These huts were once a key part of the water meadow system, and this one was photographed near West Stafford. The huts were a form of shelter used by drowners employed by farmers as early as the 1700s. These were professional men with a responsibility for drowning the water meadows for set periods of time and at certain seasons of the year. The River Frome near Dorchester (Image: Supplied)It also reduced the effects of frost in the winter and raised the soil temperature, providing early grass for the cattle. Although drowners were still employed on one farm near Dorchester as late as the 1940s, water meadows fell out of use from the late 19th century onwards.