Why the Marquess of Ailesbury wanted to close Piper's Lane and what benefit he derived from the re-alignment of the lanes between Westcourt and Burbage is unclear. Be that as it may, he duly applied for, and was subsequently granted permission to enact the changes at the Michaelmas Quarter Sessions of 1853.
Prior to the court session he complied with the statutory requirements by posting notices of his intentions at the relevant places around the parish. It is unlikely that the re-alignment of Cross Lane was contentious but it seems his claim that Piper's Lane should be stopped up because it was "unnecessary" was disputed by some of the people. Probably due to the power the Marquess had over most of the villagers (he was the only major employer atthis time), their protests were not public but took the form tearing down the notices.
The changes were made to the satisfaction of the county surveyors and the were formally approved at the Michaelmas Quarter Sessions of 1854.
Piper's Lane was one of several ancient tracks in the parish which converged at the watershed crossing near Ram Alley. By 1853 two of them had already disappeared from public use: the Bishop's Way (which followed the parish's western boundary), and the northern continuation of Westcourt Lane towards Bowden Farm (described as a "private way" on the poster). The next convenient north-bound track for travellers or residents of Westcourt was Piper's Lane so it is difficult to see how it was "unnecessary".
The map below (Andrews & Dury's of 1773) shows the original road layout.
Cross Lane is the dog-legged road from Burbage High Street westwards to Westcourt (Westcot on the map). The change simply removed the dog-leg to produce a straight road westwards.
Piper's Lane begins at the centre of Cross Lane and heads north to Ram Alley Ponds after which all travellers had to pass through the Turnpike Gates before entering the Forest. Much of the route now forms the village's new by-pass with the northern part next to the Ponds being a bridleway.
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Copyright Colin Younger 1998
