A History of Tice's Meadow
Following the last
Ice Age the River Blackwater was much larger and during
periods of flood deposited gravel all along its wide floodplain. It
was subsequently reduced to its current state when the River Wey
captured its headwater flowing from Alton, some 50,000 years ago.
Surveys by the Surrey
County Archaeology Unit have revealed evidence of prehistoric, Roman
and medieval activities, including late Iron Age settlement,
agriculture and pottery production, within the area of the site.
The land now forming
Tice's Meadow was owned and farmed for hops by Henry Tice, Walter
Tice, his widow Ada Hewett, and Alan Perrett Tice from 1851 until
1958.
In 1961 the Tice family
sold the section of their farm lying north of the River Blackwater,
known as “Farnham Field”, to Aldershot Borough Council who built
the housing estate now known as Tice's Meadow.
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| (c) Rural Life Centre, Walter Tice's Wagon Outside The Kiln, 1908. |
In 1973 the Tice family
sold another portion of their land to Pioneer Aggregates, consisting
mainly of water meadows to the south of the River Blackwater, known
as “The Moors”, and on the east side, “Tongham Moors”.
The 140 acre quarry
operated by Hanson Aggregates, known as “Runfold Quarry” and then
“Farnham Quarry”, was operational between 1998 and 2010.
In the Winter of 2004
reports of large numbers of Golden Plover on site attracted Kevin
Duncan to visit for the first time and begin regular birdwatching and
recording.
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| (c) Get Mapping, Aerial View of Tice's Meadow, August 1999. |
In 2006 the RSPB's
'Nature After Minerals' group used the site as a case study for wet
meadow restoration.
In 2009, following a
recommendation from the Surrey Bird Club due to the importance of its
bird assemblages, Guildford Borough Council adopted the site as an
SNCI (Tongham Ponds & Tice's Meadow).
Gravel extraction
finished in 2010 and the majority of the site was restored by 2011,
with the final phases of restoration due for early 2015.
