Monument record 1160/106/1 - Site of Saxo-Norman and medieval plots, St John's Street

During the early 12th century large areas of ironstone extraction took place along the St John's Street frontage. A timber-framed building occupied St John's Street; it was possibly a carver's workshop due to the quantity of antler working debris, notably including two worked chess pieces. In the later 12th century many of the the quarries were infilled and plots were established. During the late 12th and 13th centuries brewing and baking was undertaken to the rear of St John's Street. Stone buildings were constructed in the late 12th and mid 13th centuries along the frontage and extended and refurbished in the 15th-16th centuries. To the rear was a yard which contained cess pits and a well. Demolished c1600.

{1} At north corner of Trench C 2 large pits uncovered from which C12th & C13th pottery was recovered respectively; both probably quarry pits;Large pit on north side of Trench E; C13th pottery recovered; size indicates that it was probably a quarry for ironstone;Number of features suggest presence of timber building in Trench D; 2 shallow slots & number of postholes; 15 sherds medieval pottery from these; C12th; possible occupation layers cut by posthole & 2 pits which also contained C12th pottery; features overlain by burnt soil with C13th pottery; Remains of stone building at south end of Trench D; stone wall runnning east-west; ironstone blocks & rubble core; footings of ironstone slabs; C13th pottery from wall; series of occupation deposits & floor levels; their location demonstrates that wall was back wall of building fronting onto St John's Street; excavation work limited to preserve building; remains of bowl-shaped hearth & 2 shallow postholes recovered with C13th pottery; underlay more floor levels; further hearth of ironstone fragments with 2 postholes cut into it; to north of building stone wall footing & surface of ironstone fragments; all features appear to represent later use of building;

{2}Along the St John's Street frontage evidence for a timber structure of medieval date was recovered and here it was replaced by a stone-founded structure in the late medieval period.

{3} Trial trenches placed along the frontages of both Fetter Street and St John's Street. Later evidence showed stone walls, which might indicate survival of complete tenements and their individual histories.

{7,8} Archaeological excavation was undertaken on the site of new county council offices. Large areas of ironstone extraction characterised the area in the Saxo-Norman period, although there may have been a few dispersed buildings. A number of large quarry pits were identified in the eastern part of the site, where the ironstone outcrop is situated. Away from the ironstone outcrop were a number of prospection pits, which appeared to be exploratory and quickly backfilled. Closer to St Johns Street the geology is Upper Lias Clay. The quarry pits dated to the early 12th century. Some were well over 4m wide and at least 1.2m deep. The pits were subsequently filled with domestic and industrial waste during the remainder of the 12th century.

At the western edge of the excavation area a timber building stood at the southern edge of the plot facing St John's Street; probably a carver's workshop; its location marked by eight postholes [postholes found during earlier evaluation lay slightly to the north and probably from same building]. A contemporary layer within the building contained a number of artefacts including four pieces of worked antler and tine. Further domestic waste was recovered from pits to the rear (north). Pottery evidence indicates that antler working began in the earlier 12th century and continued through much of the century. The antler was fashioned into handles and chess pieces. A large rectangular pit to the north of the building may have been large enough to have been an earthen cellar rather than a clay extraction pit. An oven also lay to the north. Minor modifications to the building took place in the late 12th century.

In the late 12th century a stone building with cobbled floors lay on the St John's Street frontage, in the centre of the excavated area. Behind the building were four wells, a clay-lined tank for water drawn from the well and several ovens including at least two bread ovens and three malting/drying ovens. Most of the frontage was cleared in the 13th century and the wells were backfilled. Scientific analysis of the water from the wells indicated that it was of high quality for the purposes of brewing.

A stone building replaced the earlier timber built carver's workshop in the early-mid 13th century. The rear wall, with a wide doorway, was identified in the excavation extending east-west across the plot [the same wall as identified in the 1993 evaluation]. To the south was a possible floor and partition wall, but most of the building lay beyond the excavation to the south. This building appeared to be extended to the west in the 14th century and in the 15th-16th centuries it was expanded to the north and refurbished. Much of the rest of the frontage was cleared and became a place for dumping refuse before being assimilated into a single plot, possibly as a garden. The extension comprised at least three rooms each with clay floors. The northern room was a kitchen; along the northern wall was a cooking range incorporating a bread oven and hearth. Beyond the kitchen was a yard in which there were at least two cess pits and a well. A large quantity of domestic refuse was retrieved from the pits including window glass, lace chapes, possible forged coin, worked antler, stone weight and a bone flute. The tenement may have remained standing until c1600.

In the 15th century a probable new road, Fetter Street, linked Knight's Street (Angel Street) and St John's Street. A timber and stone building stood fronting Fetter Street; pottery suggests this was demolished by c1550 and although Speed's 1610 map shows a building in this location, no 17th-century successor was identified. Maps and enraved images suggest that until the cottages along Fetter Street were built 1731-1746, much of the site remained undeveloped, covered by trees.

<1> SHAW M., 1993, Archaeological evaluation at St John's Street, Northampton, 14 (Full Report). SNN700.

<2> Pike A. (Editor), 1991, South Midlands Archaeology: CBA Group 9 Newsletter (21), p.64 (checked) (Newsletter). SNN2091.

<3> Nenk B.S.; Margeson S.; Hurley M., 1991, Medieval Britain and Ireland in 1990, p.179 (checked) (Notes). SNN3418.

<4> Soden I., 1998-9, A Story of Urban Regeneration: Excavations in Advance of Development off St Peter's Walk, Northampton, 1994-7, (Checked) (Article). SNN104032.

<5> Northamptonshire Archaeology Unit, 1991, Northamptonshire Archaeology Unit Report for 1990, 23 (checked) (Annual Report). SNN4329.

<6> Brown, J., 2014, A statement of intended post-excavation analysis for the former Angel Street car park, Northampton, November 2014 (Interim Note). SNN111125.

<7> Brown, J., 2018, Updated Project Design: archaeological excavation of the former Angel Street car park, Northampton, February-October 2014 (Report). SNN111126.

<8> Brown, J, 2021, Living Opposite to the Hospital of St John: Excavations in medieval Northampton 2014 (Monograph). SNN112528.

<9> Chapman, A, 2021, Medieval chess pieces from Northampton, p. 403-409 (Note). SNN112926.

Record last edited

Nov 14 2023 9:30AM