Walters, L. (1999). An Archaeological Watching Brief at land off Lammascote Road, Stafford. Stafford Borough Council.

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Title: An Archaeological Watching Brief at land off Lammascote Road, Stafford
Number of Pages: 75
Biblio Note Please note that this is a bibliographic record only, as originally entered into the BIAB database. The ADS have no files for download, and unfortunately cannot advise further on where to access hard copy or digital versions.
Publication Type: Report
Abstract: A watching brief was carried out during groundworks at a development site which lay wthin an area of archaeological interest, on the edge of the historic town of Stafford and adjacent to the King's Pool, a medieval fishpond which overlay a long sequence of post-glacial deposits. Desk-based assessment of the site had identified a potential for evidence of prehistoric activity, a medieval dam/causeway, a late medieval mill and rubbish dumps, and post-medieval dumping. A subsequent evaluation had recorded the presence of environmentally rich deposits at depths greater than 1.50m beneath present ground level. The presence of a post-medieval rubbish dump had also been confirmed. The watching brief focused on four areas of archaeological potential, the first of which comprised the environmental deposits which were present across the whole of the site. Those exposed by the groundworks were observed and recorded, and environmental evidence was sampled and removed for further analysis. The second area lay in the northern part of the site, where extensive excavation relating to services was observed. It proved impossible to discover anything regarding the early construction or development of the causeway upon which Lammascote Road had been built. It was noted that evidence of the early causeway and the King's Pool dam may have been located outside the boundaries of the excavation work, or outside the development area itself. A full photographic analysis and survey of the underside of a bridge which had carried the original Lammascote Road over the Pearl Brook was carried out. The original structure appeared to have been built in stone by 1610. A second bridge, built to the north for coaches in the 17th century, had been substantially rebuilt in the early 19th century, and the two bridges had been incorporated into a single structure by 1881. The watching brief was not able to confirm the presence of a late medieval mill within the third area of interest. In the fourth area, the south-eastern corner of the site, further sampling of 19th and 20th century dumped deposits was undertaken. Almost all excavation work carried out in this area resulted in finds of large quantities of glass and ceramic material, so that sampling was considered the most appropriate strategy. The assemblage dated from c. 1870 to c. 1930. Unknown amounts of material were removed from the site by illicit bottle collectors, so that the sample collected by the archaeologist may well have been distorted. Finds also included clay pipe bowls and oyster shells. Sherds of medieval pottery were recorded as being present in the western part of the site, but were only observed within or above 20th century contexts. [AIP]
Author: L Walters
Publisher: Stafford Borough Council
Year of Publication: 1999
Locations:
Location - Auto Detected: Pearl Brook
Location - Auto Detected: Stafford
Location - Auto Detected: Kings Pool
Subjects / Periods:
Early 19th Century (Auto Detected Temporal)
17th Century (Auto Detected Temporal)
C 1870 To C 1930 (Auto Detected Temporal)
MEDIEVAL (Historic England Periods)
20th Century (Auto Detected Temporal)
1610 A Second (Auto Detected Temporal)
Prehistoric (Auto Detected Temporal)
Note: Date Of Issue From: 1999 Date Of Coverage From: 01 Date Of Coverage To: 01 Editorial Expansion: Site name: LAND OFF LAMMASCOTE ROAD, STAFFORD
Study area:
Investigation type: Post-determination/Research
District: Stafford
Monument: [finds]. Post-medieval (1540-1901), [finds]. Medieval (1066-1540), [finds]. Modern (1901-present), BRIDGE. Post-medieval (1540-1901)
Ngr: SJ92702310
Parish:
Postcode: ST163TA
Source:
Source icon
BIAB (Archaeological Investigations Project (AIP))
Created Date: 19 Jan 2009