Monument record 523/2/5 - Lymm Hall Moat

Davey P J (ed), 1977, Medieval Pottery from Excavations in the North West, 48-53 (Monograph). SCH2158.

<1> Carter G A, 1971, Warrington and the Mid-Mersey Valley, p.11 (Book). SCH3679.

Lymm Hall, possibly on the site of a medieval manor house. Owned by the de Limme family until c.1377, when it passed to the Dumvyle or Domville family. A member of this family probably rebuilt the hall in the reign of Elizabeth I. In the mid nineteenth century the Hall, then the residence of James Barrett, was standing within the remains of a moat.

<2> English Heritage, 2005, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, 423797 (Digital Archive). SCH4666.

Bridge over the moat dates from the seventeenth century.

<3> English Heritage, Various, Schedule Entry (Scheduled Ancient Monuments Amendment), MPP22/AA100959/1 (Scheduling Record). SCH2950.

The monument is Lymm Hall medieval moated site and ice house. It includes an island, upon which the present Lymm Hall stands, surrounded by three arms of a dry moat and a wide outer bank. The island measures approximately 60m square. It is surrounded on the west, east and much of the north sides by a dry moat up to 2m deep that varies in width from 6m on the east side to 18m on the west side. The southern arm has been infilled. The moat widens to 25m at the north-western corner into a 'Cheshire Bulge' - traditionally considered to be a watering place for dairy cattle. Flanking the moat is an outer bank up to 0.4m high and measuring 6m-22m in width. Access to the island is by a mid- seventeenth century sandstone bridge across the moat's northern arm. . A nineteenth century painting inside the hall shows the moat to be waterlogged with a second bridge giving access across the western arm. An excavation of the ice house was carried out in 1975 and pottery dating to the second half of the fifteenth century was found. Excavation of an area immediately north of the moat between the access drive and Moat House found pottery of similar date.

<4> Ordnance Survey, 1870-1982, Ordnance Survey Archaeological Record Card, SJ68 NE 10 (Index). SCH2487.

Remains of moat fragmentary and mutilated by ornamental gardening (TP Waggot 25/10/1962).

A small area of the northern arm of the moat which had been disturbed by gardening was excavated in 1975, revealing eighteenth and nineteenth century pottery, but no structural remains. Beneath, and sealed by a layer of red sand, a midden contained fifteenth and sixteenth century pottery, stone and lead spindle whorls, lead ampulla, pieces of bronze etc. (TPW 08/08/1980, see 5).

<5> County Historic Environment Record, 1973-1985, Cheshire Archaeological Bulletin, No.4, p.28-30 (Journal/Periodical). SCH565.

Lymm became part of the Bucklow Hundred and the Shire of Chester with the outset of the manorial organisation of the 10th century. Ownership of the site of Lymm Hall can be traced back to before 1066, but the present Hall appears to date from the 17th century with later additions and alterations. It is bordered to the north and west sides by a dry moat, although there are indications that it was once completely moated.

Access to the present Hall is to the north side via a sandstone bridge across the moat. Set back by 8.5 metres on the east side of the bridge approach is the 18th century sandstone Moat House, and 96 square metres of the area between this building and the driveway was excavated.

The upper layers were much disturbed by garden planting. They revealed no structural remains and only produced 18th and 19th century pottery and clay pipes (including two decorated stems). Structural features of the Moat House wall showed an earlier entrance, most of the roadway to which apparently had been removed by later landscaping. Underlying these upper layers was a layer of clean red sand (17-53 centimetres thick) totally lacking in finds and comparable to the sandstone forming the base of the moat nearby. Below the red sand, and sealed by it, was a widespread midden (5-32 centimetres deep) which covered most of the excavated area. It contained ash, charcoal, burnt bone and two hundred and ninety-three sherds of various types of pot, apparently dating to the late 15th-16th centuries.

Coarse wares comprised cooking pots, ale pots and flagons including purple ware and green glazed wares with applied thumbed strip decoration. The smaller quantity of fine wares include decorated Tudor Green vessels and the base of a baluster jug, possibly of French origin. Other dating material comprised three and a half decorated lead spindle whorls, one decorated stone spindle whorl, a decorated lead ampulla, a whetstone, and nine pieces of bronze, including a button and parts of at least two bowls. The midden was resting on a shallow soil layer, with isolated patches of clay at the interface, beneath which was a layer of undisturbed pebbles in natural clay. Along the south side of the excavated area, adjoining the moat, all layers beneath the topsoil had been cut through on two occasions.