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Leechpool and Owlbeech Woods were originally part of St. Leonard’s Forest, which in turn formed part of the ancient Forest of Andradswald, stretching from east to west for 100 miles between the North and South Downs. By the time of the Norman invasion (1066) small clearings had been made on the edge of the forest to make way for settlements, such as Horsham.
By the 15th century Horsham had been developed into a thriving market town serving the needs of a booming iron industry. This was based on locally produced iron ore, cheap fuel in the form of woodland undergrowth and a plentiful supply of water.
By 1790 the last iron had been produced in Sussex but a demand had developed for mature oaks to supply the expanding navy and merchant fleet. This continued into the early 19th century, by which time Leechpool had been bought by the Duke of Norfolk.
The Duke sold off large parts of his estate, including Leechpool Wood, to the Hurst family in 1911. The Hurst family had been MPs for the town and local benefactors; they had employed full-time foresters to manage the woodland. The Hurst family eventually sold Leechpool Wood to Horsham District Council in 1953.
The name Leechpool dates back to the 1770’s when ‘Dame Railey’, an old lady, used to collect leeches from a pond in the woods known as Middle Park Pond. These she sold to doctors, chemists and apothecaries for blood letting – a common practice at the time.
In the past Owlbeech Wood was dominated by heathland with small blocks of broadleaf trees. In 1970 it was planted up with Scots Pine by the Forestry Commission, who intended to use the trees as a commercial crop. However, they sold the land to Horsham District Council in 1989 before the crop had been harvested. Between 1989 and 2005 the trees remained unthinned and the ground below became very dark and lacked any ground flora and real wildlife potential. In 2005 the Council took the first steps to return the land to its former ‘Wooded Heath’, by heavily thinning the Scots Pine.
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