CAM ARC unpublished report series

An archaeological evaluation was carried out at 36b St John's Road, Ely, Cambridgeshire (TL 5337 8024) to inform the planning process in advance of the construction of nine dwellings and associated garages. The work was carried out by the Archaeological Field Unit of Cambridgeshire County Council between 27th and 29th November, 2000. A total of five trenches were excavated, four contained archaeological features. A series of ditches, pits and post holes and a possible roundhouse were observed, some of which produced artefacts dating from the Late Iron Age. An assemblage of Late Iron Age Plain Ware pottery was recovered, which is characteristic in sites of this period in the Southern Fens. In addition, well preserved plant remains including spelt, emmer wheat, six-row barley and various wild taxa were recovered from two pit contexts. A pit containing bricks from the Late Medieval/Post-Medieval period, adjacent to a Post-Medieval well, was also found.

Evaluation trenches were excavated at the site. Modern overburden and Victorian rubbish pits were identified. [Au(abr)]

A Desk-based Assessment was undertaken along the route of the proposed Peterborough to Whittlesey Reinforcement Main, running approximately from TL 1913/9588 to TL 2351/9585. The study area lies within a zone of high archaeological potential crossing the Fen Edge, and areas that have been islands within the Fen at various times. The entire Stanground to Whittlesey area is rich in archaeological sites from the prehistoric period onwards. Prehistoric finds have also been discovered close to the route, and further abroad in the Fen, while the internationally important Bronze Age site of Flag Fen is only 2.5km to the north, and the potential exists to find similar sites. A possible Bronze Age barrow has been identified at the eastern end of the route. Probably the greatest potential of the development corridor is for the discovery of further Roman remains, of which numerous examples have already been recovered. The pipeline route converges with that of the proposed road associated with the potential future southward expansion of Stanground. The area of these proposals has been subject to archaeological investigations that have revealed Roman enclosures and other features. In the area around the Scheduled Ancient Monument of Horsey Hill Civil War Fort, any development may reveal 17th century artefacts, both military and civilian, and could potentially reveal the location of earthworks that have been subsequently ploughed out. Previous aerial photographic and geophysical surveys have been useful in establishing the location of archaeological remains within the study area.

Between the 18th and 22nd July 2005, an archaeological evaluation was undertaken at 96-98 Great Whyte, Ramsey, Cambridge (TL 2855 8543) by staff of Cambridgeshire County Council''s Archaeological Field Unit (CCC AFU). The proposed development includes construction of several dwellings. The project was commissioned by Fauxward Homes.The evaluation has demonstrated the presence of medieval and post-medieval activity relating to land reclamation of the fen edge. In addition a small number of late medieval features were uncovered in Trench 1. Of particular interest was the presence of metal working on the site. A group of medieval fishing lead weights can be viewed within a wider context that stresses the importance of fishing in this part of the fens.

Between 1st and 8th August 2005, Cambridgeshire County Council Archaeological Field Unit carried out an archaeological evaluation by trial trenching at St Neots Community College in advance of construction of a tennis court. The site lies to the west of the historic town of St Neots, close to the flood plain of the Great Ouse. From the outset it was hoped that this evaluation would identify activities associated with the nearby prehistoric landscape of the Ouse valley. Immediately to the south of the subject site lies a rich prehistoric landscape, including a Neolithic long barrow and a cursus (Ellis 2004).This evaluation revealed a large number of undated features including ditches and pits which are possibly prehistoric or Roman in origin. Trench 1 revealed a number of undated ditches which may have related to a possible north-south droveway which formed part of larger Roman pastoral/agricultural landscape.

The Walden House site comprises the first phase of excavation in advance of the redevelopment of the historic town centre of Huntingdon. Four main periods of occupation were identified, spanning the prehistoric to the 19th century, although the main phase of activity was during the mid-12th to mid-14th centuries, when the town was at its most prosperous. A range of features characteristic of urban settlement including dense zones of pitting and quarrying in addition to wells, post-holes, ovens, cobbled surfaces and ditched property boundaries, were identified. Reiterating the results of the evaluation, evidence of urban contraction in the later medieval period was recorded, represented by an extensive cultivation or levelling layer and a general lower level of activity. In the later post-medieval period part of the site became a formal garden associated with Walden House; a small tannery occupied the northern plot.Other notable discoveries include a probable Neolithic ditch, the base of a large 17th/18th century malting oven, and an assemblage of reused medieval ecclesiastical stone fragments. There are several significant finds assemblages from the site, in particular the post-Roman pottery, animal bone and environmental remains. Additional phases of excavation on adjacent sites are anticipated in the near future.