T H A M E S V A L L E Y

S E R V I C E S

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82-84 Rose Street, Wokingham,Berkshire

A post-excavation assessment

By Jamie Lewis

Site Code: RSW09/108

(SU 8143 6881)

82-84 Rose Street, Wokingham Berkshire

A Post-Excavation Assessment

for Bancroft Developments Ltd

by James Lewis

Thames Valley Archaeological Services

Ltd

Site Code RSW 09/108

July 2011

i Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd, 47–49 De Beauvoir Road, Reading RG1 5NR

Tel. (0118) 926 0552; Fax (0118) 926 0553; email tvas@tvas.co.uk; website : www.tvas.co.uk

Contents 1. Introduction

2. Archaeological background 2.1 Cartographic and documentary sources 2.2 Listed buildings

3. The evaluation

4. Original project objectives

5. Purpose of this report

6. Excavation methodology

7 Excavation results

8. Phase by phase summary 8.1.1 Phase 1: 15th-16th centuries 8.1.2 Phase 2:18th-19th centuries 8.1.3 Phase 3:19th century 8.1.4 Phase 4: 19th-20th centuries

9. Nature and character of recovered material and statement of potential 9.1 Pottery by Paul Blinkhorn 9.1.7 Post-medieval/modern 9.2 Animal bones by CeriFalys

9.3 Brick and tile by James Lewis 9.4 Clay pipe by James Lewis 9.5 Glass by James Lewis 9.6 Shell by James Lewis

10. Summary of the significance of the data 10.1 Research questions the material will address 10.2 Intrinsic value of the material itself

11. Conclusions

12. Updated project design

13. Proposals for publication

14. References APPENDIX 1: Summary of contexts and finds APPENDIX 2: Summary of pottery

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82–84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire A Post-Excavation Assessment

by James Lewis

with contributions by Paul Blinkhorn and Ceri Falys

Report 09/108b

1 Introduction 1.1 This document outlines the potential for further analysis arising from the excavation of 180 sq m of land

at 82–84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire. Research aims which might be addressed by the analysis are identified. The aim is to target post-excavation resources where the information gain will be greatest, in line with current local, regional and national research priorities. In summary, other than archiving, no further work is recommended.

1.2 Planning permission (app no F/2011/0473) had been granted to Bancroft Developments Ltd by Wokingham Borough Council for the demolition of no 84 and the construction of two new houses, an outhouse and the conversion of two existing structures. This consent is subject to a condition relating to archaeology requiring the provision of an archaeological survey prior to the commencement of work.

1.3 The site comprises of a rectangular shaped plot of land located (SU 8143 6881) (Fig 1), and covers an area of approximately 180 sq m. The site 68m Ordnance Datum and lies on Plateau Gravels close to the boundary with Lower Bagshot Beds (BGS 1971).

1.4 The archaeological potential of the site was highlighted by a brief prepared by Ms Mary Neale and this potential was investigated by a field evaluation (Weale 2009) which revealed various cut features but which were not well dated.

1.5 As a result of likely damage to or destruction of these archaeological deposits during the construction of the houses a formal programme of archaeological excavation was requested for the site. This followed a specification approved by Ms Mary Neale of Berkshire Archaeology, advisers to Wokingham Borough Council, in accordance with the Department for Communities and Local Government’s Planning Policy Statement, Planning for the Historic Environment (PPS5 2010) and the Council’s policies on archaeology, in order to satisfy the archaeological condition placed on the planning permission

1.6 The fieldwork was supervised by James Lewis with the assistance of Kyle Beaverstock. The excavations took place between the 19th to the 20th of July, 2011.

1.7 The archive is currently held by Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd but it is anticipated that it will be deposited with Reading museum in due course with accession code REDMG: 2010.35. The site code is RSW 09/108.

2 Archaeological background 2.1.1 The archaeological potential of the site stems from its location within the historic core of the town. In

summary the place name of ‘Wokingham’ is of Saxon origin but no finds, nor deposits of Saxon date have yet been found in the town. Wokingham is not mentioned in Domesday Book but this is probably a because its entry is subsumed within that for Sonning as a detached portion of Wiltshire (Astill 1978). In medieval times the settlement appears to have been chosen by the Bishop of Salisbury as a site for a planned town. On Rose Street frontage there are several upstanding late medieval and post-medieval buildings (Morris and Jones 1986-90). On Rose Street, however, watching briefs such as at the Methodist chapel and at Rose Court to the south-west did not reveal any deposits of archaeological interest (Oram 2006; McNicol-Norbury 2009). Similarly, evaluations to the east close to the church have not revealed any deposits of interest (eg Hull 1997). Recent work to the north-west of the site at Reading Road, however, have revealed a number of ditches of possible medieval date (Lewis forthcoming)

3 The evaluation 3.1.1 An evaluation carried out by Thames Valley Archaeological Services (Weale 2009) comprised four

trenches measuring between 6.1–10.9m long. A number of pits, a gully and a large ditch were discovered. These were poorly dated but no medieval or earlier deposits were found. Where the deposits could be dated these were post-medieval.

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4 Original objectives 4.1 The general objectives of the project were to: 4.1.1 Excavate and record all archaeological features within the areas threatened by the proposed

development. 4.1.2 Produce relative and absolute dating and phasing for deposits and features recorded on the site. 4.1.3 Establish the character of these deposits in attempt to define functional areas on the site such as

industrial, domestic etc. 4.1.4 Produce information on the economy and local environment and compare and contrast this with the

results of other excavations in the region. 4.2 Specific research objectives for the excavation and post-excavation project aimed to

answer the following questions: 4.2.1 When was the site first utilized and when was it abandoned 4.2.2 What is the nature and extent of any medieval occupation on the site? If discovered, does this

occupation represent a private dwelling or part of a business? 4.2.3 What is the significance of these presumed occupation deposits in terms of the structure of the medieval

settlement at Wokingham (eg nucleated or dispersed)? 4.2.4 What is the nature of the transition from medieval to post-medieval on the site? 4.2.5 What is the date and nature of the post-medieval occupation on the site? 4.2.6 What is the palaeoenvironmental setting of the area? 5 Purpose of this report 5.1 The current report summarizes the results of the excavation, the archaeological features recorded and

the finds recovered, and provides considered assessments of the potential these possess to answer research questions about the site, and how they fit into local, regional and national context. The archaeological remains are first quantified and described, to establish their quality, character and significance. These are then assessed relative to the original project objectives. The potential to address these objectives is discussed, and any new potential objectives arising from the nature of the results of the excavation are also highlighted.

6 Excavation Methodology 6.1.1 The complete area stripped is shown in Figure 3. 6.1.2 Topsoil and overburden were removed by a 360° mechanical excavator fitted with a toothless bucket to

expose the uppermost surface of archaeological deposits. 6.2 All archaeological deposits were cleaned and excavated by hand. All features were half sectioned as a

minimum. A full written, drawn and photographic record of the excavation was made.

6.2.1 A catalogue of phased features and contexts is to be found in Appendix 1. 7 Results 7.1.1 Ten pits, two postholes, three ditches, three gullies, two walls, one hollow and a well were discovered. 7.1.2 The archive consist of one box of finds, four rolls of permatrace, one folder of paperwork and two rolls

of film. 8 Phase by phase summary 8.1.1 Three phases of activity have been identified at 82-84 Rose Street and these have all been dated to the

late Post Medieval period. The following description also includes those features found during the evaluation (Weale 2009). Within the majority of the area of excavation the stratigraphy comprised 0.6m of made ground which overlay directly the natural geology; no buried topsoil and subsoil was found. Tile, brick and 19th century pottery were observed within the made ground similar to that found within the later features. Some subsoil was present in the north west corner of the excavation area.

8.2 Phase 1: 18th-19th century 8.2.1 Ditch 16 was aligned northwest-southeast and extended beyond the excavation boundary. It displayed a

sharp sloping side and flat base and measured at least 9m long, 0.7m wide and 0.3m deep. The ditch contained mid brown green sandy silt (70), bone, oyster shell and a single sherd of residual 15th-16th century pottery. It was truncated on its south-western side by ditch 15 which is a re-cut of ditch 16.

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Ditch 15 measured at least 9m long, 0.9m wide and 0.51m deep. It contained dark green grey sandy silt (69) animal bone and 18th century pottery.

8.2.2 Cut 6 was a hollow investigated during the evaluation in trench 3. The Hollow was slopped with a flat base and measured at least 3.8m long, 1.86m wide and 0.16m deep. It was filled with light green grey sandy clay (57) with gravel inclusions but no finds. Hollow 6 does not appears not to be related to ditch 16 and represents a natural hollow which has silted up. It was cut into layer 58 a mid to dark brown clay layer that was recorded in the base of trench 3 but not found during the excavation. This layer may have been the remains of subsoil but contained no artefacts.

8.2.3 Pit 2 was oval in plan and measured 0.7m long, 0.56m wide and 0.09m deep. It was filled with loose green grey sandy clay, no inclusions. Pit 4 was located in trench 3 and extended beyond the southwest edge of the trench. It measured 0.57 in diameter and 0.05m deep filled with light brownish grey sandy clay, no artefacts. This feature was truncated by Gully 3 (see below).

8.3 Phase 2: 19th century 8.3.1 Pit 9 was circular in plan and measured 0.92m in diameter and 0.14m deep and contained light yellow

grey sandy silt (63), with tile inclusions. Pit 10 was circular in plan and measured 1m diameter and 0.22m deep and contained soft dark blue black sandy silt (64) with 19th century pottery, tile and glass inclusions. Pit 11 was circular and measured 1.18m in diameter and 0.14m deep. It contained dark grey green sandy clay (65), with 19th century pottery and pipe inclusions. Pit 11 was truncated by Gully 12 (see below).

8.3.2 Pit 14 was circular and measured 1m in diameter and 0.12m deep. It contained brown-green sandy clay (68) with clay tobacco pipe, 19th century pottery and glass inclusions. Pit 17 was pear shaped in plan and measured 0.65m long, 0.55m wide and 0.04m deep and contained grey with yellow mottling sandy clay (71) with 18th -19th century pottery inclusions.

8.3.3 Pit 1 was sub-circular located in trench 2 which extended beyond the northeast edge of the trench. It measured approximately 0.66m in diameter and 0.09m deep. It contained dark brown sandy clay (50) with coal, ceramic building material and clay pipe inclusions. Gully 3 was linear in plan and aligned northeast to southwest. It measured 1.2m wide and at its deepest 0.09m although for the majority of its length it was just a stain. It contained light brown grey sandy clay with a single 19th century pottery inclusion. It truncated cuts 4 and 6 (see above).

8.3.4 The well was in a large clearly defined cut (8) which was backfilled around the structure with yellow sandy clay which contained late post medieval and modern bricks. The construction cut for the well cut through a layer of dark brown –black silt clay of made ground which contained modern pottery, iron fragments and brick and tile.

8.4 Phase 4: 19th-20th century 8.4.1 Gully 12 was aligned northeast-southwest and extended beyond the western limit of excavation. It was

0.7m wide and 0.05m deep. The gully contained brown green sandy clay (66) and truncated an earlier 19th century pit (11, see above). It contained two sherds of residual 15th century pottery inclusions. Parallel to gully 12 was another gully (13) which was 0.65m wide and 0.05m deep with brown green sandy clay (67), with no inclusions.

8.4.2 Located 1m to the northwest of pit 17 was an oval pit (18) which was up to 0.5m across and 0.1m deep. It contained dark green grey sandy clay (72), with a single metal/plastic button. Pit 5 was circular pit located in trench 2. It measured 0.6m in diameter and 0.1m deep. It contained light green grey sand with a single piece of tile.

8.4.3 Ditch 7 was found during the evaluation in trench 2 and is located in the northwest area of the site. It measured 2.8m wide. It contained three fills; the top fill was a mixture of topsoil and modern debris; this overlay white brown silty clay (60) beneath this was dark brown loam (59). Both fill 60 and 59 contained brick and tile. The feature was cut through brown silty clay subsoil.

8.4.4 Two modern (55 and 63) red bricked walls were recorded on trench 4 they were below the made ground and fixed within a concrete foundation.

8.5 Undated Features 8.5.1 Post holes 19 and 20 were located either side of the well. Posthole 19 had a diameter of 0.35m and was

0.11m deep. It contained dark green grey sandy silt (73), with brick and tile inclusions. Posthole 20 measured 0.35m in diameter and was 0.06m deep. It contained dark green grey sandy silt (74), with brick and tile inclusions.

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9 Nature and character of recovered material and statement of potential 9.1 Pottery by Paul Blinkhorn 9.1.1 The pottery assemblage comprised 17 sherds with a total weight of 338g. It was all late medieval or

later. The following fabric types were noted: LMT: Late Medieval Transitional Earthenwares, 15th – mid 16th century. Wide range of utilitarian wares. Slightly sandy, red fabric with a thin, patchy glaze on one or both surfaces. Occurs commonly in Reading and most other towns in the middle and lower Thames Valley (eg. Blinkhorn 2007, 13). 1 sherd, 53g. LANG. Langerwehe Stonewares. AD1450 - 1600. Hard, grey, fabric with a grey salt glaze. Produced in the Rhineland and imported in large quantities from the late medieval period onwards (cf Gaimster 1997). 1 sherd, 16g. GRE: Red Earthenware, 16th – 19th century. Fine sandy earthenware, usually with a brown or green glaze, occurring in a range of utilitarian forms. Such 'country pottery' was first made in the 16th century, and in some areas continued in use until the 19th century. 7 sherds, 253g. CRM: Creamware. c 1740-1880. A cream-coloured earthenware, made from a calcined flint clay (Jennings 1981, 227), and with a lead glaze, resulting in a rich cream colour. Range of tableware forms. 2 sherd, 26g. 19thC: Miscellaneous 19th and 20th century wares. Mass-produced white earthenwares, stonewares etc. 6 sherds, 30g.

9.1.2 The pottery occurrence by number and weight of sherds per context by fabric type is shown in

Appendix 2. The range of fabric types is fairly typical of sites in the region (eg. Blinkhorn 2007). The sherd of Langerwehe Stoneware is from a body of a mug, a typical product of the industry. Overall, the assemblage is in reasonable condition, and appears reliably stratified.

9.2 Animal bone by Ceri Falys 9.2.1 A very small assemblage of animal bone was recovered from a single context, 16 (70). A total of three

pieces of bone were present for analysis, weighing 105g. The preservation of the fragments was very good, with little surface damage. Two of the pieces of bone were able to be refit into a single rib of a large animal (probable horse). The third fragment was identified as a portion of left proximal humerus of an unidentified small-medium sized animal. Two linear cutmarks were present on the sternal end of the rib shaft, suggesting butchery practices.

9.3 Tile and brick by James Lewis 9.3.1 Single pieces of tile and brick were recovered from two pits (9 and 10). The piece of brick from pit 9

weighed 100g . The piece of tile from pit 10 weighed 51g. None show any diagnostic traits and they can broadly be dated to the post-medieval period or later.

9.4 Glass by James Lewis 9.4.1 Three pieces of glass (101g) were recovered from two contexts in pits 10 and 14. Two of the pieces

were green and the other blue. They are non-descript pieces of bottle glass which could have been in use from the 18th century to the 20th century.

9.5 Clay Pipe by James Lewis 9.5.1 A single piece of clay pipe stem weighing 2g was recovered from pit 11. It cannot be closely dated

within the post-medieval period but is not out of place alongside 19th-century pottery from the same context.

9.6 Oyster Shell by James Lewis 9.6.1 A single piece of oyster shell weighing 26g was recovered from ditch 16. 9.7 Buttons by James Lewis 9.7.1 A single button weighing 4g with a cooper front and plastic base was recovered from post-hole 18

10 Summary of the significance of the data 10.1.1 The excavation at 82-84 Rose Street although on a small scale was located within the historic and

medieval centre of Wokingham. As such it would be expected that some deposits from the medieval and possibly the Saxon period would be present. However the deposits recovered all dated features date

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to the post medieval period and the majority of these to the late Post-Medieval/Modern times. As such they have no potential to answer the specific objectives laid out in 4.2.

11 Conclusions 11.1 Similar to previous investigations carried out within Wokingham no evidence for Saxon or Medieval

activity was found. It is possible that this site was never used during these times, which seems at odds given what is considered to be its location within the historic town. Alternatively, archaeological deposits may have existed on the site but these have been subsequently destroyed during previous construction and building on the site. This again seems unlikely. Only post-medieval features were found and these were generally from the later post medieval period. The 19th century activity consists of pits which were probably used for disposal for food stuffs and waste and ditches for drainage. These pits were truncated by later gullies and these were probably the remains of gardening activity. Unfortunately it is not possible to observe if these features belonged to one or more properties.

12 Updated Project Design 12.1.1 The fieldwork and assessment phase has achieved the general objectives however the specific

objectives related to the medieval period were unfulfilled due the complete absence of any deposits from this time.

12.1.2 The archive will be prepared for microfiching and then for deposition at Reading Museum in accordance with that repository’s requirements. A copy of the microfiche will be deposited with the National Monuments Record.

13 Proposals for Publication 13.1 The site on its own provides no major insight into the historic core of Wokingham and as is not worth

publishing. 14 References Blinkhorn, P, 2007 ‘Pottery’, in A Norton and B Poore, Excavations of Medieval and Early Post-Medieval

Features at 90-93 Broad St, Reading, Oxford Archaeology Occasional Paper 13, 12–20 Gaimster, D, 1997, German Stoneware, London Jennings, S, 1981, Eighteen Centuries of Pottery from Norwich, E Anglian Archaeol 13, Norwich PPS5, 2010, Planning for the Historic Environment, The Stationery Office, Norwich Hull,G,1997, ‘Land at the Rectory, Wiltshire Road, Wokingham, an archaeological evaluation’, Thames Valley

Archaeological Services report 97/83, Reading McNicoll-Norbury, J, 2009, ‘1 Rose Cottage, Wokingham, Berkshire, An archaeological watching brief’,

Thames Valley Archaeological Services report 09/35, Reading Morris, E and Jones, N, 1990, ‘Excavations at Cross. Wokingham, 1974-75’, Berkshire Archaeol J 73, (for 1986-

90), 105-15 Oram, R, 2006, ‘Methodist Church, Rose Street, Wokingham, An archaeological watching brief’, Thames Valley

Archaeological Services report 02/98b, Reading Weale, A, 2009, ‘82-84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire: an archaeological evaluation’, Thames Valley

Archaeological Services report 09/108, Reading

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APPENDIX 1: Catalogue of all excavated features

Cut Deposit Area Type Phase Dating evidence 1 50 Pit 2 Clay pipe 2 51 Pit Ud None 3 52 Gully 2 Pottery 4 53 Pit 2 Stratigraphy 5 54 Pit 3 Peg tile 6 57 Hollow 1 None 7 59,60 Ditch 3 Brick 8 61, 62 Well 1 Brick 55 Wall 3 Brick and concrete 56 Wall 3 brick 9 63 Pit 2 None 10 64 Pit 2 Pottery 11 65 Pit 2 Pottery 12 66 Gully 3 Pottery 13 67 Gully 3 None 14 68 Pit 2 Pottery 15 69 Ditch 1 Pottery 16 70 Ditch 2 Pottery 17 71 Pit 2 Pottery 18 72 Pit 3 None 19 73 Post hole Ud None 20 74 Post hole Ud None

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APPENDIX 2: Pottery occurrence by number and weight (in g) of sherds per context by fabric type

LMT LANG GRE CRM 19thC Cut Deposit No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt No Wt 3 52 1 14g

10 64 1 12 2 11 11 65 2 4 12 66 1 16 14 68 3 48 2 15 15 69 1 176 1 24 16 70 1 53 17 71 1 3 1 2

Total 1 53 1 16 6 239 2 26 6 30

68000

SU81000 82000

SITE

SITENewbury

READING

ThatchamHungerford

Wokingham

Bracknell

Windsor

Maidenhead

Slough

82-84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

Figure 1. Location of site within Wokingham and Berkshire.

RSW 09/108b

Reproduced from Ordnance Survey Explorer 159 at 1:12500Ordnance Survey Licence 100025880

70000

82-84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

Figure 2. Detailed location of site off Rose Street.

SU81400 81500

SITE

RSW 09/108b

Reproduced from Ordnance Survey digital mapping under licence.Crown copyright reserved. Scale: 1:1250

68800

ROSE STREET

N

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Figure 3. Location of trenches.

0 10m

84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

68800

Trench 3

well 61 [8]

modernwalls

20

1

17 2

18

19

14

9

1011

12

13

15

16

43

5

6

No. 82

No. 86

SU81450

68825

Trench2

Trench 1

Trench 4

7

5556

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Figure 4. Sections.

0 1m

84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

9

63

NW SE

10

64

NW SE

13 1211

67 66 65

SE NW

14

68

SENW

69

70

15

16

67.97m

67.85m67.82maOD

SW NE

17

71

SSENNW

68.03m

18 19

20

74

SENW

72 73

SSENNWSSENNW

67.82m

67.97m 67.97m

67.97m

67.97m

Plate 1. General site shot.

Plate 2. Pit 9, looking north east, Scales: 0.5m and 0.1m.

84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

Plates 1 and 2.

RSW 09/108b

Plate 3. Pit 10, looking north east, Scales: 0.5m and 0.1m.

Plate 4. Pit 14, looking north east, Scales: 1m and 0.1m.

84 Rose Street, Wokingham, Berkshire, 2011Archaeological recording action

Plates 3 and 4.

RSW 09/108b

TIME CHART

Calendar Years

Modern AD 1901

Victorian AD 1837

Post Medieval AD 1500

Medieval AD 1066

Saxon AD 410

Roman AD 43BC/AD

Iron Age 750 BC

Bronze Age: Late 1300 BC

Bronze Age: Middle 1700 BC

Bronze Age: Early 2100 BC

Neolithic: Late 3300 BC

Neolithic: Early 4300 BC

Mesolithic: Late 6000 BC

Mesolithic: Early 10000 BC

Palaeolithic: Upper 30000 BC

Palaeolithic: Middle 70000 BC

Palaeolithic: Lower 2,000,000 BC

Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd,47-49 De Beauvoir Road, Reading,

Berkshire, RG1 5NR

Tel: 0118 9260552Fax: 0118 9260553

Email: tvas@tvas.co.ukWeb: www.tvas.co.uk