History of Jarman Farm
Photo by Colin Townend
The name Jarman was previously Garman and Germans, and derives from the Germyn family who are well recorded in local 16th century documents.
Part of Jarman Farm is a registered national monument, being the only circular medieval moated site in Cheshire. It is thought to date from around 1310, when around 6,000 such sites existed in the UK. They consist of wide ditches, often permanently or seasonally filled with water, and partly or completely enclosing one or more islands of dry ground on which stood domestic or religious buildings.
In some cases the islands were used for horticulture, but the majority of moated sites served as prestigious aristocratic and seigneurial residences, with the moat as a status symbol - rather than a practical military defence.
The precise nature of the medieval settlement at Jarman Farm is unknown, as it has not been excavated. Visitors should note that the use of metal detectors is forbidden due to the site's status as a National Monument .