back to search results

The Fenlands

1974 , Fens (Other)

Cat no. 776

Educational film describing the geography of the Fenland.

People visit the flower fields in Spalding, Lincolnshire. An animated diagram shows Spalding, the Wash and the Fenland area. Throughout the film, maps and diagrams are interspersed with aerial and close-up shots. The landscape of the Fenland is man made with drainage channels cut out of the Old and New Bedford Rivers as well as other channels including the Nene, the Welland and the Witham. Drainage has led to more land under cultivation. A map shows areas of silt and peat; the two types of soil are very different. The land in the Fenland is below river level. So there are houses with their foundations exposed and steps leading to the doorway. Roads are uneven and cracked. The 1947 floods at Hilgay Fen meant cattle had be saved. New relief channels were cut to prevent this happening again. A sequence shows Denver Sluice in operation and the channels leading to it. Water is channelled through floodgates controlled by a central computer.This meant that embankments needed to be strengthened and drains cleared. The commentary explains how farming has improved. A New Holland combine works harvesting carrots, peas and potatoes during the beet harvest. Plums are picked at a fruit farm and strawberries are processed in a canning factory. A market gardener is at work as are stallholders selling produce. A pie chart shows land use and employment patterns in the Fenland. Fenland agriculture does have its negatives such as the infamous Fen Blow. Top soil is blown across a road. Trees have been planted and experiments made in intercropping to counteract erosion. A crop sprayer works. There remains inadequacies in Fenland transport such as the road at Suspension Bridge, Welney and then of the site of a disused railway line. A map illustrates a suggestion that a sea wall be built across the Wash. This hasn't yet happened.

Featured Buildings

Denver Sluice

Keywords

Drainage; Farming; Land reclamation

Other Places

Hilgay Fen; Spalding; Suspension Bridge, Welney

Background Information

Intercropping is the method of planting green crops and grain crops in alternate rows.

Manifestations

The Fenlands

  • Barcode
    INV346172
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:45
    Modification Date
    27/09/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    730089
  • Barcode
    INV326498
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:45
    Modification Date
    31/08/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    725033
  • Barcode
    INV386363
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:45
    Modification Date
    31/08/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    724246
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV359480
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    DV digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:45
    Modification Date
    10/05/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    709547
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV297763
    Canonical Identifier
    1994/9
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Details
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour System
    colour
    Colour Type
    colour
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:53
    Has Image
    Y
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    pos
    Modification Date
    31/01/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    701158
    Sound
    sound
    Sound System
    optical
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV227697
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    master digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:13:48
    Modification Date
    04/10/2010
    Parts
    Reference
    693113
  • Barcode
    INV??4861
    Canonical Identifier
    A-897
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    positive
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    656288
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV289361
    Canonical Identifier
    A-227
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    positive
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    656287
  • Barcode
    INV199556
    Canonical Identifier
    VP-1000
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Duration
    0:17:00
    Identifier
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    563358
  • Barcode
    INV??1654
    Canonical Identifier
    B-568
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour Type
    colour
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identification Notes
    Picture: combined optical (data migration 25/06/2021)
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    positive
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    562547
    Sound
    sound
  • Barcode
    INV??1653
    Canonical Identifier
    B-128
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour Type
    colour
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identification Notes
    Picture: combined optical (data migration 25/06/2021)
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    positive
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    562546
    Sound
    sound
  • Barcode
    INV??1652
    Canonical Identifier
    B-46
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour Type
    colour
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identification Notes
    Picture: combined (data migration 25/06/2021)
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    positive
    Modification Date
    25/06/2021
    Parts
    Reference
    562545
    Sound
    sound

Copyright restrictions apply.

Please see our terms of use. Films on this website are provided for personal viewing. Should you wish to use the films in any other way please contact eafa@uea.ac.uk

terms of use
The data for this page was generated on 25/04/2024 21:27:07+00:00. Click to regenerate this page .