Northern Archaeology Today issue 11

NORTHERN ARCHAEOLOGY TODAY YORK ARCHAEOLOGICAL TRUST MAGAZINE

This issue:

Yearsley Mill Research Project Reimagining Mantilla Row On the Road Again at Hungate Attercliffe Forge, Sheffield Climate Change and the Derwent Valley

Issue 11

C

ontents

Yearsley Mill

issue 11 September 2017

Welcome!

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Re-imagining Mantilla Row 7 New Lanark World Heritage Site

On the Road Again 11 Further Insights from Hungate

Water, Stone and Steel

This issue has a common theme of mills, milling and water power; we visit the watermill at Yearsley, North Yorkshire, and re-imagine mill-workers’ housing at Mantilla Row, New Lanark. Leetham’s Flour Mill is one of the elements in the palimpsest of structures uncovered in the final phase of the Hungate excavation, while the excavation of a water-powered forge at Attercliffe by the River Don reveals industrial development from the 16th to the 20th century in this area of north Sheffield.

Finally we examine the potential effect of climate change on the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site which encompasses the numerous 18th- and 19thcentury water-powered textile mills between Derby and Matlock.

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Attercliffe Forge, Sheffield

Climate Change and the Derwent Valley 23

Editor: Peter Connelly Layout and design: Lesley Collett (lcollettgraphics@gmail.com) Printed by B&B Press, Parkgate, Rotherham Northern Archaeology Today is published twice a year: UK subscriptions £10.00 per year, Overseas subscriptions £14.00 (sterling) per year.

To subscribe please send a cheque (payable to York Archaeological Trust) to: York Archaeological Trust, 47 Aldwark, York, YO1 7BX or telephone 01904 663000 with credit card details.

Northern Archaeology Today is published by York Archaeological Trust. Editorial and contributors’ views are independent and do not necessarily reflect the official view of the Trust. Copyright of all original YAT material reserved: reproduction by prior editorial permission only.

© York Archaeological Trust 2017 York Archaeological Trust is a Registered Charity In England & Wales (No.509060) and Scotland (SCO42846) and a company limited by guarantee without share capital in

Cover picture: The Horseshoe Weir at Belper.

England, number 1430801

(photograph: D. Knight; © York Archaeological Trust)

ISSN: 2049-5897

The Yearsley Mill Research Project

by Geoff Snowdon (YMRP) The discovery of the remains of an unrecorded and undisturbed watermill in a woodland area between Gilling Park and Yearsley Moor, North Yorkshire (SE 588 760) has provided volunteers from a local community group with the unique opportunity to carry out their own archaeological dig, known as the Yearsley Mill Research Project (YMRP).

The group was formed in 2014 to carry forward preliminary work carried out on the site as part of an earlier project called the Yearsley Moor Archaeology Project. As part of this project a feature, thought to be ‘the foundations of a building of medieval or later date’ (North Yorkshire Historic Environment Record, SMR 11533), was located, partially excavated and confirmed to be such a building. During the course of these excavations a second, much more substantial building was discovered some 25 – 30m NW of the original site. Since no records could be found for a building in this location, either from maps or documentary sources, it was decided to investigate this intriguing structure further. The work paid dividends almost immediately as initial clearance of the vegetation and exposure of the wall lines uncovered the edge of a millstone (Fig.1). This provided the first indication for the use of the site

as a mill. Further research revealed the presence of a silted-up mill pond some 200m upstream of the site in Elder Slack. An overgrown track or ‘hollow-way’ was also identified, leading from the mill to Yearsley village.

The site importance and in the trench was end of the

was considered of sufficient to justify further investigation winter of 2012-13 an evaluation excavated towards the western building, under the direction of

Above: Members of the YMRP team and the North York Moors National Park.

Apprentices (in red tops) hard at work on the remains of Yearsley Mill. (photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

Fig.1(below): The edge of the millstone, exposed during initial clearance. (photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

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surface just inside the doorway into the mill (Fig.2). The upper levels of the wheel pit and cog pit were also exposed at this time, proving conclusively that this had been a working watermill.

Excavations were taken no further at this stage due to constraints of time, labour and funding but they were started again in the spring of 2014, when the new YMRP group was formed.

Help and advice was provided by community archaeologist Dr Jon Kenny and funding was gained initially from a generous donation by the Helmsley Archaeological and Historical Society.

Internal fundraising and substantial financial help from the Forestry Commission, who have been extremely supportive of the project from its conception, helped to see the project through to its current analysis phase.

Fig.2: The fully cleared millstone in situ.

(photo by

Elizabeth Sanderson)

professional archaeologist Luigi Signiorelli. The work exposed the complete millstone which appeared to have been set into the bedrock, possibly for use as a flagstone or solid working

Digging on the site took place in three-week periods during the spring and autumn of each year from 2014 to 2016. The group’s strategy was to excavate targeted evaluation trenches and test pits over the more prominent features

Fig.3: The Yearsley Mill site plan, showing the location of millstone, cog pit, wheel pit Wheel Pit

Tr.3

and other major features.

Cog Pit Oven/Kiln

Hearth

Millstone

Tr.1

Tr.2

Water Channel

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of the site; these were then extended to uncover the more salient features as they were exposed (Fig.3). Each trench was excavated stratigraphically, using standard archaeological techniques and each context was recorded in sequence. This has enabled the likely story of the mill to be built up from its conception to its destruction. The lack of map and documentary evidence for the site has meant that the archaeological evidence has become of ever greater importance.

Although the post-excavation analyses of the pottery, wood and environmental samples recovered from the site is still ongoing it has been possible to identify four broad phases in the development of the mill, i.e.: 1. Construction of the mill; 2. Working life of the mill; 3. Demise of the mill and subsequent alternative use as a domestic site; 4. Demolition and landscaping.

These aspects are outlined below in chronological order.

Foundation and Construction It appears that during the late 12th to early 13th century advisors to the Lord of the Manor of Coxwold probably identified the stream in Elder Slack as a suitable source of water to drive

a water mill to serve his village of Yearsley and its surrounding area.

The site lies some 1.5 miles to the north of Yearsley due to the fact that the village is built on an elevated ridge of land and there is no more suitable source of water for power closer to hand. The stream that would have once powered the mill is spring-fed and today provides a constant supply of water throughout the year, a factor which is likely to have played a key consideration in locating the mill in this part of the landscape. The construction of a pond with a dam and sluice gate mechanism upstream of the mill, and fed by this spring, would have provided a controlled flow of water to the waterwheel, possibly via a wooden trough or ‘launder’, with excess water being returned to the stream when the mill was not in use.

The site has other advantages in that the bedrock lies just beneath the surface in this location. Once the overlying material had been removed, the sandstone would have been cut and shaped to form a solid foundation for the mill. Four neatly-cut rectangular post holes have been uncovered at each corner of the wheel pit

Fig.4: The northwest corner of the wheel pit sole plate with upright 12th to 13th century timber still in situ.

(photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

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and cog pit areas and three of these contained the remains of substantial base timbers or ‘sole plates’ still in situ. The sole plate at the NW corner of the structure also had part of an attached upright timber in place (Fig.4). Initial pottery dating suggests a possible 12th–13th century construction date but analysis of the pottery from some of the more secure early contexts may provide a more precise date than this.

The Working Life Phase 2 covers a period possibly extending over 400 to 500 years. During this time, constant changes would have taken place in the mill, not least for maintenance and replacement

Fig.5 The remains of the mill wheel. (photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

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purposes. A lifespan of 25–30 years might be expected for the mill stones and possibly slightly longer for the water wheel.

There is evidence for more structural modifications throughout the working life of the mill as evidenced by different cuts in the bedrock in the wheel pit and cog pit areas. These cuts suggest different support positions for the main axle and the ‘hurst’ frame, the internal structure that supported the gears and millstones, suggesting that the mill wheel may have been smaller at some point in time. The water wheel appears to have been ‘overshot’ throughout the life of the mill as no evidence of a leat to direct the water under the wheel can be seen.

As well as the complete millstone, fragments of millstones have also been found in the hearth area and in the rubble covering the site. Some of these fragments appear to have come from stones of differing sizes and some have rotated in different directions. This again indicates the process of renewal and the changes that occurred during the lifespan of the mill. A crushing stone, possibly used for processing oak bark for tannin, crushing apples for cider, or rolling oats for animal feed has also been found on the site, suggesting that other agricultural activities were taking place at the mill alongside grinding corn for flour.

Demise and Possible Later Domestic Use Phase 3 has proven to be the most difficult to interpret from the remaining archaeology. There appears to have been a period, following the demise of the mill, during which the wheel pit and cog pit areas silted up. This thick anaerobic sediment has produced favourable conditions for the preservation of the remains of the mill water wheel and cog wheel as well as leather and other wooden artefacts (Fig.5). The stumps and roots of some small trees and shrubs were also preserved in this layer, which suggests that it accumulated over several years.

During this period the building adjacent to the mill may have been put to some alternate use.

The presence of a hearth, a possible bread oven and a flagstone floor would suggest domestic use, with possible sleeping quarters to the rear.

A line of post holes towards the western end of the building might also indicate the presence of a partition wall, perhaps dividing off an area for industrial use. Analysis of the pottery and other artefacts will help to shed more light on the date sequence and function of these contexts.

Demolition and landscaping Phase 4 is represented in the uppermost layers of the site. They indicate the demolition of the building, with much of the rubble being spread within and around the remaining walls. There is no evidence of burning which might suggest that the thatch was removed, together with the timbers and the better-quality stone, presumably for re-use elsewhere.

Following the demolition process, vast quantities of soil and rubble were brought to the site to bury the remaining features.

These activities are most likely to have taken place during the early to mid-18th century landscaping operations in Gilling Park, when Viscount Charles Gregory Fairfax was known to have been upgrading his estate. The mill lay within an area that subsequently became the romanticised ‘Wilderness’, a name which it still bears today.

Although no map-based evidence appears to exist for the mill, some documentary evidence has come to light, thanks to the extensive research efforts of some of the YMRP group members. Three items in particular may help to narrow down the date for the demise of the mill. Firstly, the Papist Register of 1720 lists ’a water cornmilne and kiln, garden, orchard and curtilage’ as being owned by the Fairfaxes in Yearsley. The last tenant of the mill appears to be a George Yoward, who died in 1724. A voucher from the Fairfax estate archive then relates to work for a wall being built as part of the landscaping process ‘Thomas Bulmer wall over to the ould mill’ in 1748. This possibly suggests that the mill had gone out of use between these last two dates.

Very little other documentary evidence has been recovered to date, although research is still on-going. Perhaps the most relevant item is the sale in 1559-60 of a parcel of ground in Yearsley containing ‘one watermilne there with sute thereof and free course of water at all time forever’ by William Wildon to Sir Thomas Fairfax of Gilling.

This was the first known mention of a mill in Yearsley and it was noted again in the ‘inquisition post mortem’ of William Fairfax in 1598.

The Artefacts Because of the dearth of written evidence, the archaeology of the site has become of increasing importance. The finds in particular are providing a great deal of valuable information; over 800 sherds of pottery were retrieved from the initial evaluations and a further 5500 from the most recent dig. The assemblage is under northern archaeology today

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Fig.6: A sample of the pottery recovered from the site. (photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

investigation at present and it is hoped that the results may provide some vital dating information for the phases mentioned above (Fig.6). The pottery may be of additional importance, as some of it may have been produced by the Wedgwood family who were working in the Yearsley area from the late 17th to the early 18th century. The search for the relevant kilns is also still on-going.

Other significant finds include the extant remains of the mill wheel (Fig.5), which is probably 17th century in date and believed to be the only one of its type and date surviving in the north of England. Many other wellpreserved pieces of timber were also retrieved from the wheel pit and cog pit areas, some of which may be suitable for preservation and dendrochronology dating. The majority of the timbers relate to the demise of the mill but it is hoped that some of the sole plates and one upright may date to an earlier period.

Several other mill-related artefacts were also found, including broken stone spindle bearings, picks, millstone fragments and wedges (Fig.7). It was the more intimate items such as a child’s whirligig toy, brass 6

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Fig.7: Three pick blades found at the site, used for dressing millstones.

(photo: Elizabeth Sanderson)

pins, a pewter tankard, clay pipes, spoons, a knife, leather shoe parts, window and bottle glass, door keys and even musket and pistol balls, one of which had been discharged, that brought the site to life.

The YMRP are looking forward to the results of the pottery, and other finds, analysis which will allow even more detail to be drawn from this forgotten site. We also look forward to sharing these results in a future edition of Northern Archaeology Today.

Reimaging Mantilla Row New Lanark World Heritage Site

by Steve Black, Peta Glew, & Gavin MacGregor

Fulwood Burn

Hamper Hill Greentowers Nemphlar

Cleghorn

Mouse Water

de Kirkfieldbank Ri ve rC Woodyett ly d

43000mN

Cly

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Lanark Moor

v e r Clyde

Ri

e

Linn Burn Hill Top Wood

Kirkfield Burn

Riv

er C

West Hawksland

New Lanark

Greenhead

lyd

e

e

lyd

rC

ve Ri

1 Double Row

Moor Plantation

Devon Burn

42000mN

Byretown

Fig.1: New Lanark and Double Row site location

The industrial weaving works at New Lanark (Fig.1) were established in 1786 by David Dale.

As well as the industrial works of water mills and weaving rooms, workers housing such as Mantilla Row (Fig.2) and Double Row were built in close proximity to the heart of the endeavour.

Robert Owen, David Dale’s successor, created a socially pioneering community, through provision of better housing, improved working conditions and better education, values which continue to have relevance today. While many of the buildings fell into disrepair through the early twentieth century, major restoration programmes since the 1980s have created the now vibrant community and visitor attraction of the New Lanark World Heritage Site.

In spring 2017, Northlight Heritage undertook a wide-ranging project at New Lanark World Heritage Site to investigate part of Double Row and re-imagine the spatial setting of Mantilla Row. This work was carried out on behalf of New Lanark Trust as part of a larger Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme / Townscape Heritage Initiative project (CARS/

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plan. Scale of large map 1:20,000.

Greenhead 2

87000mE

0

500 m

Map source: OS OpenData™ Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right (2017)

Big Wood

Hazelbank Riv er

N

Whitelees

Castlehill

88000mE

2

Fig.2: Looking northwest at Mantilla Row in 1972.

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THI), which will result in the restoration and reuse of Double Row and broader improvements to access and interpretation to other parts of the site, including the area of Mantilla Row. Like Double Row, Mantilla Row was built in circa 1795, but unlike Double Row, Mantilla was demolished in the late 1980s as it had become structurally dangerous (Fig.3). Although Double Row was subject to stabilisation works in the 1980s it was never fully restored. This lack of full restoration, however, preserved within Double Row a unique set of rooms called Museum Stair. While this preservation presents some significant conservation issues they provide a remarkable range of interiors within one of the buildings in the row.

Fig.3: June 1988, looking southeast across the fully demolished Mantilla Row site, towards the junction of New Lanark Road and Rosedale Street.

Fig.4: The Double Row team start their investigation of the building.

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Initial desk-based assessment and archival work suggested that much of the archaeological deposits at Mantilla Row were likely to have been destroyed due to the construction of a concrete retaining wall and supporting slab in 1991. Through discussion with the client it was recognised there was an opportunity to undertake archaeological investigations of the site of Double Row and at the same time raise

awareness of Mantilla Row through designing a temporary installation.

Excavation at Double Row was planned from the outset to allow volunteers to participate and was designed to establish the character of the archaeological deposits that remained in situ.

Initial cleaning of the deposits revealed that there was evidence of in situ flooring including concrete and paved surfaces relating to different phases of occupation (Fig.4). Several small trenches were then hand-excavated to characterise the nature of archaeological deposits (Fig.5). A small assemblage of artefacts was recovered, some of which potentially relate to the occupation and use of the basements. Many of these were iron nails, probably remnants from lath and plaster wall lining which had been stripped out at some point. However other finds, such as a key plate, ceramic sherds and fragments of glass, may relate to pre-abandonment phases of activity.

As part of a wider programme of activities there was a series of public tours to witness the excavation in progress at Double Row and explore other aspects of the conservation management and interpretation at the New Lanark World Heritage Site.

This wider engagement also provided the opportunity to raise awareness about Mantilla Row, and the plans of a more permanent inter-

Fig.5: Excavation close to the threshold inside Double Row revealed traces of former hard floor surfaces and underlying charcoal flecked earthen surfaces.

These surfaces lie directly on top of the underlying geology.

pretation of the row for visitors, through a temporary installation and other activities at the site. In reverence to when Mantilla Row housed families, the team wanted to welcome people ‘into’ the building, introducing a tangible aspect to the work. To help visitors re-imagine Mantilla Row we had doors and window frames built as free-standing pieces and calico fabric was used to indicate where the wall lines had originally been at the basement level (Figs 6 & 7). People could now be welcomed into the space and learn more about Mantilla Row.

Fig.6: Southwest facing elevation of Mantilla Row as recorded before demolition. This was used to aid the spatial re-imagining of the row.

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Fig.7: The spacing of the door and window frames and the white outline of the building is based on historical and archaeological knowledge. The placing of these elements on the site allowed visitors to experience the “echo” of Mantilla Row.

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Some of the research focussed on the origin of the name ‘Mantilla Row’, with suggestions having been previously made that this may relate in some way to the Spanish head-dress of the same name. However, it became clear that in reality many of the rows at New Lanark had two names, an official name and a name derived from oral tradition, each changing at different rates over time. The official name always seems to have been Braxfield Row (referring to the larger Braxfield Estate in which New Lanark was set and the house where Robert Owen lived between 1808 to 1828), whereas the name from oral tradition changed from Mount Hoolie to Mantilla. It is currently thought that this morphing of name may be due to the way it became pronounced differently by different cultural groups of new tenants. So what’s in a name? The Mount may recognise the topographical position of the row, a bit of a slog up the Mountain, and the Hoolie can refer to a strong wind or gale (‘blowing a hoolie’), or perhaps the Irish term for a party, or get-together.

Archaeology in Scotland has several flagship events being coordinated by Dig It 2017 (http:// www.digit2017.com/), one of which was the Scotland In Six events, with imaginative and fun activities taking place at all six of Scotland’s World Heritage Sites to celebrate World Heritage Day. So given the textile heritage, it was appropriate New Lanark was subject to a Yarn Bombing event, as part of which the Mantilla Row installation was woven with wool and adorned with woollen bobbles.

The archaeological and interpretative engagement project had been planned as part of wider activity at New Lanark World Heritage Site. The Year of History, Heritage and

Row. Funding for the Northlight Heritage works was

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More permanent interpretation is now also being installed at Mantilla Row, as part of the CARS/THI, which will partially restore the remains of the building. The archaeological works at Double Row have also provided a unique insight to New Lanark World Heritage Site and may help us better understand how people were living there during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Thanks: The project team would like to thank all the volunteers who worked on the excavation at Double provided from Heritage Lottery Fund and Historic Environment Scotland via the CARS / THI Double Row project being delivered by New Lanark Trust.

On The Road Again Further Archaeological Insights From Hungate

by Arran Johnson

IN

the ten years since York Archaeological Trust first broke ground on the excavation phase of Hungate, countless fascinating discoveries have been made across the various development blocks. As construction work followed excavation, Hungate (York) Regeneration Ltd’s renewal of the area has brought new life to the urban landscape, allowing hundreds of people to call this once abandoned space home. Throughout this urban metamorphosis, the former Barnitt’s Warehouse at the junction of Palmer Lane and Carmelite Street has been a reassuring constant, acting as a base of operations for the many archaeologists, volunteers and trainees that have been involved with the Hungate excavations (Fig.1).

Fig.1: The location of the Barnitt’s warehouse and the Block F Car Park excavation are noted as F2 on the Hungate excavation plan.

At the beginning of 2017, as construction work on the neighbouring Block E development approached completion, the old warehouse was demolished and YAT commenced the third and final phase of the Block F excavation programme. The previous two excavations, in 2007–8 and 2009, had uncovered impressive remains of a range of industrial buildings,

adding an important and often overlooked element to the history of Hungate (previously covered in Yorkshire Archaeology Today 14 and 17:http://www.yorkarchaeology.co.uk/ wp-content/uploads/2015/05/YAT-17-web. pdf). This latest phase of excavation continued the focus on industrialisation along the River Foss and proved to be an evocative experience northern archaeology today

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Fig.2: The stone setts of Hungate start to appear during the initial cleaning process.

for the team, as the time had finally come to find out what lay in wait beneath the building they had called home for so long.

During late winter the site reverberated to the sound of a pneumatic breaker as a 25-ton tracked excavator began the difficult task of removing the two-metre deep concrete foundations of the warehouse – all the while doing as little damage as possible to the surrounding archaeology.

Using heavy machinery to carry out such surgical excavation requires a huge amount of skill and experience. Luckily, the team were able to call upon the services of driver Rod Green, who has carried out almost all of the machine excavation during the Hungate project.

Over the following days, more than a metre of modern overburden was carefully stripped away while YAT staff kept a watchful eye for signs of in situ archaeology. It didn’t take long to make the first discovery; a small area of meticulously laid stone setts.

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As more and more of the surface emerged from beneath layers of demolition material it became apparent that a large section of the street of Hungate had lain hidden beneath the warehouse for many years, and it had survived in remarkable condition (Fig.2). Over a decade into the Hungate excavation and the team were finally able to walk along the archaeological remains of the street that has lent its name to the whole development.

Alongside the road surface, a number of walls and surfaces were also exposed. True to form for this corner of Hungate, these structures were particularly substantial. The process of hand-cleaning the site not only delivered clear observations on the archaeology, enabling the initial pre-excavation plan, it also provided a moment of self-reflection for archaeologists Craig, Becky and Katie, as they had all began their careers as Archaeology Live! trainees on the neighbouring Block H site (see Fig.1 for the location of Block H).

Fig.3: Viewed from above, looking south, the details of Hungate and the remains of the surrounding industrial buildings can be clearly seen in the aerial image.

Photo courtesy of David Dodwell.

The process of recording the trench after the initial site clean was documented by David Dodwell, an aerial photographer who had previously produced stunning photos for the Community Stadium excavation in 2015 (https://digyorkstadium.wordpress. com).

Once again David managed to capture some striking images with his telescopic polemounted camera. Not only did the images look truly spectacular they also helped with the interpretation of the site, providing details that could not be teased out at ground level (Fig.3).

With the overburden removed and the archaeology fully exposed, the whole site was surveyed using a combination of state-of-theart Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment and good old-fashioned hand tapes and pencils to provide a detailed pre-excavation plan.

This plan provided the first stage in the team’s

interrogation of the archaeological horizons and it provided a basis for the excavation strategy.

Historic documents and maps have also proved to be invaluable throughout YAT’s investigation of 19th century Hungate and the same was true for this excavation. Used to enhance the interpretation of the pre-excavation plan, and helping to generate research questions while the excavation was live, these sources made it possible to identify the buildings within the trench. Together the pre-excavation plan and the historic maps told the team that they were about to investigate archaeology that related to the gasworks, saw mill and flour mill that had dominated this parcel of land from the mid-19th century.

However, historic maps only capture a moment in time during the evolution of any northern archaeology today

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identified during the pre-excavation survey (lying flush to the western edge of Hungate) what was surprising was the width, depth and robustness of it. The wall measured 1.20m deep from ground level, was 0.65m wide and had substantial buttresses built into the inner face every 2.60m. This wall was considerably wider and more substantial than any other contemporary walls and undoubtedly reflected a latent fear of gas explosions prevalent at the time of early gasworks.

Factory: Fig.4: A detail taken from the 1907/08 Sanitation Survey plan of Hungate The extents of the Block F Car Park trench have been overlaid in light red.

space, and the team knew that it was up to them to try to unravel what happened between those snapshots in time, revealing the fleeting moments that often pass by unrecorded. A 10-week excavation reveals a lot of information, too much for one NAT article, and so some of the more striking, or surprising, snapshots the team revealed during the dig are outlined below.

Over The Wall: York Union Gas Light Company, 1836-1850 Although the historic maps clearly showed the western boundary wall of the York Union Gas Light Company complex and it was easily Fig.5: Part of the water management system in the south-west Leetham’s building.

Leetham’s Flour Mill on Rushby Place One of the major gaps in the surviving historical information for Leetham’s Flour Mill is the lack of internal detail, a problem exacerbated by the loss of the Leetham’s archive in the 1930s. The excavation was able to address some of this lost detail.

The mill building to the west of Hungate and south of Rushby Place provided fascinating detail that had been lost to the past. A substantial drainage chamber was the most striking feature inside this part of the building. This chamber was fed by a number of pipes/drains and in turn fed these inlets down a sloping floor to an outlet that led into the main drain below Rushby Place (Fig.5). Numerous niches in the brickwork of the chamber suggested that some kind of apparatus had once been suspended over the concrete base. The scale of the drainage suggested that large volumes of water were being removed from the building, and as this part of the building may have been located close to the largest power house in the mill complex the feature appeared to be part of the water management system associated with the boilers.

Up The Junction: On The Corner of Rushby Place and Hungate The team working on the northern side of Rushby Place found that the street had been truncated by various services, one of which contained a vertically-set cast iron pipe, which may have enabled the movement of steam between the flour mill buildings either side 14

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of Rushby Place. At some point this pipe had become redundant, but instead of being capped off to the usual high standards seen elsewhere throughout Leetham’s mill complex this pipe was capped in a makeshift way by using a rubbish bin lid (Fig.6). Whether this haphazard capping represented a quick solution to an urgent problem that never required further work or it was more a case of an ‘end of the day’ fix will always remain a matter of interpretation.

Middle Of The Road: Hungate’s Stone Setts The historic mapping for Hungate gives the impression that the street surface was relatively uniform; the excavation proved that this was not the case. The street surface of Hungate proved to be a palimpsest of activity, with evidence for numerous re-laid granite setts following alterations to underlying services (Fig.7). Although there was some variety to the coursing and the size and shape of the stone setts, such as square granite setts and rectangular whinstone setts, the quality of construction was uniformly very high, probably reflecting the need to withstand the heavy traffic coming in

and out of the flour mill. The central section of the road proved to be the most heavily altered, presumably as a result of the late 19th-century expansion of Rushby Place’s drainage network connecting into the main sewer below Hungate.

Fig 6: Fixing a hole – with a bin lid!

Fig.7: Looking down on

The archaeology revealed that in the late 19th and early 20th centuries Leetham’s Flour Mill was in a near constant state of adaptation

Hungate and the various stone sett patches that make up its surface.

and expansion; the frequently re-laid surface of the street running through the heart of the mill complex is a clear reflection of this period of investment and optimism.

Appetite For Destruction: The Demolition of Leetham’s The results of the excavation suggest that the mill complex would have been a hive of activity in the weeks leading up to its demolition. Evidence for the recovery of fittings, machinery and even buried services was comprehensive across the excavation area. In the eastern range of the mill, equipment set into concrete floors and cellar walls was removed in such a manner that damage was caused to the buildings. Over the life of the mill the Leetham family had always been quick to adopt new technologies and the extensive removal and recovery of the mill’s infrastructure is probably a reflection of considerable re-sale value of the post-Leetham mill.

The demolition material infilling below ground spaces within the mill proved to be the most valuable source of information regarding the processes taking place. The remains of equipment relating to the movement of grain between floors, and what would have been a state-of-the-art sprinkler system, reflect the level of technological advancement within the mill.

Fourteen individually-numbered tags (Fig.8), each with a perforated hole that would have allowed them to be hung and displayed, were recovered from demolition or infilling

Fig.8: Tokens recovered from the Leetham’s mill demolition deposits.

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deposits. These probably represent workers’ tags, as part of a time-keeping or signing in/ out system. Interestingly those tags that were stamped ‘casual’ also had been clipped so that they were recognisably different from the full tags. This group of objects was the only part of the finds assemblage from the site that could be attributed to the mill workers themselves.

A New Day, A New Dawn: Life After Leetham’s The demolition of the flour mill, however, did not mark the end of activity in the area.

While the surface of Rushby Place was removed, sections of Hungate that appear to have been damaged during the demolition process were neatly re-laid, and evidence survived for new kerbs or paths being installed at this time. This provides clear evidence that the fate of Hungate was not yet set and it was maintained as a viable thoroughfare to the Foss long into the 20th century. The floors in the south-west flour mill building were used as hard standing for a post-built structure cut through the demolition backfills of the mill.

Little could be inferred as to the precise date or function of this building, but it was a noteworthy discovery to find evidence not contained in any cartographic evidence for the erection of new structures at a time when much of the Hungate landscape was being cleared.

Conclusion

The Block F Car Park excavation added many more new details to our understanding of the evolution of the Foss-side space during a period of industrial expansion along York’s riversides. The work confirmed details that can be traced in the historic maps for the area and expanded what was known about the area from the previous excavations. Importantly, it’s the details that are seldom revealed in maps and historical texts, such as the haphazard fixes and the internal structures, that have brought true insights into the character of this place: the intrinsic incidental details of everyday life that are rarely written down but are often revealed in archaeology.

Water, Stone and Steel The story of Attercliffe Forge, Sheffield During the summer of 2016 ArcHeritage carried out a sequence of archaeological investigations on the site of the former Attercliffe Forge located on a meander in the River Don, c.2.8km northeast of Sheffield city centre (NGR SK 3767 8912; Fig.1).

The site represented the opportunity to investigate the industrial development of a plot of land in the Don Valley from the late 16th century through to the mid-20th century – a period of great industrial change in the character of the local landscape.

A forge, referred to as the Nether Hammer, is known to have existed on the site from at least the 1580s as one of a pair of Shrewsbury forges which appear in the local estate accounts at that time. This early forge was employed in the

by Laura Strafford

work of converting pig iron from the Wadsley and Kimberworth furnaces (Ball et al 2006: 32).

Research on the cartographic evidence for the land revealed that a goit and two tail goits were present by 1722 (Fig.2) and a large dam or reservoir had been constructed within the site by 1768 (Fig.3). By this time the Nether Hammer had expanded to become Attercliffe Forge. Sadly the historic mapping also revealed that the site of the late 16th century forge building was most likely destroyed during the construction of the dam, with a new forge being built to the east and south of the dam.

Rapid development captured in the cartographic details shows offices, houses, a lane, fields, a tree-lined avenue, gardens and a bowling green situated within the site by 1768.

Fig.1: Site location of the former Attercliffe Forge.

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By 1823 the goits shown on the 1722 map had largely been culverted and lost from sight. The mid-18th century forge building was extended, partly demolished and rebuilt several times during the 19th and early 20th centuries, while several further 18th century and early 19th century buildings survived into the late 19th and early 20th centuries, before being replaced.

These cartographic details for Attercliffe Forge provided tantalising specific snapshots into the development of the site but it was up to the archaeologists of ArcHeritage to piece together the changes between these moments in time.

Phase 1: Pre-1768 to 1823

Fig.2: Detail taken from Palmer’s map of 1722 showing the location of the forge, goit and two tail goits, beside a meander in the River Don. Fig.3: Detail taken from Fairbank’s map of 1768 showing the location of the large dam/reservoir (immediately to the west of the forge), ancillary buildings, lanes and an avenue of trees.

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The archaeological work confirmed what had been suggested by the cartographic sequence, no structures survived on the site that related to the earliest phases of forge development. The later massive 19th and 20th century development of the forge had all but obliterated any archaeology predating the mid-18th century.

Historical records for the site reveal that in 1765 the forge was taken on a 10-year lease by Clay, Younge and Hussey (Ball et al 2006: 32), the layout of which is presumably depicted on the 1768 map (Fig.3). The faintest glimpse of this period of development was represented in the archaeology by the survival of three small fragments of a wall built of large sandstone blocks which could relate to walls on maps from 1768 onwards. The first wall, C209 (C = Context) aligned reasonably well with the northern edge of the ‘Forge Damm’ shown on the historic maps, and walls C215 and C217 appeared to align with the southern edge of the dam. Although only a small fragment of each wall was observed during the watching brief phase of work, the recorded widths of between 0.57–1m suggests a substantial structure. The upper courses of wall C209 displayed evidence for later modification and/or strengthening of the dam wall. The dam wall appears to have remained in the same location for over 170 years, until it was removed in the mid-20th century, and the later phases of modification

Fig.4: Structure C384, most likely part of the 1823 forge building.

represent determined management and repair of an integral element of the forge complex.

History tells of a period of rising rates and rents between 1800 and 1820, suggesting that during this period the forge was being enlarged, with the rate payments alone quadrupling between 1801 and 1820. This apparent expansion of the forge is supported by a lease of 1802 and an indenture of 1804, which refer to water being diverted from the decayed Upper Forge Slitting Mill (Ball et al 2006: 34), located to the south and upstream, which had previously made up the other half of the original Shrewsbury forges. Sadly, none of the archaeology investigated during the project could be attributed to originating from this early 19th century phase of expansion.

on site could be closely tied to the 1823 map for the area. The curved sandstone walls, recorded as C384 (Fig.4), appear to relate to a structure first evident on the 1823 map of the site (Fig.5).

The map depicts the main forge building at the end of the dam and the recorded archaeological remains map closely to this.

The curved shape of wall C384 may have been intended to direct water to either side of the structure as part of the water power management system (Fig.5). The water would have been directed past a wall to the south-west, Fig.5: Detail taken from Leather’s map of 1823 showing the location of Attercliffe Forge. The arrow indicates the likely location of structure C384 in relation to the rest of the forge as it stood in 1823.

Phase 2: 1823–1850

The continuing trend of heavy investment was evident in the archaeology dating from the early 1820s through to the middle of the 19th century as huge sandstone blocks and associated structures were added to the site to bolster its expansion across the plot of land.

Large stone walls constructed of substantial sandstone blocks, forming the west side of the forge building and the end of the dam wall, were added in the early 1820s. The sheer size and number of these stone blocks hint at the scale of investment, and belief in economic output, at this time. One prominent feature recorded northern archaeology today

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though a possible sluice and through a weir structure to the north-east. All of which suggests a complex system of water flow and power management.

The lack of detail, especially building interior detail, on early maps can often prove frustrating to historical research and the opportunities afforded by the archaeological work at Attercliffe Forge were able to tease out further details from the site. One example was the discovery of what appears to be a large machine base, C501, constructed of large sandstone blocks (Fig.6), with associated structures, in the southwest part of the excavated area. This area would have been located within the footprint of the main forge building as depicted in 1823 (Fig.5). In its truncated form the machine base measured 5.4m by 2.3m by 1.5m, which encompassed part of a sequence of large metal pins set in the stone blocks. These would have

been used to fix the machine in place. Although it is difficult to determine the size, type and output of the machine fixed to this structure the sheer size of the blocks and the metal pins threaded through them hint at the investment that was required at this time.

Further adaptations, modifications and maintenance continued between 1823 and 1850.

The weir, race and sluice system that would have supplied water to the water wheel continued to grow and experience modifications. Interestingly although no evidence for the water wheel was found in situ the scarring on the wall of the structure suggested that the wheel would have been located towards the centre of the main forge building.

Cartographic evidence suggests that the main forge building was extended to the south-east by 1827, although no archaeological evidence

Fig.6: Machine base C501 was constructed almost entirely of massive sandstone blocks. The remains of substantial iron ties can be seen penetrating through the sandstone.

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Fig.7: The remains of rolling mill base C306.

for this could be gleaned from the site. The lack of in situ fittings or deposits makes it difficult to understand what processes were occurring within the building at this time. However, the level of investment and modification seen in the archaeological record suggests that water continued to be the main source of power on the site until relatively late. An observation backed up by the historical records; in 1841 there was still no mention of steam power in the rate books, nor in the 42-year lease of 1844.

Ball et al (2006: 34) notes that six water wheels were still in use in 1874 as well as 1895 and that it was not until 1907 that water power was finally abandoned.

Phase 3: 1850 – 1935

The vast majority of the Phase 3 structures revealed during the excavation were located within the main forge building as it existed by 1850. These included brick, concrete and iron

structures such as rolling mill bases C305, C306 (Fig.7) and C368.

This phase was characterised by the continuing use of the large stone walls constructed during the earlier phases, which were further modified and added to with brick and concrete structures. Investment in new buildings continued into the middle of the 19th century, as witnessed by the external brick structures located to the east of the main building, which appeared to correlate with those first depicted in the mid-19th century.

Little appears to have altered within the main forge building by 1892. Just over a decade later the large machine base structure C501 (Fig.6) was depicted as a separate structure within the main forge building itself. There was no archaeological evidence of large scale modification to this machine base, with the exception of northern archaeology today

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small brick additions, so it seems likely that it remained in use at the turn of the 20th century, although it may have witnessed a change in purpose. These alterations may have been made around the same time that rolling mill bases were added.

The south-east wall of the forge, wall C366, from Phase 2 showed continuing signs of modification and management in the latter half of the 19th century. The remains of this wall were topped with at least two courses of red brick during this period. The investment and modification of this later phase was clearly dominated by the use of brick, and concrete, and undoubtedly reflects the changing industrial building fashions of the time and the economic advantages of building in brick and concrete.

The historical records for the forge reveal that, along with the investment in new brick and concrete infrastructure, at least some of the site was driven by steam by the late 1860s. Evidence for the use of steam comes from documentation relating to a court case of 1867–1868 when Sanderson Brothers contested the Midland Railway’s attempts to acquire part of the company’s land through compulsory purchase. At this time Attercliffe Forge was worked ‘partly by water-power and partly by steam’ but ‘the greater part of the machinery could be, and was, driven by steam power’ (Hemming 1868, 475). In addition the site was listed as containing at this time ‘a rolling mill, forges or works for making iron into steel and rolling the same various outbuildings…shuttles in or under the bridge, by the raising or lowering

of which the flow of water was regulated…a house, building, yard and garden…’ (Hemming 1868, 474).

The main forge building, although still present, was extensively modified in the 1920s and 1930s. Much of the northern end of the building was removed so that the wheel pit, which had previously been located in the centre of the building, was by this time at the north-eastern edge of the building. All of this undoubtedly post-dated the abandonment of water power in 1907. In addition the north-west side of the forge was also modified, with various structures removed by 1935.

The mill dam was still present by the mid-1930s, although around 50 years after water power ceased to be used at Attercliffe Forge the dam was infilled. During the 20th century the forge site was extensively redeveloped as a steel works, finally coming to an end in the mid-20th century.

The story of Attercliffe Forge is one that could be told for numerous sites along the Don Valley. A story of small-scale beginnings, huge investment across the 19th century, adaptation as the 19th century draws to a close and a final demise in the mid-20th century. However, what the ArcHeritage team were able to do through their work was to bring the tangible scale of that investment at Attercliffe Forge to the intangible history of the site. One only has to look at the photo of the massive machine base C501 (Fig.6) to realise the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the people involved with the forge in the 1820s.

References Ball, C., Crossley, D. and Flavell, N. 2006. Water Power on the Sheffield Rivers. 2nd edition (revised). Sheffield: South Yorkshire Industrial History Society.

Hemming, G.W. 1868. Law reports: Equity Cases before the Master of the Rolls. William Clowes and Sons: London.

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Climate change and the Derwent Valley: Assessing the impacts of climate change upon the historic landscape

by David Knight, Andy Howard, Tom Coulthard, Karen Hudson-Edwards, David Kossoff and Steve Malone We report below on a Historic England funded project aimed at investigating the potential impact of climate change upon the historic environment of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site (DVMWHS). A full report on this project is available from the Historic England website: https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/future-climate-environmental-changewithin-derwent-valley-mill-whs/

Introduction

It is now widely accepted by the global scientific community that greenhouse gas emissions are causing irrevocable changes to our climate system. Whilst the precise impact of these emissions remains uncertain, it seems likely that both the frequency and intensity of severe weather events will increase, with extremes of both temperature and rainfall becoming commonplace. There is clearly a need to mitigate against the impacts of future climate change upon the historic landscape, and we discuss here a methodology developed within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site: a linear area extending for some 24km along the River Derwent from Derby to Matlock (Fig.1).

This methodology used information on past landscape history from a variety of archaeological, geochemical and geomorphological records, combined with computer modelling of future river development. The results were assessed by comparing the distributions of archaeological sites and historic buildings with maps showing areas that are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts, highlighting therefore localities where action is required to conserve the historic environment resource.

The World Heritage Site includes within its boundary clusters of 18th and 19th century textile mills that were pivotal to the growth of the

factory system, together with associated infrastructure such as workers’ housing, schools and churches. The mills required water for power and occupy vulnerable floodplain locations preserving evidence for elaborate systems of water management that survive today (Fig.2) or are captured in documentary, cartographic or pictorial sources (Fig.3). In contrast, most of the infrastructure associated with these factories was located on higher parts of the valley side, enlarging existing hamlets and villages. Much of the surrounding landscape was owned by the industrialists and became a focus of agricultural innovation, particularly through the development of model farms, creating in the countryside a rich legacy of archaeological remains.

Whilst the World Heritage Site is associated closely with the textile industry, the limestone bedrock that crops out to the north of the area is host to a rich base-metal mining industry, principally lead and zinc in the Derwent catchment. Peak production of this industry was in the 18th and early 19th centuries. An indirect consequence of mining has been the release of metal-contaminated sediments into the environment; these have been deposited across the valley floor and are stored within alluvium.

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during mining, and continues through the erosion of spoil heaps and former processing areas.

Methods of investigation

The project area was restricted to the established boundaries of the DVMWHS Core and Buffer Zones (Fig.1), providing a tight research focus. Inclusion of the Buffer Zone was deemed crucial, since much of this area includes abandoned mine workings and unstable slopes which may supply contaminated sediments to the valley floor. Within that area, we focused upon the last 1000 years, since this period includes the major climatic anomalies of the Medieval Warm Period (c.900–1300) and the Little Ice Age (c.1450–1850). To elucidate geomorphological development of the valley floor, river terraces, palaeochannels and other landforms were mapped from aerial photographs and lidar, with additional information provided by historic maps and published literature.

Information on the geochemical and contamination history of the valley was collated principally from mine records, published literature and British Geological Survey archives. Historic Environment Record (HER) data for the medieval and later periods provided essential information on the distribution and character of sites of archaeological and historic interest. Analyses of maps generated by lidar survey identified additional archaeological sites and landscapes (notably previously unrecorded blocks of ridge and furrow). Further information on each data source, together with the CAESAR-Lisflood model discussed below, is provided in the project report (https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/ future-climate-environmental-change-withinderwent-valley-mill-whs/). The capture of this data within the project geographic information system (GIS) allowed landscape evolution to be compared with the location of sites to assess the impact of natural processes upon these remains.

As well as understanding the past and contemporary landscape, a key aim of the project was to assess how the River Derwent might respond to future climate change and how these changes might impact on the historic 24

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1

2

3

4

5

6 7

Fig.1: Location of the Core (outline in dark red) and Buffer (outline in purple) Zones of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, showing relief, drainage, woodland (green), main built-up areas (pink), and historic mill sites (black).

Key sites: 1. Masson Mills; 2. Cromford Mills; 3. John Smedley; 4. Belper Mills; 5. Milford Mills; 6. Boar’s Head Mill; 7. Silk Mill. (contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database rights 2016; compiled by S. Malone)

Fig.2: The Horseshoe Weir at Belper, built by Jedediah Strutt to power the West Mill. Construction began in the last decade of the 18th century. The weir was heightened and modified in 1819 and 1843 but remains substantially unaltered .(photograph: D. Knight; © York Archaeological Trust)

environment resource of the World Heritage Site. In geomorphology, the application of computer modelling to elucidate landscape evolution and system response has a long history, but this approach has rarely been used for heritage management. This project aimed to simulate river erosion and deposition within the World Heritage Site using the CAESAR-Lisflood model. This model divides the landscape into a series of cells, each of which has defined but changeable environmental attributes (such as surface runoff or vegetation sediment type).

It has been used to simulate morphological changes in variably sized river systems in many parts of the world.

Landscape evolution during the last millennium

An analysis of the data has revealed that upstream of Milford, where the floodplain narrows significantly, river channel mobility has been limited. Downstream of this point the distribution of abandoned river channels of similar size to the contemporary Derwent channel indicates that the river had moved significantly across its floodplain prior to compilation of the earliest Ordnance Survey maps (1820–30).

Whilst flooding has been historically important, particularly during the climatic deterioration of the Little Ice Age, the regulation of the Derwent

Fig.3: Oil painting by Thomas Smith (1720–67) depicting 18th-century angling, boating and horse-riding at Hopping Mill Weir, immediately upstream of the site of the Milford mills.

(©Derby Museums Trust)

(completed by 1943) has lessened the impact of such high magnitude events on the contemporary catchment. However, predicted increases in storm intensity may require the controlled release of more water from reservoirs during such events. While not resulting in catastrophic floods, this may lead to some erosion of the floodplain. A review of geochemical data has demonstrated that the floodplain alluvium is heavily contaminated with metals reworked from mine sites, and any disturbance of these northern archaeology today

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sediments may mobilise these contaminants – with possible impacts upon public health and the fabrics of buildings and other structures.

Furthermore, the blanket peats in the Upper Derwent catchment contain a significant legacy of metal pollutants, deposited through atmospheric fallout from industrial sources in the surrounding conurbations; these also have the potential to be remobilised and add to the supply of contaminants.

Fig.4: Interpretative plot of palaeochannels (yellow outline) visible in the lidar image of the Derwent Valley near Little Eaton. This shows the intricate pattern of abandoned river channels across the floodplain and their relationship to historic landscape features such as ridge and furrow.

Evidence of how the Derwent Valley below Milford might have responded to past climatic deterioration is provided by blocks of ridge and furrow earthworks identified from lidar (Fig.4), air photographic and earthwork surveys (Fig.5).

An unknown proportion of these remains might be a product of the steam ploughing that accompanied the industrialisation of agriculture, but many of the ridges compare in terms of their profile, dimensions and plan-forms with the wide, reversed-S shape ridges that are diagnostic of the strip fields associated with the medieval Open Field System. The origins of this system

(source data Š Environment Agency)

Fig.5: Ridge and furrow earthworks on the Derwent floodplain near Darley Abbey, partially inundated by the waters spreading from a refilled palaeochannel. The low, broad ridges represent the remains of the deliberately created, self-draining seed beds that formed the cultivation strips of the medieval open fields, signifying arable cultivation of uncertain duration in the period preceding their enclosure.

(Photo: Lee Elliott; Š York Archaeological Trust)

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may be traced in the Midlands to the period before the Norman Conquest, while it persisted in some parts of the region well beyond the medieval period. With this proviso, however, it seems likely that much of the preserved ridge and furrow in the Derwent Valley relates to medieval arable farming. Significant numbers of sites have been identified where river channels appear to truncate features that in terms of their morphology and layout most probably date from the High Medieval period. This may signify a phase of medieval agricultural expansion across the floodplain, followed by abandonment and fluvial erosion. Changes in floodplain hydrology are ultimately driven by climate, although land-use is important for priming landscapes for change, and it is tempting to suggest that the expansion of arable farming to the floodplain might be associated with the ameliorating climate of the Medieval Warm Period. Subsequently, the climatic downturn of the Little Ice Age may have enhanced fluvial activity and caused the truncation of blocks of floodplain ridge and furrow.

Modelling future landscape change

A key aim of the project was to use the CAESAR-Lisflood model to predict the potential impact of climate change upon the riverine environment. Future rainfall was simulated using the UKCP09 Weather Generator (http://ukclimateprojections.metoffice. gov.uk/), employing the high emissions scenario for the period 2020–49. The weather generator produced 100 30-year hourly rainfall simulations for the catchment above the Derwent. From these, 20 were randomly selected and used to generate 30-year periods of flows and future erosion and deposition patterns. The results of this modelling suggest that there should be minimal problems with sedimentation or erosion in response to changing flood patterns up to 2050, assuming that current valley floor and channel characteristics are not altered significantly by new flood protection measures. In general, the modelling suggests that the present channel pattern will remain relatively stable, with generally low levels of lateral erosion, and that metal contam-

Fig.6: Lidar image of the Derwent Valley at Belper, showing the potential impact of the precipitation increases predicted by current climate change models on fluvial erosion (red) and deposition (green) up to 2049. These were simulated using the UKCP09 Weather Generator, based upon the high emissions scenario for 2020–49. (boundary of World Heritage Site in red; HER records related to WHS in purple; reproduced by permission of Tom Coulthard; source data Š Environment Agency)

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inants locked in floodplain alluvium will not be remobilised significantly. Given that, there is little likelihood of significant changes in the overall shape of the channel or shifts in its areas affected by flooding. However, the larger flood events predicted by current climate change models could well inundate areas that are at present never, or only rarely, flooded.

The CAESAR-Lisflood model has permitted identification of several stretches of the river that may be affected by intensified erosion and deposition. By enabling correlation between areas particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts and the locations of historic environment sites, it provides a valuable tool for managing and mitigating the potential impacts of climate change. For example, some of the mill complexes, such as those at Masson and Milford, appear little affected by increased erosion. Others, however, particularly at Belper and Darley Abbey, are more vulnerable to intensified erosion and hence will require tighter monitoring and management (Fig.6).

Beyond the mill complexes, the maps generated by this work provide valuable tools for assessing the vulnerability to climate change of other archaeological sites or buildings, and can contribute significantly to management of the historic environment: for example, near Whatstandwell, where modelling predicts notable fluvial erosion, or immediately downstream of Milford, where maps highlighting areas likely to experience higher erosion or deposition can

Acknowledgements

assist the management of both the agricultural landscape and the built heritage associated with Strutt’s Moscow Farm of 1812–15.

Conclusions

Recent studies have highlighted the challenges to the historic environment that are posed by climate change, and the need for robust datasets and specialist information to guide decision-making and the implementation of adaptation strategies. Within the context of World Heritage Sites, UNESCO requires all designated sites to prepare and implement assessment plans for climate change. The work described here provides a template for investigating past landscape development to provide a contextual framework for mitigating the impacts of future climate change. However, the methodology goes further by exploring future landscape development, in this example within a river valley floor, by using computer modelling to simulate channel change. It demonstrates an approach that has yet to be used widely in the field of heritage management, despite regular usage by fluvial geomorphologists and river engineers for several decades.

It is envisaged that the approach summarised in this article, which dovetails empirical and modelled data, could be used to model natural processes in other landscapes and in a variety of climatic settings. This will ultimately contribute to a wider assessment of the potential impact of climate change upon the global historic environment.

The authors would like to extend particular thanks to Tim Allen and Paddy O’Hara of Historic England and Dave Barrett and Mark Suggitt of Derbyshire County Council for their help during the course of this project, and to Steering Group members Rachael Hall, Anna Harrison, Steve Kemp, Tania Pells, Hannah Rigden, Ken Smith, Alex Ward and Jim Williams for their support, information and encouragement.

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