| HER Number (PRN): | 62541 |
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| Name: | Meadow Place, Shrewsbury |
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| Type of Record: | Monument |
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| Protected Status: | Conservation Area: Shrewsbury |
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Monument Type(s):
- ROAD (Late Saxon - 800 AD? to 1066 AD?)
Summary
The present name of Meadow Place does not seem to be recorded until the early 19th century. It is probably the successor to a path known as Thornes Way in the later Middle Ages.
| Parish: | Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury and Atcham, Shropshire |
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| Map Sheet: | SJ41SE |
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| Grid Reference: | SJ 4933 1287 |
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Related records
| 62522 | Related to: Shrewsbury Town Wall (Stretch from castle to river - Belesme's Wall, via Meadow Place) (Monument) |
| 62523 | Related to: Shrewsbury Town Wall (Surviving stretch in Meadow Place) (Monument) |
Associated Finds: None recorded
Associated Events
- ESA11468 - 2025 Watching brief on two test pits to the rear of 21-23 Meadow Place, Shrewsbury by Nigel Baker
Description
Street-space (morphological component). The present name of Meadow Place does not seem to be recorded until the early 19th century (Hobbs 1954) [<1>]. It is probably the successor to a path known as Thornes Way in the later Middle Ages. In 1464 the path was described alternately as leading from the Castle Gate to Roushill or leading to Roushill via the town walls by a meadow called Thornes Meadow [<2>]; In 1477 the path was described as leading by Garewald's tower (62524) and Roushill [<3>].
The street is clearly related to the Meadow Place town wall (62522) on its northern frontage. The question is, whether this was merely a convenience path arising casually within the wall, probably taking traffic to and from Garewald's Ford (62525), or was it deliberately laid out and metalled as part of the defences, ie as a 'wall street' on the Wessex model, in the late Saxon period. Documentary references courtesy of Bill Champion <4>
Photograph showing Meadow Place, Shrewsbury in the late 1920s/1930s?, including many of the buildings lining the northern side of the street, which have since been demolished. <5>
A watching brief was maintained while two small test-pits were dug to test the structural stability of the 19th-century boundary walls to the rear of 21-23 Meadow Place, Shrewsbury. Although the lower yard level here – well below Meadow Place carriageway level – reflects the underlying presence of the town ditch, no trace of this or the town wall were observed in this work which encountered only 19th- and 20th-century deposits. <6>
Sources
| [01] | SSA365 - Monograph: Hobbs J L. 1954. Street Names of Shrewsbury. p73. |
| [02] | SSA10648 - Manuscript: Anon. Document. |
| [03] | SSA10647 - Manuscript: Anon. Document. |
| [04] | SSA20432 - HER comment: Baker Nigel J. UAD Analysis. |
| [05] | SSA24546 - Photograph: Mallinson J. Photo. |
| [06] | SSA34808 - Watching brief report: Baker N. 2025. An archaeological watching brief on two test pits to the rear of 21-23 Meadow Place, Shrewsbury. Nigel Baker Rep. |
| Date Last Edited: | Nov 25 2025 11:44AM |
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