Source/Archive record SCH5452 - The Duck Decoy, Orford Lane, Orford Park, Warrington: Archaeological Watching Brief

During July 2010, Benchmark Archaeology undertook an Archaeological Watching Brief on land at Orford Park, Alder Lane, Warrington, Cheshire, WA2 8BU (NGR: SJ 607 899). The work was commissioned by Gifford. Warrington MBC is currently regenerating the Orford Park site as part of the Orford Park Project, a leisure, health and education community venture. An Archaeological Desk-based Assessment of the site undertaken by Oxford Archaeology North in May 2009 (Taylor 2009) identified areas of archaeological potential that may be subject to impacts from ground works associated with new development at Orford Park. One of those areas contains the former duck decoy (SJ 61321 899250, latterly converted to a boating lake. As the duck decoy was deemed to be of some archaeological significance, Cheshire Archaeology Planning Advisory Service requested that an Archaeological Watching Brief was undertaken on ground works within this area. This took the form of mechanically excavated linear trenches which sought to identify the infilled arms of the decoy. Prior to the fieldwork a Written Scheme of Investigation was prepared by Gifford on behalf of Warrington MBC. This was prepared with reference to Institute for Archaeologists standards and guidance. Whilst no formal brief was issued for the work, the outline scope and requirements were discussed with the Cheshire Archaeology Planning Advisory Service. The watching brief was successful in its aim of providing a written, drawn, and photographic record of the features and deposits encountered during the trenching programme. Trenches 1 and 2 revealed the line of a duck decoy pipe (F104 and F204) extending westwards from the northwest corner of the pond as depicted on 19th Century mapping. No evidence for the further pipes was identified. Excavations suggest that the modern subsoil and topsoil deposits (eg 101 and 100 in Trench 1) are likely to represent partial 19th and 20th Century back-filling of a larger pond than is present today. As the material evidence within the subsoil and topsoil deposits consisted of ceramics, glass and building material dating entirely to the 19th - early 20th Century it is highly likely that the date of the ground make-up coincides with the demolition of Orford Hall in c. 1934. No evidence for significant archaeological features or deposits predating the duck decoy was identified.