The value of the Tofts as a coastal feature in postmedieval
times was emphasised in the Inquest at
Freiston in 1623 quoted above and even today
the Tofts are highly visible in the landscape: drive
the A52 from north from Wrangle to Wainfleet
and they are constantly rising to the left; look
at Google Earth and the band of landscape is
easy to trace, except perhaps in the more diffuse
zone of Wrangle. On some of the Landsat
imagery (http://landsatlook.usgs.gov), parts at
least of the Tofts have a different reflectance
which is clearest in some of the false-colour
renditions. Moreover, some of the salt-cotes
have been transformed into farms and dwelling
houses. Alas, the site of St Edmund’s Chapel
on Sailholme is still not certain: it probably lies
beneath the landscaped gardens of Wainfleet
Hall. The High Street footpath survives as a
Public Right of Way on today’s 1:25,000 maps,
though not everywhere on the ground.