Dead Woman's Ditch is an earthwork which has been scheduled as an

ancient monument An ancient monument can refer to any early or historical manmade structure or architecture. Certain ancient monuments are of cultural importance for nations and become symbols of international recognition, including the Baalbek, ruins of Baalbek ...

Over Stowey Over Stowey is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, South West England. A large part of the forest and open heath of the Quantock Hills is within the parish and it includes the hamlets of Plainsfield, Aley, Adscombe, Friarn and Bincomb ...

, Somerset, England situated on the

Quantock Hills The Quantock Hills west of Bridgwater in Somerset, England, consist of heathland, oak woodlands, ancient parklands and agricultural land. They were England's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, designated in 1956. Natural England have desi ...

. A linear earthwork consisting of a bank with a ditch along the west side running for approximately from a spring known as Lady's Fountain across Robin Uprights Hill and down into Ramscombe. The earthwork is presumed to be of prehistoric origin and is of unknown purpose, but has been linked to

Dowsborough Dowsborough Camp (or ''Danesborough'' or ''Dawesbury'') is an Iron Age hill fort on the Quantock Hills near Nether Stowey in Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Scheduled Monument. The fort and associated round barrow has been added ...

. The long earthwork has been cut through by later tracks and a road. It is badly eroded in places and is on the

Heritage at Risk Register An annual ''Heritage at Risk Register'' is published by Historic England. The survey is used by national and local government, a wide range of individuals and heritage groups to establish the extent of risk and to help assess priorities for acti ...

. Part of the earthwork is on land owned by the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...

. Dead Woman's Ditch is sometimes associated with the murder of Jane Walford by her husband John in 1789 but the name predates the murder, appearing on an earlier map. In 1988 the body of Shirley Banks was found 1 mile from the site;

John Cannan John David Guise Cannan (20 February 1954 – 6 November 2024) was a British murderer, serial rapist, serial abductor, and suspected serial killer. He was convicted in July 1988 and given three life sentences for the murder of Shirley Banks in ...

was found guilty of her murder. Wild Horses Somerset

References

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