Wardell Armstrong Archaeology unpublished report series

Evaluation carried out by Wardell Armstrong in 1994 prior to the extension of Maes Mynan quarry. Trial trenching was carried out to investigate and assess geophysical anomalies. Of the 8 areas tested by excavation, only 2 yielded archaeological remains. Trench A1 contained significant archaeological deposits, some of which may be presumed to be prehistoric. A line of stake holes may represent a wind break sheltering a cooking area. Features in Trench C included a dead cow and a small fire pit - both were interpreted as modern. Other anomalies detected by the geophysical survey were found to be a result of ground conditions (Josephs, A, 1994).

An archaeological excavation was carried out at 42-48 Scotch Street, Carlisle, Cumbria. Nine phases of activity were recorded on the site, from a prehistoric ground surface through to intense Roman activity, early medieval pitting, 14th century industrial kiln activity and a post-medieval well. A wealth of finds were recovered, including pottery, coins, animal bone, worked stone, CBM, iron and copper alloy.

There had been some development on the site by 1806, including a one room Sunday school at the eastern end of the proposed development area. The Sunday school was demolished and rebuilt in the 1870s as a parochial school on a much larger scale. The former school had been converted into a works, but retained much of its historic external features and was a building of significant historic character. [Au(abr)]

A rapid photographic survey was undertaken on land at 29-65 Garden Street, Sheffield in Feb 2007. All of the buildings on the site comprise factory premises of mid to late 20th century date and are typical of light industrial usage. The buildings display a variety of forms typical of small engineering concerns. Buildings 2 and 4 comprise single-storey light industrial units of the immediate pre-war period. Buildings 5 and 6 are standard examples of small industrial premises built in the decades after the war. Building 3 comprises a late 20th century design of warehouse structure with a simple portal frame, replaceable lightweight cladding, and a large loading bay door to facilitate the use of fork-lift pallet-handling.

In February 2007, ARCUS were commissioned by Merlin Estates to carry out a pre-demolition archaeological evaluation on land at 29-65 Garden Street, Sheffield. The trenches were located with reference to buildings and courtyards shown on earlier maps of the site. In Trench 1 archaeological structures were identified probably relating to buildings in a former yard owned by Peace Brothers steel manufacturers. A second phase in the 19th century saw the insertion of 2 parallel walls, two associated walls and a possible buttress. Artefacts recovered from the earlier phases in each trench comprised ceramics, clay tobacco pipes, waste from crucible steel production, glass, animal bone, shell and leather. The pottery assemblage was predominantly of mid to late 18th and 19th century date and was domestic in nature.

A Level 2 historic building survey undertaken of a former early 20th century infants school on Stone Road, Stafford prior to demolition and redevelopment of site as part of a larger scheme. A Brief for the recording was issued by Staffordshire County Council SMR. A rapid desk-based assessment was undertaken prior to the survey work; this revealed that the Infants School was constructed in 1900 as North Street Infants School and was enlarged in 1909. About 1929 it was renamed Stone Road Council School and in 1958 Northfields Infants School. The site was taken over as a day care centre in 1983. The archaeological building recording identified two main phases of school buildings, dating to 1900 and 1909, followed by modifications undertaken in the 1980s. The floor plan of the two phases of school remain intact, and provide interesting information on the use of space and on features such as partly tiled walls and hopper windows

Archaeological DBA, Geophysical Survey and Trial Trenching on field to the west of St Pauls Church. Three trenchs. Postholes recorded containing undateable flint and post-medieval building material.

An historic building survey was undertaken of the former Sandwell Borough Council offices at Cradley Heath, known as the Municipal Buildings, prior to the demolition of the structure and redevelopment of the site.

The brief required that the excavation examine the area of the ‘footprint’ of the proposed road corridor as it lies above the 2m contour. It extended across the area of evaluation Trenches 6 and 7 (Fig. 2). The brief also required the monitoring of all other groundworks associated with the scheme, outside this area. Regular visits were made, and provision was made for adequate sampling and analysis of peats as exposed by the proposed road construction. A large area of the central sector of the new link road was mechanically stripped of topsoil and overburden. Alluvial deposits were mechanically removed and subsequently the exposed peat deposits were carefully machined, leaving intact any parts of the peat that were judged to contain archaeological material. The latter areas were excavated carefully by hand until the limits of the archaeological material were reached and the remaining peat was then carefully mechanically excavated. Additional archaeological was also subjected to hand excavation. Upright timber posts were revealed. Their position was surveyed and then each post was, where possible, box sectioned, recorded and lifted intact. Such posts had been revealed during the evaluation and were dated to the middle Iron Age (Murrell 2009). The evaluation report suggests the oak post were possibly part of a jetty or trackway, or part of a boundary or fish trap. At the north of the site horizontal timbers were exposed mid way within the peat deposits in and around the upright posts. A large area of this timber was exposed, cleaned and recorded. Maisie Taylor of the Flag Fen Research Centre viewed this timber and identified that it was not worked. It was thought to be either the result of the collapse of a fen edge wood due to water inundation, or timbers that floated down the water course and became entangled in the lines of posts. Further examination indicated that the horizontal timbers pre-dated the upright posts and were wholly a natural formation. At the south of the site discrete features including pits, cremations, an iron furnace and a ring ditch were clustered on an area of higher land, identified by James Rackham as being a prehistoric shore line. These features were excavated by hand, and an intact collared urn found inverted in one of the pits was carefully lifted and taken for conservation. Following the completion of the excavation the remainder of the corridor of the link road was mechanically stripped by the contractors and road building commenced. The remainder of the road corridor traversed much deeper peat beds. Regular site visits throughout late July and August were undertaken to monitor this process. The excavation revealed a site adjacent to the fen edge which consisted of deep clayey silts deposits overlying peat. Pits, including two cremations, and an iron furnace were located at the south end of the site on an area of raised land. Within the peat an alignment of preserved wooden posts and stakes, thought to be Iron Age in date, were recorded. This alignment was revealed during the evaluation. Several smaller groups of posts and stakes were found in other locations on the site. The oak posts were well preserved. They seem to have formed an access to the wetter areas towards the north of the site, possibly to a creek. Forty one posts and stakes were recorded and recovered for detailed analysis.