SNN105986 - Excavation of Medieval and Later Features at College Place, Brackley, Northamptonshire, March 2007

In March 2007, prior to the development of the site for housing, an archaeological excavation was carried out by Northamptonshire Archaeology at College Place, Brackley, Northamptonshire. A watching brief was maintained during subsequent groundworks associated with the development. The earliest feature encountered was a medieval ditch with a possible bank, which probably predates the foundation of the planned medieval town in the mid 12th century. Medieval pits were evident across the southern and eastern part of the site and in the area to the rear of the existing street frontage. The earlier pits, which broadly dated to the 12th and 13th centuries, were concentrated on the lower slope to the south and east; the later pits, which dated to the late 13th and 14th centuries, occurred closer to the street frontage. Many of the pits had been used to dispose of domestic refuse and probably cess, although they may have had a pervious function. They relate to 'backyard' activity, probably to the rear of medieval tenements that once fronted on to Market Place. In the 16th century a large clay-lined pit, which may have been used in an industrial process, was excavated close to the southern edge of the site. This was subsequently buried beneath a layer of made-ground, up to 0.5m thick, later in the century. In the late 17th century a timber-lined pit or tank was constructed and two other pits were used to dispose of domestic refuse. In the mid 18th century two boundary walls were built, possibly along the line of earlier hedges or fences that may have demarcated earlier medieval burgage plots. The majority of the buildings on the site, most of which have now been demolished, were built in the mid 19th century. Until the mid 20th century much of the site was occupied by gardens and orchards, before being cleared for industrial and agricultural buildings and yards.