Monument record MDO2404 - Child's Garage, Long Street, Sherborne; post-medieval activity

Evidence for post-medieval activity was revealed during an evaluation in advance of development at Child’s Garage, Long Street in 1996. This comprised garden features relating to the kitchen garden of ‘The Retreat’, Hound Street and wall boundaries and buildings visible on the 1903 OS map.

Wessex Archaeology conducted an archaeological evaluation in advance of re-development for 17 retirement properties at the former Child’s Garage, Long Street in 1996.

Five trenches were excavated, three of which, Trenches 1-3, contained a great depth of subsoil (0.7m) below modern topsoil. Trench 4 contained redeposited subsoil above the topsoil and in situ subsoil. This thickness of subsoil is thought to relate to intensive cultivation, possibly as the kitchen garden of The Retreat (later Harper House) fronting on to Hound Street. The redeposited subsoil in Trench 4 may have derived from Trench 5 which had been cleared down to clay in the construction of a hard standing area. A small number of features of modern/ post-medieval date were recorded within the subsoil in the western part of the site and are likely to be garden features associated with drainage [108, 202] or deep dug trenches [306, 307]. Local residents have said that the area was the kitchen garden of The Retreat, later Harper House, fronting on to Hound Street.

Two stone wall footings were recorded in Trench 5, one of which continued the alignment of an extant building and corresponds to a boundary seen on an OS map dated to 1903. the other wall may relate to another building seen on the same map. [1]

A subsequent watching brief during groundworks for the housing development located further features related to gardening and buildings visible on 19th and 20th century maps of Sherborne. A stone built culvert may also relate to this period. [2]

<1> Murdie, D and Butterworth, C, 1996, Child’s Garage, Sherborne, Dorset. Archaeological field evaluation (Unpublished document). SDO10376.

<2> Firth, A, 1996, Child’s Garage, Sherborne, Dorset. Archaeological watching brief (Unpublished document). SDO10377.

<3> Firth, A, 1996, Child’s Garage, Sherborne. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society (Article in serial). SDO10375.

Record last edited

Aug 23 2024 1:10PM