Monument record 1970/1 - Roman camp at Upton Heath, beside the water tower N of Long Lane

<1> Higham N J, 1987, A Cropmark at Upton Grange, near Chester (Unpublished Report). SCH60.

Cropmark visible on air photographs taken in 1986 (see source 2) in barley crop. An enclosure with straight sides and rounded corners. The south end is c.150m long, but interrupted by pit at centre. Approximately 100m of the east side identified and 60m of west side.

A trial excavation was undertaken on the 4-5th July 1987 by Nick Higham of the University of Manchester. The enclosure ditch was sectioned by a 1m x 8m trench, it was 1.45m deep, 1.1m below subsoil and 1.6m wide. No dating evidence was recovered. Silting of the ditch occurred almost immediately and the top fill contained much pottery, glass and clay pipe fragments dating to the 19th century. The ditch can be seen as shallow surface depression where it crosses the northern hedge boundary. Resistivity survey failed to identify the ditch. The playing card shape, steep ditch profile and rapidity of abandonment and silting suggests a Roman military function.

<2> Higham N J, 1984-9, Professor Nick Higham's Aerial Photographs, NJH 3492/64-68; 3493/30,32,34,64; 1986.D.36 (Aerial Photograph). SCH7659.

<3> Cheshire Historic Environment Record, 1990-2001, Jill Collens and Rob Philpott's Aerial Photographs, LM 90.2022, LM 90.2026, 10/08/1990 (Aerial Photograph). SCH5403.

Further air photographs taken in 1989 revealed the north-east corner of the enclosure.

<4> Wilson North R, 1990, RCHME survey of Enclosure on Upton Heath (Unpublished Report). SCH1107.

This site was surveyed by the RCHME in December 1989 and January 1990 at 1:1250 as part of the RCHME Roman Camps Project (see source 5). The enclosure survived as a very slight earthwork on former heathland converted to pasture. It comprised of a ditch, 20-30cms deep, with traces of both an internal and external bank. The inner bank was spread and survived to a height of 30cm. The RCHME did not agree with the interpretation as a Roman camp on the basis that no entrance diagnostic of Roman military work survived, also the presence of an external bank is very uncommon in such contexts. It was thought that the feature was more likely to be associated with post-Roman heathland management of stock. It was rejected for inclusion in the RCHME's Roman Camps Volume.

<5> Welfare H & Swan V, 1995, Roman Camps in England: The Field Archaeology (Book). SCH8047.

<6> English Heritage, Various, Schedule Entry (Scheduled Ancient Monuments Amendment), 25722 (Scheduling Record). SCH2950.

Roman camp identified by aerial photography in 1986 and 1989, situated on the former heathland at Upton-by-Chester. It is one of five similar sites all of the same shape and roughly the same size within the square kilometre between Acres Lane and Long Lane, with an outlier at Plas Newton School 200m to the south of the junction of Long Lane and the lane leading to Upton Grange Farm. Since there are so many of these camps grouped together, it is suggested that they were constructed as practice camps by troops from the garrison at Chester. The camp is enclosed by a ditch and is rectangular, with the corners rounded in the shape of a playing card. The longer sides are 150m east to west and the shorter sides 100m, enclosing an area of 1.5ha. The north west corner of this enclosure has been built over and consequently destroyed by the building of a water tower and the water pipes that attend it. There is a possible entrance midway along the east side of the enclosure. An excavation through a section of the ditch in 1987 showed that it is 1.5m wide and 1.45m deep with a V-cut bottom. Inside the ditch there was a rampart, now barely visible, which has been spread by ploughing but was originally 6m wide at the base. The ditch filled up with silt immediately after it had been dug, suggesting no permanent occupation of the interior. A possible outer bank or counterscarp was recorded by the RCHME in 1989.

<7> Various, Aerial photographs, National Monuments Record, SJ 4169/8-13 (Aerial Photograph). SCH128.

A copy of the air photographs showing the probable Roman camp can also be found in the National Monuments Air Photograph Library.

<8> Philpott, R A, 1998, New Evidence from Aerial Reconnaissance for Military Sites in Cheshire, Britannia, Vol XXIX,1998 (Article in Journal). SCH5632.

One of a group of a series of subrectangular enclosures within a few kilometres of Chester. A discussion about the interpretation of these features can be found in this article. New discoveries from aerial photography and excavation support a Roman Military origin.

<9> Cheshire Historic Environment Record, 1989, Jill Collens' Aerial Photographs, 6.0536 - 6.0538, 6.0542 - 6.0544, 6.0587-90 (Aerial Photograph). SCH9711.