FOLLOWING a question from a reader in Chipperfield concerning a map which listed Crouch Lane, Jim Pritchard of Chipperfield sent in a copy of an 1839 map which shows the lane in the parish of Chipperfield.

Jim writes that the lane is now known as Stony Lane and he has a document dated 1896 which bears this name.

He explains that the lane extends into the neighbouring parish of Sarratt and adds: "I know from a farm sale catalogue of 1919 that the acreage of the lane is one acre, two roods, 15 poles (one acre, one rood and 32 poles in the Parish of Chipperfield and 23 poles in the Parish of Sarratt).

"It is also interesting to note from the 1839 map that the Boot public house, Tower Hill, Chipperfield, was known as The Pightle at the time.

"As a life-long resident of Chipperfield (born 1922) I have only heard these locations referred to by their current names by local residents."

The curious former name for the Boot prompted me to consult a book called Hertfordshire Dialect and Country Sayings, edited by Margaret Ward, which tells me that "pightle" meant "an enclosure adjoining a farmhouse in which cattle were kept at night".

The same book states that "crouch" meant "cross" and is found in place names, which may shed some light on the older name. "Stony" is not listed as a specific Hertfordshire saying but there is a reference to "Stone-pickers" who were "small gangs of children who gathered stones on arable land under the direction of their foreman, a boy of ten or eleven years. The stones were used for road-mending."

I mention the stone-pickers because the 1839 map lists a field right on the edge of the parish, bordered by Crouch Lane and Woodman's Wood, called Stoney Field.

Is is possible that Stoney Field might have been a haunt of these young stone gatherers? If so, could the lane have come to be known for their activities or perhaps it was paved with stone at some stage during the 19th Century?

All thoughts on the development of these names are very welcome.