EDO6242 - Former HMP Dorchester, North Square, Dorchester; evaluation 2015

Evaluation consisting of the machine excavation of eleven trenches. Deep deposits of made ground were encountered in the south-east corner of the site (Trench 7) suggestive of the filling of the medieval castle ditch. Human remains were found at a depth of 0.5m in Trench 6 and Trench 14, also in the south-eastern part of the site. A truncated Roman tessellated pavement was found in in Trench 6 at 0.65m below ground level. A linear cut, thought possibly to be the remains of a robbed-out wall, and a late 18th or early 19th-century brick-lined well cut through made ground were also recorded in this part of the site. In the eastern part of the site archaeological features consisting of ditches and a wall foundation of Roman or medieval date were recorded at depths of 1.8 to 1.9 m below ground level in Trench 3. Other trenches in this area revealed depths of made ground, also thought possibly to relate to backfilling of the medieval castle ditch. In the external car park (Trench 2) made ground at least 2m deep was encountered. Subsequent research suggests that this may be the backfilled cellars of a terrace of houses.