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Summary

A series of pits & ditches containing 16th - 18th century pottery, clay pipes and leatherworking waste, recorded during trial trenching and a watching brief in Crowle market place, 2009-2010.

Monument Types

• DITCH (PM, Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• PIT (MED, Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1800 AD)
• BUILDING (PM:C18, Post Medieval - 1700 AD to 1800 AD)

Protected Status - None

Associated Finds

• ANIMAL REMAINS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• PLANT MACRO REMAINS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• PIPE (SMOKING) (Post Medieval - 1580 AD to 1900 AD)
• SHOE (Post Medieval - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)

Associated Events

• Trial trenching, Crowle Market Place (Ref: CROM 09)
• Watching Brief, Crowle Market Place (Ref: CROM 09)
• Desk-based assessment, Crowle Drainage Scheme (Ref: PCAS 1128)

Full description

During the redevelopment of the Crowle Market Place area in 2010, an archaeological scheme of works was carried out by Allen Archaeology Ltd. Four trial trenches were dug in the market place and the area to the north, and all the associated groundworks were monitored during a watching brief. This watching brief identified a concentration of post-medieval features and finds in the area north of the market place.

The archaeological evaluation identified a large cut feature, which was revealed as a pit or pond during the watching brief. It contained dumped domestic waste - large quantities of pottery, brick & tile and animal bone. The earliest deposits were 15th - 16th century in date, but the feature was still open in the 17th and 18th centuries. It may have been dug in order to control water levels, and to ensure a drier market place. Environmental samples suggested a semi-permanent wetland in this area, with good organic preservation of finds. There were abundant waterlogged seeds, roots and twigs within the samples.

Leather objects from this feature included complete and part shoes, and offcuts from shoemaking or shoe repair. This may have been a dumping area for a cobbler's shop on the north side of the market place.

A group of 86 clay tobacco pipe fragments were of 17th - 18th century date. These were probably refuse from the Cross Keys public house, or its predecessor. The earliest pipe bowl had a narrow date range of 1580 - 1660 AD.

Wooden objects preserved by the wet conditions included a section of wheel, a rope runner from a ship's rigging, and part of a tankard cover.

To the north of the pond feature was a post-medieval pit or ditch terminus, with a planked wooden walkway or platform at its base. The function of this pit was unclear, but the wooden structure would have allowed access to the bottom without being bogged down. Several other pits in the same area were also found to contain domestic refuse.

Groundworks along Johnsons Lane exposed two linear ditches, both of 15th - 16th century date. One was in the centre of the current road, parallel to the modern alignment. It may have been a roadside ditch on an earlier alignment. Environmental samples from this ditch were later found to contain waste from flax retting. This is unlikely to have taken place nearby, so must have been imported from another location and dumped. The other ditch was aligned NE-SW, and its function was not clear.

The clearance of the area around the demolished George and Dragon public house revealed a number of earlier wall foundations, floor surfaces and a well. These features were probably 18th century, from an earlier building of unknown function. [1]

<1> Clay, C and Trott, K, 2011, Report on an archaeological scheme of works: Crowle market place, Vol I, 22-27, Fig 31; Vol II, Appendix 3, 9, 11, 13 (REPORT - INTERIM, RESEARCH, SPECIALIST, ETC). SLS4336.

Sources and further reading

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