Sir,—I am no antiquarian, but, having read Mr. Watkins’s book, I have been sufficiently interested to see whether support for his contentions can be obtained from my local Ordnance map. The results are rather remarkable. For example, I find that a line from St. Albans to Pulpit Hill, on the Chilterns, touches the following points (going from East to West): a ford over the Ver; a “Camp” in the centre of a wood; church and cross-roads at Leverstock Green, Hawridge (mound and other ancient remains), high ground at Leigh Gate; church at Dunsmore; and, finally, a “Camp” on Pulpit Hill. A line from Hendon Parish Church to Leigh Gate coincides with the road down Hendon Church Hill and in front of Hendon Aerodrome, and touches the following points: Burnt Oak; St. Lawrence Church, Whitchurch; Stanmore cross-roads and (near) Church; end of Bentley Priory Lake; Holywell, Watford (near); Cassio Bridge (ford near by); Sarratt Church; Ford over the Colne; Lee Clump. There seem to be signs of a track from Harrow Hill to the “Danish Camp” at Cholesbury, and it is remarkable that this line crosses the Colne at the same ford as the line from Hendon to Leigh Gate, and it crosses the line from St. Albans to Pulpit Hill at Hawridge.
It is curious that the long, straight avenue or glade which goes through Hatfield Park and the adjoining Milwards Park is sighted on Hendon Church, the line crossing Dancers’ Hill (at cross-roads) and passing near the old mineral well at Barnet.
A line from Totteridge to St. Albans also passes near the Barnet Well, and then touches cross-roads at Shenley, Shenleybury Church, cross-roads near Colney House (coinciding thereafter, for some distance, with an existing road), and then passes on by a moat and a ford at Broad Colney.
I have not, so far, had much opportunity of traversing the ground that the lines follow except near St. Albans, where my son and I discovered a grass-covered, sunken pathway leading from the direction of St. Albans to the “Camp” in a wood on the track St. Albans-to-Pulpit Hill. This pathway was near some farm buildings, and so had not been been ploughed up; it was quite clearly marked, but evidently had not been used for many a long day, since at one place it was crossed by a thick hedge.
The names italicised, viz., “Leigh Gate” and “Lee Clump,” are significant; also, I suggest, “Dancers’ Hill.”
Perhaps I might add that Johnson’s “Byways in British Archæology” contains two chapters on
“Churches on Pagan Sites,” which are specially interesting to those who have studied Mr. Watkins’s
book.—Yours, &c.,
C. L. Davis.
Source info: Journal named in cutting; MS note by AW “Ap 14 1923”.
The writer reports on leys found in Hertfordshire. Watkins uses this cutting in The Old Straight Track, page 193, spelling the writer’s name “Davies”.