researchers and projects, university-led research (particularly from York, Hull, Sheffield and Leeds) and community-based groups of the 20th-21st century can often be poorly disseminated and many still await full analysis and publication; this should be a priority to maximise the public resource and to enhance the usefulness and sustainability of heritage knowledge. The adoption of research frameworks, agreed protocols, principles and methods for heritage work, co-ordinated planning advice, strong museum and PAS/Treasure processes, and close liaison with Heritage Crime officers, will help to create stronger standards for archiving, using and enhancing the heritage of the Wolds. It is recommended that important collections of finds or research collections be listed in the relevant section of the Yorks’ Wolds Research strategy, ensuring that users are aware of the wide range of research resources that may be accessed by regional researchers. Representatives of these organisations could be asked to provide summaries of the research collections for inclusion in the YWRS and invited also to comment on the current research strategy.
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Yorkshire Wolds Research Framework
Date accepted:
04/09/2022

7.2 How can the heritage resource be better promoted to practitioners, developers, research groups and heritage consumers in the 21st century? What support mechanisms, integrated data exchange methods, modes of dissemination, means of promotion, etc. are needed? Who can best help to deliver programmes which promote the distinctive heritage of the Wolds, and how can we make the past matter more to both local communities and visitors?

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#value, #understand, #diversify, #adapt, #conserve, #inform, #skill, #innovate
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Ensuring that these questions are embedded into research designs will better realise the value of research being undertaken in both commercial and research or community led heritage work. Protocols, memoranda of agreements, collaborative and inter-institutional working methods can be adopted to create more integrated and digitally available resources, working closely with sector leads (Historic England), heritage charities (such as English Heritage, the National Trust, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, the Churches Conservation Trust etc.), institutions (galleries, libraries, archives and museums), private organisations (e.g. country houses and estate managers), interested research individuals, guardians, wardens, rangers and inspectors, community archaeology societies (e.g.East Riding; Fimber, Fridaythorpe and Wetwang, Scarborough; High Wolds Heritage) and CBA-Yorkshire. Further consideration should be given to opportunities to promote public understanding of the Wolds and its rich history, from exhibitions, arts, literary and everyday activities and public events to more specialist activities and regular conferences to promote opportunities for research activity and engagement. Synthetic books and articles, sponsored by the sector leads, drawing on contributions from many actors, can serve to foster collaboration and promote the heritage of the Wolds to a broad audience. An exemplar publication focussed on a representative area of the Wolds is one such opportunity. Innovative, non-traditional methods of dissemination (e.g. story maps, online GIS portals) should be used to increase accessibility and broaden audience.
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Yorkshire Wolds Research Framework
Date accepted:
04/09/2022

7.3 How can historic features of the landscape and standing structures best be protected? To what extent should designation of sites be the main way this is achieved and what roles can landowners, farmers, community organisations and local residents be supported to play going forward? How has the popular pastime of metal-detecting affected the heritage of the Wolds and how might professional bodies and institutions create better standards for archaeological reporting, improved standards of recovery and analysis, and stronger sanctions for heritage crime? What are the priorities for future heritage projects, in terms of resources which are most under threat, at risk or of pressing research importance?

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#value, #understand, #diversify, #adapt, #conserve, #inform, #skill, #innovate
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Review the designation of monuments, earthworks, buried remains and standing structures on the Wolds, with a focus on extending designation of sites where appropriate. This should be undertaken in a targeted manner, focusing on known sites such as undesignated Abandoned Medieval Villages or clusters of sites in a defined area of interest, such as Rudston. Targeted ground survey (archaeo-topographical and geophysical) combined with aerial mapping and documentary studies could combine the work of professional, academic and community partners. Aerial mapping and analysis should be refreshed in a complete and systematic way to improve on the spatial accuracy achieved by Stoertz in the 1990s This should be undertaken to modern Aerial Investigation & Mapping standards with a broader, chronological and morphological scope and using the full range of aerial photograph sources and other forms of remote sensing (principally lidar). This will inform and support management and designation decisions, provide a more robust context for future research and the assessment of past discoveries, and provide the basis for public exploration of the Wolds’ rich and distinctive heritage through the Aerial Archaeology Mapping Explorer and other means. The scale of the Wolds is likely to prohibit complete re-mapping so this should be targeted in areas prioritised on the basis of threat, lack of identification and understanding, or research need. Explore ways to develop active participation in the Wolds and engagement that combine its natural, cultural and historic environment: projects should have broad appeal and incorporate a wide range of activities and interests – art, literature, drama. Build on and encourage the extensive popular interest in the everyday and incidental heritage of the Wolds, e.g. the continuing dressing of the trees around St Helen’s Well, Market Weighton. Projects with volunteers to de-scrub earthworks, conserve historic landscape features and encourage bio-diversity will need to be informed by both archaeological and environmental insights, and collaboration with landowners and farmers.
Status:
Active
Authority to change status:
Yorkshire Wolds Research Framework
Date accepted:
04/09/2022

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