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 Our summer trip to the Ribblehead Viaduct went off without a hitch (apart from the delay in the arrival of the steam engine which meant by the time it went across we were all out of position). Nevertheless we all managed to glimpse the fine spectacle which added greatly to our tour of the site. With its 32 arches the viaduct is the longest in the Britain and, along with its remote location across the Yorkshire moors, meant its construction in 1870 was a remarkable feat of engineering. Over 2000 workers were employed in the construction of this line which runs from Settle to Carlisle. When they came to building this particular viaduct the loss of life was so great from accidents, smallpox and brawling that the employers had to pay the local church to extend its graveyard. The workers were housed in a shanty town located close to the present day hotel. Little remains of this now but the construction site can still be traced by following the abandoned railway embankments which circulate around the area to the east of the viaduct. These include engine sheds, a lime kiln and the remains of various other buildings. Having viewed the crossing of the train we set off for lunch at the Coach House in Higher Bentham.
On our way we passed the remains of the Motte at Burton in Lonsdale, one of a number of 11th century monuments in the area. After a splendid 2 course lunch we set off to Garstang to meet Neil Thompson and his son from the Wyre Archaeology Group. Knowing our interest in Roman Roads Neil was keen to show us some sections of the main route north from Preston to Lancaster. On the first section he took us to a fine example of a mile post that had recently been identified lying next to a medieval cross base. Next we travelled to a section which crossed a number of fields culminating in a ford across a small stream. The road was quite evident by its shallow bank in some places and its ditch in others. Finally Neil showed us a ford across the river Wyre near Scorton.. This ford, which is still in use, is particularly strange because of its staggered entrance and exit - offset by about 100 metres. Neil's son explained its defensive purpose but Dave Wilding from Chorley suggested, more plausibly, that stretching the distance between entry and exit would have the effect of reducing the depth of water. Neil and his son are very enthusiastic about the sites in their area. This was quite evident in the tour and therefore added greatly to a very successful trip.
Wiend Excavations Evaluation trenches have been dug in Moors Yard behind the Children’s Library in Wigan. This is in advance of potential new development on the site where the council have plans for a Joint Service Centre. These excavations are the first in this area since the excavations in the early 80’s, which revealed for the first time evidence of the Roman occupation. Oxford Archaeology North have carried out the work and Chris Healy, the site director, has told me that he has uncovered Roman pottery and also medieval material. Most significantly, however, Chris has unearthed what he thinks is a piece of Iron Age pottery which could be the first piece of evidence of Wigan’s Celtic British origins. This is only preliminary work; before any development starts here, full excavations of the area will be carried out.
Council for Independent Archaeologists
Last weekend Brian Parr, Dot Waring and I attended this year's conference at Bishop Burton Agricultural College near Beverly in East Yorkshire. Of particularly interesting this year is the new developments with their resistivity meter which can now produce "pseudosections" - all will be revealed at our next meeting.
Next Meeting
Wednesday 5th September at the District Scout HQ (Baden Powell Centre) in Greenough Street, starting at 7.30 pm as usual. This month we were to have had Ben Edwards, however, due to unforeseen circumstances, Ben has had to postpone his visit for another day. In his place Neil Thompson of the Wyre Archaeology Group has kindly offered to fill the spot. His talk is on his group's activities, which include excavation of a Roman Road at Nateby.
Hope to see you there
B.A.
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