Monument record MKE127632 - Post-medieval pond, Evington House, Elmstead

Former extractive pit (e.g chalk, clay, gravel), visible on 1st and 2nd edition OS map. Recorded during 2024 Kent Downs National Landscape Historic Ponds project.
Preservation:Pond on historic maps but not visible on current OS (ghost pond)
Pond shape:Rectangular
Site type: Former extractive pit (e.g chalk, clay, gravel)
Description: This was a fairly large rectangular pond, probably an extractive pit. The site is accessible and in a separate grass padock from the residences. Unclear if any remains, as the paddock has multiple shallow undulations on lidar.
Recorded date: 15/01/2025(1)

Investigations were carried out at the site in 2025 comprising a desk-based assessment, field visit, GPS survey, and a hand auger survey. The feature appeared to be roughly rectangular in shape and measured 22m by 9m on the 1841 Tithe Map. It was originally sited around 100m east of Evington Place country house. The earliest depiction of the pond was on the 1840 Tithe map and the 1841 Parish Tithe map. The pond is depicted on later OS mapping as initially being filled with water and then backfilled by 1945, potentially going out of use around the same time as Evington Place country house was demolished. The authors of the report (2) suggest that due to the rectangular form of the pond, the feature may not have been the result of water infilling an extractive pit, and instead could have had an alternative use as an ornamental feature.
Artefacts recovered from the overspill of the pond included a fragment of clay pipe, and a 19th-20th century pottery sherd. The auger survey was restricted to 0.35m below ground surface; a deposit of made ground/backfill overlain by topsoil was identified. This deposit could comprise material from the demolition of Evington House, if the lifespans of the two features are broadly contemporary. (2)

<1> Kent Downs AONB Unit, 2025, Historic Ponds Project dataset (Digital archive). SKE58454.

<2> Wessex Archaeology, 2025, (Draft) North Downs Heritage Ponds Project Phase 1 Report (Unpublished document). SKE58669.