| Abstract: |
The methods employed during the Lodge Moor Community Excavation project have allowed volunteers to gain valuable experience in different archaeological techniques commonly employed in archaeological investigations. From the outset, volunteers were encouraged to take an active role in all aspects of the archaeological fieldwork: an on-site safety and site background briefing was provided at the beginning of the session (Fig. 6.20), and the volunteers were active participants from there. Instruction was given in excavation techniques such as use of trowels and other hand tools, safe manual handling, and context excavation and recognition. All volunteers were encouraged to vocalise observations in order that the context sheets could be filled in to record the significant details of a given archaeological deposit, record architectural features and interpret phases of construction. They were given the opportunity to take photographs and were also shown how to draw sections and plans using standard drawing conventions. All finds generated during the fieldwork were subject to sorting, discard and retention on site by the volunteers under archaeological supervision and transferred to CFA’s post-excavation team for processing and distribution to specialists. A survey was also undertaken of the investigated hut bases, providing training in the use of electronic survey equipment. CFA in partnership with the Wildlife Trust offered social media coverage and a dedicated webpage providing recruitment and site information, updates on the work and the dissemination of exciting archaeological finds. CFA staff and the Community Archaeologist for the Wildlife Trust were on hand to answer questions to passing members of the public. Throughout the excavation CFA undertook the formal collection of oral histories. The project provided a useful insight into the condition of the remains and the wealth of information surviving, which can be loosely projected in understanding the potential of the site as a whole.
It can inform future management of the heritage asset and projects associated with it, the woodland that covers it, further exploring other areas of possible damage or survival, and feed into Historic England’s framework for further researching Prisoner of War Camps.
The site has significant potential for further investigation: for example, verifying the divisions and use of the camp itself, who was held where, the internal layouts and use of each building within the camp, finds retrieval across a vast area (24 hectares), and investigation of the main entrance to the camp, supporting structures such as the fence line, guard towers, and the decommissioning burning pit.
Along with the current results, further assessment could compare these results with others, not least to identify the treatment and trace the stories of prisoners through assessment of their material culture, and oral histories. A possible starting point might be the Bundesarchiv with the information extracted from the dog tag (Federal Archives 2022), but many avenues of further assessment could be explored from any number of the finds and stories collected as part of this project. |
