Site Event/Activity record ECH6205 - Chester Northgate Development - Archaeological Desk based Assessment.

This report presents the results of an archaeological desk-based assessment undertaken by OA North in January/February 2016 for the Chester Northgate development site (centred on SJ 4039 6638) on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester Council. It includes an outline of the topographical and historical background of the assessment area, covering all periods, which provides a context for the results of the archaeological study. The assessment examined all available relevant primary and secondary sources; all sites identified during the course of the work were listed in a gazetteer and plotted onto maps of the study area. It is proposed that construction of the new development will comprise three phases (Phases 00, 01, 02), with Phases 00 and 01 encompassing the northern part of the site, between Hunter Street and Princess Street, the rest of the site being developed during Phase 02. In total, 290 Monuments of archaeological or historical significance, and 97 archaeological interventions, or Events (as defined and recorded in the Chester Urban Archaeological Database), were identified within, or immediately adjacent to, the development area. Only two of the Monuments are prehistoric, the majority (138) are Roman in date, there are 26 assigned to the early medieval (‘Saxon’) period (including two that may extend from the late Roman into the early medieval period), 53 are of later medieval date, and 70 are attributed to the post-medieval period, with one Monument of uncertain date. The prehistoric sites comprise two find spots of stone and flint artefacts, whilst the great bulk of the Roman Monuments relate to the various phases of occupation within the legionary fortress, and in particular in the western part of the central range, within which the site is almost entirely contained. The early medieval sites largely relate to occupation within the Saxon burh, established in 907, whilst the late medieval and post-medieval monuments are associated with the development of the city from the twelfth century to modern times. The study has indicated that stratified and extremely sensitive archaeological deposits of most historic periods, from (potentially) prehistoric times to the later post medieval period, may well survive over many parts of the proposed development site. However, large areas have clearly had all or most archaeological levels removed by earlier construction works, though there are substantial parts of the site where the preservation of archaeological remains is currently unclear. On present understanding, the most archaeologically significant deposits are likely to be found in two areas (designated Areas A and B), the former located towards the north-west corner of the development site, between Princess Street and Hunter Street (within Phase 01 of the proposed construction programme), the other to the south, between Watergate Street and Hamilton Place (Phase 02). These had previously been identified as the zones of highest archaeological importance, a status reflected in their attribution to Zones 1 and 2 in a zoning plan of the archaeology of the site developed by the former Chester City Archaeologist as part of an archaeological brief for the redevelopment of the Northgate area. The rest of the site was assigned either to Zone 3 (preservation and status of archaeological deposits uncertain) or Zone 4 (archaeological remains wholly or largely destroyed).