St Nicholas House, 47 London Road, Gloucester, Gloucestershire. Archaeological Watching Brief (OASIS ID: urbanarc1-342180)
Chiz Harward, 2020. https://doi.org/10.5284/1078328. How to cite using this DOI
Data copyright © Chiz Harward unless otherwise stated
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Primary contact
Urban Archaeology
Unit 24D Daniels Industrial Estate
Bath Road
Stroud
Gloucestershire
GL5 3TJ
England
Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 3741
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1078328
- How to cite using this DOI
Introduction
During February 2019 and March 2020 Urban Archaeology undertook an archaeological watching brief during the renovation of St Nicholas House, Gloucester, Gloucestershire. Two test pits were excavated in the basement of the property and an external service trench was monitored.
The construction of St Nicholas House has caused a general truncation to c14.08m OD within the footprint of the building and has removed any horizontal archaeological deposits from this area.
The surface of the natural Lias Clay substrate had been truncated within the internal test pits and was not reached in the external works. The original ground level cannot, therefore, be ascertained, although it probably lies between 14.10 and 14.81m OD.
Within the basement test pits two cut features (not excavated) are likely to be part of the same ditch or a large quarry pit for clay extraction. Finds from the surface of the features suggest a later post-medieval date for the infilling, pre-dating the construction of St Nicholas House. Residual Roman pottery indicates the likely presence of Roman activity within the area.
Externally the homogenous dark grey-brown soil deposit is typical of post-Roman ‘Dark Earth’ and cultivation soil deposits observed at sites in the area. There was no evidence for buildings or other occupation along the London Road frontage.
The external foundations of St Nicholas House were exposed in the external trench; the street frontage was built in brick, but the side walls in Lias blocks, presumably for reasons of cost. A brick tank or interceptor at the south of the forecourt may be associated with the bus depot.
Overall the results are of local significance only, adding to the existing corpus of observations in the London Road area. No further work is recommended on the site archive.
