<< Our Photo Pages >> Higgin's Well - Holy Well or Sacred Spring in England in Herefordshire

Submitted by HOLYWELL on Thursday, 29 July 2021  Page Views: 9689

Springs and Holy WellsSite Name: Higgin's Well Alternative Name: Higgins's Well; Higgins' Well
Country: England
NOTE: This site is 2.5 km away from the location you searched for.
County: Herefordshire Type: Holy Well or Sacred Spring
 Nearest Village: Little Birch
Map Ref: SO51163141
Latitude: 51.978994N  Longitude: 2.71249W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
 4 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
 4 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
 5 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
 4

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Anne T visited on 13th Jul 2021 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 4 Higgins's Well, Little Birch: We parked outside the church (St Mary's) and walked down the lane towards the well. We could hear water running in the distance, so followed our ears. A very small stream runs downhill behind the well from Athelstan's Wood currently appearing to flow both into the well and to another pond and stream, joining a larger stream which runs to the south of the well. The well is very overgrown, and was deep in shadow at the time of our visit. Stepping inside the gate, there is an 80cm stone slab which runs between the northern wall of the well and the well pool, so it's possible to step into the well and, if you wanted, dip your bucket into the well pool.

4clydesdale7 visited on 31st May 2013 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 4 Probably needs some caring soul to carry out some clearing of foliage etc but very peaceful



Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3 Ambience: 3.5 Access: 4

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : View of the well from nearer the larger stream which runs to the south. The well pool was very overgrown, with a larger pool of water to the right of the well on this photo. (Vote or comment on this photo)
A legend associated with this well will be familiar to many - the story goes that the landowner didn't like people visiting the well and filled it in. The well's water then started to arise through his house, so he re-opened it! More details in Anne's comment below. The present structure is Victorian. It is found along a path to the left of the church.
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Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by HOLYWELL : Higgin's Well Little Birch (Vote or comment on this photo)

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : Bending down to look into the well chamber itself, the back is just a stone and concrete wall. Either there is an inlet pipe underneath the water, or the water seeps up into the chamber. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : Looking into the well basin, the water is clear, with a good flow. Because the rest of the well was so overgrown, I didn't try and taste the water. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : Turning with my back to the well basin, looking out over the larger well pool, now very overgrown. Water runs down the hill along the edge of Athelstan's Wood, diverting into the well and to a larger pool of water just off the left hand side of the photo. All the water then disappears into a larger stream which runs east-west below the well. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : Standing on the stone slab inside the well enclosure, looking out through the metal gate which allows access to the well basin and well pool. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by Anne T : Walking down the footpath at the southern side of St Mary's Church in Little Birch. This was our first view of the well.

Higgin's Well
Higgin's Well submitted by 4clydesdale7 : Alas this very peaceful Well now needs a little TLC.

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Re: Higgin's Well by Anne T on Thursday, 29 July 2021
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I've not been able to find out much about this well at all, apart from that it's marked on the OS map. However, I've just come across this reference from the Hereford Visitors website for Little Birch. This tells us: "Near the church is Higgins Well, an important and unfailing supply of water for the village. There is a legend connected with the well which was told by a local man, Mr. H. W. Southey, to the Hereford Times in 1900 as follows:"

"The original outlet for the waters of the well was in a meadow at the top of the steep bank which rises above the present well. The owner of this meadow became so annoyed at the trespasses of the villagers across his land to the well that he had it filled up. However, shortly afterwards, while smoking his pipe in the great chimney corner of his house, he was startled by a sudden eruption of water under his feet."

"To his untutored mind, the waters forcing this new outlet were a sign that the guardian spirit protecting the local people's rights was asserting itself. To appease this spirit, but determined not to reopen the well, he moved down to the present site and started to dig. In due course water began to bubble up through the underlying rock and, miraculously, the inrush in the chimney corner disappeared. The water spirit was obviously satisfied that water was once again made available to the people. This "act of contrition" resulted in local immortality for Mr Higgins."
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