NHER 54811 (Designed Landscape record) - Shotesham Little Wood

Earthwork survey.
Shotesham Little Wood is shown on a map of c.1650, in the Norfolk Records Office, that it was connected to what is now Shotesham Great Wood. However, both had been separated by the early 19th century, Great Wood has since been largely coniferised. Most of the Little Wood is now dominated by hornbeam coppice with oak standards. Overall, the wood covers 18.8 hectares, around 17.5 hectares of which appears to be the medieval core. This irregularly-shaped area is surrounded by a continuous boundary bank. A small recent plot of land has been incorporated into the wood during the 20th century, which is attached to an earlier addition located in the most north westerly area of the wood (WNW). Within the central southern region of the wood a pond is located with a gentle hollow way entrance to the south east. Throughout the wood, mainly in the northern and central areas there are numerous pits of varying sizes. Also in the central and southern areas of the wood there is two hollow ways running parallel to each other. Lastly, the wood is dissected by a network of straight drainage ditches like those found in other woods across the county, they are probably of 19th century in date.
C. Goodwin (NLA), 26 August 2010.