Site Event/Activity record ECH5295 - Archaeological desk-based heritage assessment of land at Maw Green, Crewe

Northamptonshire Archaeology conducted an archaeological desk-based heritage assessment of land at Maw Green, Crewe, Cheshire. There is little evidence of archaeological activity in the vicinity of the site. A Roman road is located c 2km to the west of the site and the area was an important centre of saltworking since at least this period. In the medieval period, the area was part of Church Coppenhall parish and the economy was predominantly agricultural. The township was composed of small dispersed hamlets and Maw Green probably originated as such and probably consisted of no more than a few farms and cottages. Aerial photographs of the site showing extensive ridge and furrow earthworks indicate that much of it was part of the open field system. There are also numerous depressions and ponds within the fields which probably indicate the former location of marl pits. In 1837 the first railway line was opened, passing immediately to the east of the site. By 1842 Crewe had become an important junction and by the middle of the 1840s a planned, rapid expansion had begun. By the middle of the 20th century, the expansion of Crewe had almost engulfed the former hamlet of Maw Green. While the site itself has remained substantially undeveloped, the north-eastern part of the site has been used for landfill.