Our speaker on 8 July 2024 was Bob Evans, a local historian and keen rambler. Bob began his talk by explaining that our footpaths and byways are a direct result of human locomotion through the landscape. Some routes between places have long history such as the Ridgeway or Icknield Way, Trod’s on the North York Moors, and Abbots Way in Somerset. Later paths that led to water and other places start to become managed from the Middle Ages, but at this time no legal definition existed and so paths could be argued about. Maps are made to show land ownership, so paths are often left out of them. By the mid-18th Century, the country starts to transition from an open field structure to enclosed land; maps are updated and, while some paths get recorded, lots are lost.

In the late 19th Century, paths begin to become classified and are generally categorised by width and surface. Main Roads (1879) were the widest and best maintained (many became Trunk Roads from 1936); many of the rest had lower status as bridleways at most The ownership of these paths slowly moved to local government, with the larger routes (highways) managed by the district council and the smaller paths (byways and footpaths) by the parish council. Over time – particularly in the late 19th and early 20th century – our paths start to become at risk due to development and growth.

From the mid-19th century, numerous groups (Open Space Society, Peak and Northern Paths Society) start to emerge to seek to protect spaces from being overdeveloped and paths being lost. In the early 20th century, rambling starts and increases the popularity of walking in nature. These groups campaigned for a higher right of access, with the first key piece of legislation, the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949, delivering national parks and, for the first time, recording paths. The Oxford area had rambling societies from the 1920s and local champions, notably ‘Colonel’ d’Arcy Dalton. Access was enhanced in 2000 when the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CRoW) delivered the right to roam on mountains, moors, heaths and downs. Thankfully, we enjoy a rich path network in the local area, so take a moment to put on your walking shoes and explore!