EWX1879 - Land at West Street/King Street, Wimborne Minster; desk-based assessment 1993

A desk-based assessment was carried out by AC archaeology in advance of proposed development of two lots on either side of West Street, thought to lie within the medieval town. Both lots had frontages onto West Street, and Lot 1 had another frontage on King Street. The lots were felt to be of particular interest because of their location close to the line of a possible Saxon enclosure, postulated from topographical evidence. Examination of historic documents and maps revealed that West Street first occurs in documents in the thirteenth century, and tenements in West Street are the subject of medieval and later deeds. The earliest date for King Street was not clear from the documentary evidence. West Street was clearly built up in the seventeenth century, as it features in a number of deeds which mention tenements, houses, buildings, barns, stables, backsides and gardens, but without detailed descriptions or plans. The tithe map (1847) shows that Lot 2 was part of an inn called the Three Lions, with yard, outbuildings, gardens and orchards. The inn is not thought to be of great age, since the first occurrence of the name in historic documents appears to be in 1824. The site is identified with the Julian Brewery which appears on later maps (for example, the 1887 Ordnance Survey map). This part of the site is now occupied by a garage and mineral water factory. Having visited the site, the authors conclude that the King Street frontage of Lot 1 had been much affected by landscaping, with as much as 1m reduction in level between 10m and 15m from the street, exposing a brick-lined well. A large sewer had disturbed the King Street frontage, but the West Street frontage showed no signs of disturbance, though there are known to have been buildings on the frontage from at least the eighteenth century. No cellared properties were identified. The authors felt that Lot 2 was likely to have been much less disturbed by eighteenth- and nineteenth-century buildings, but fuel storage tanks would have destroyed some areas. The assessment was followed by an evaluation (Event 1316176).