Site Event/Activity record ECH3512 - Old Abbey Farm, Risley, Warrington. Archaeological Evaluation

Archaeological and listed building appraisal undertaken in March/April 1990 by the Lancaster Archaeological Unit at Old Abbey Farm, Risley, Cheshire in advance of the development of a waste disposal landfill site. The farmstead at Old Abbey Farm comprises a small moated homestead occupied by a Grade II listed farmhouse dating to the early mid-seventeenth century with later additions. Additionally, beyond the partially infilled moat is a Grade II listed barn also dated to the seventeenth century. The programme of work comprised a geophysical survey of selected areas of the island and moat, a contour survey of the area surrounding the farmhouse, selective trial-trenching to examine the infilled moat and to assess the survival of archaeological information within the island, a building survey of the two listed buildings and an appraisal of the documentary and cartographic evidence relating to the site. The geophysical survey was undertaken by University of Durham, it examined two areas for which the recorded anomalies appeared to coincide with the location of the moated enclosure. The anomalies indicate that the moat had been infilled with rubble. Seven trial trenches were excavated specifically located to investigate the dimensions and character of the infilled moat (trenches 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6), the areas of resisitivity anomalies (trench 4), and the depth of any surviving stratigraphy on the island (trench 3) and adjacent to the listed barn (trench 7). (1)