SNN104700 - A Desk-Based Archaeological Assessment of Land to The North of Kettering, Northamptonshire

A desk-based assessment has been carried out by John Samuels Archaeological Consultants on land to the north of Kettering. Much of the site has been quarried for ironstone, and thus only a small portion of the site, lying between Glendon Road and the A43 has the potential to contain archaeological remains. There is no evidence for prehistoric activity on the unquarried part of the site, although there is evidence in its general vicinity. A flint-working site is recorded immediately to the south and a Bronze Age vessel may have found at Glendon during ironstone working in 1912. Kettering was a significant area in terms of Roman occupation, as to a lesser extent were Weekley and Geddington. It is considered that Roman occupation in the are was relatively nucleated in character, and no areas of intensive Roman occupation are recorded near or within the site. However, Roman remains indicative of a small settlement are recorded at Glendon, in a not dissimilar location to the plateau section of the unquarried part of the site. Kettering is mentioned in two tenth century Saxon charters, and Glendon and Weekley are recorded in the Domesday Book. During the medieval period, the unquarried part of the site is likely to have formed part of the open field system of Glendon, which was enclosed for pasture during the early sixteenth century, and it remains largely agricultural in use. It is considered that parts of the unquarried area of the site have a medium potential for localised remains of the prehistoric and Roman periods.