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some good archaeology in the High Street at Brentwood
Today (9th August), the Trust completed an excavation on a site in the High Street of Brentwood, in Essex. The plot of no 73 is a development site: the previous building (housing two shops) has been demolished and the proposed four-storey building will consist of two retail outlets with flats above. The site is within the area of the medieval settlement and near the ruins of the medieval chapel of St Thomas Becket which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Brentwood was founded in 1177 by St Osyth’s priory in north-east Essex. No 73 is in the middle of the medieval settlement on the north side of the High Street. The medieval market-place was at the junction of Crown Street and Hart Street and adjacent to the High Street. The Essex Historic Environment Record (EHER) identifies the area of the medieval settlement as an area of archaeological potential and, in the Historic Towns Project Assessment Report: Brentwood (HTPAR:B), the author concludes that ‘Brentwood is a town of archaeological and historical importance’ (Maria Medlycott, 1998).
Archaeological investigations in the vicinity of no 73 have produced medieval and post-medieval evidence, ie a building recording project at 101 High Street and excavations on sites at 101-105 High Street and 125-127 High Street. On the site of no 73, we have uncovered the well-preserved remains of buildings and part of a well-gravelled medieval street which was not previously known. The buildings include what seems to have been an inn with a carriageway to a rear courtyard. Trust archaeologist Adam Wightman supervised the excavation and describes this feature as a ‘superb carriageway’, including two ‘fantastic wheel-ruts’. The top level of the carriageway surface produced some ‘lovely finds’, ie a saddle quern, thimbles, and a ?knife handle. The wheel-ruts lay to one side of the carriageway and present, as Adam said, ‘a nice bit of archaeology’, seeming to show a change of use of the carriageway. We can even date the wheel-ruts! The carriageway seems to have been built up and up until the 18th century. Adam has been able to create a ground-plan of the buildings on the site, including the possible inn. The site has also produced fragments of roof-tile, an almost-complete Stock-type ware jug, fragments of pottery and clay tobacco-pipes, a glass bead, and about 20 broken modern egg-cups! We also excavated two small and two very small complete glass vessels from the fireplace feature: these are cylindrical and globular phials, dating to about the 17th century, which must have been deliberately deposited.
The High Street is built on the line of the Roman road from Colchester to London. In later centuries, this formed part of the main Colchester to London road. In the days of horse-drawn transport, Brentwood was a transport hub: it was a route stop for medieval pilgrims on their way to the shrine of St Thomas Becket at Canterbury and, later, it became a major coaching station. The High Street provided a large number of pub.s and inns for travellers. The Warley Barracks were built at Brentwood in 1804-5 and were in operational use until 1958. However, the railway arrived here in 1840 and this must have gradually destroyed the coaching business here and led to the decline of the coaching inns.* The pub.s and inns in the High Street included the Bell, the Britannia, the Chequers, the Dairyman (nos 16-18), the Duke of Cambridge, the George & Dragon, the Good Intent (no 33), the Hobgoblin (no 129; this is a listed building), the King’s Head (the corner of the High Street/Crown Street), the Lion & Lamb (no 125: no longer a pub.), the Litten Tree, the Sir Charles Napier (no 141, demolished 2009), the Swan (no 123), the White Hart Inn or Hotel (nos 93-95: this was a coaching inn and is no longer a pub.), the White Hart Tap, the White Horse (no 10: no longer a pub.), and the Yorkshire Grey. (Nos 12, 44, 60, 62, 64, 63/65, 108, 110, 112, 114, 120, 129 and 163-9 in the High Street are listed buildings.) According to the HTPAR:B, ‘The White Hart Inn in the High Street is one of the finest “medieval” inns in England’: it may have originated as a pilgrims’ hostel and, interestingly, archaeological trial-trenching has been undertaken in its courtyard.
Trust director Philip says that we are delighted to have been involved in the project and to have recorded such good archaeology, which is very interesting and well preserved, and constitutes significant archaeological evidence for Brentwood. The results of the excavation show that Brentwood’s archaeology is important and they will contribute to the archaeology of the town and its protection, especially as they seem to represent an inn and to relate to the long history of the town as a transport hub.
A photographer from the Brentwood Gazette also visited the site today.
Adam supervised the excavation which was undertaken by Trust excavators Alec, Jane and Nigel and Trust archaeologists Ben Holloway, Emma Holloway and Robin Mathieson.
The images show the almost-complete jug from the site and five site photo.s: the site under excavation, looking towards the High Street; Alec investigating the street, with Jane in the background; the surface of the gravelled street; Robin on the carriageway with the two wheel-ruts; and a feature from one of the buildings on the site.
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* From British History Online: ‘… In 1764 a coach plying between London and Ipswich called at the White Hart. In 1791 there were three daily coach services, and a wagon service four times a week, between Brentwood and London. In 1839 coaches were passing through the town almost every hour, to or from London, Chelmsford, Southend, Ipswich, Norwich, and Bury St. Edmunds. The Eastern Counties railway from London via Romford was opened to Brentwood in 1840, and extended to Colchester in 1843. A branch to Southend was opened in 1889, with a junction and station at Shenfield. In 1933 two additional tracks were laid between Gidea Park and Shenfield …’.
‘… A few medieval buildings survived in 1980 at the western end of High Street. Apart from the remains of St. Thomas’s chapel all are timber framed. No. 65, on the north side, has behind the gable four bays of 15th-century structure, complete above first-floor level, with a crown-post roof and two original windows. It was restored in 1974. Also on the north side is the White Hart. On the south side nos. 60, 62, and 64 form a house built early in the 15th century, possibly with a central hall and cross wings. The passage between nos. 60 and 62 has an original doorway…
No. 114 High Street is a 16th-century timber-framed building refronted in the 19th century. Among other 16th-century buildings in High Street, no longer surviving, were the Chequers inn, and a timber-framed shop 100 yd. east of the White Hart (north side). Nos. 72 and 74 High Street, demolished before 1960, had cellars of the later 16th or earlier 17th century… Nos. 108, 110, and 110A High Street form a 17th-century timber-framed house, refronted c. 1800. No. 63 High Street has a 17th-century upper storey rebuilt in 1974…
In 1686 Brentwood’s inns were estimated to provide 110 beds and stabling for 183 horses. There were 11 inns in the town in 1788. Of those the Robin Hood … was in Ongar Road, where it survives in modern buildings. The other 10 inns were all in High Street. The Crown adjoined St. Thomas’s chapel to the west. It has been traced back certainly to the 16th century, and was probably older, for a 17th-century writer reported seeing documents proving that it had been an inn for 300 years. In 1797 the Crown kept 3 post chaises and 13 post horses. It seems to have closed shortly before 1818. The remains of its buildings had been demolished by 1927. The Marquis of Granby was on the north side of the street, about 100 yd. east of Weald Road. It had closed by 1829. The George, later George and Dragon, was on the eastern corner of High Street and the present Crown Street. It already existed in 1407, and traded until c. 1906. The building, demolished c. 1970, was timber framed, probably dating from the late 15th century. The Chequers, adjoining St. Thomas’s chapel to the east, traded from 1769 or earlier until c. 1937. It was a timber-framed building of the later 16th century, with two original internal doorways. It was demolished by 1939, when new shops were built on the site by Burton the tailor. The Bell was on the south side of High Street near King’s Road. It was recorded from 1454, when its sign was repainted. It ceased trading c. 1951 and was demolished c. 1970. The Ship, later the Yorkshire Grey, was on the north side of the street near the corner of Ongar Road. It traded until c. 1960.
Four of the High Street inns listed in 1788 are still trading. The White Hart, Brentwood’s leading inn, retains a 16th-century carriage entrance leading to a coaching yard. The NW. wing, built c. 1500 or earlier, has a jettied upper storey, formerly an open gallery. In the 19th century the south, street front was extended eastwards, and a new NE. wing was built behind it. Another 19th-century range connects the NE. and NW. wings. The street front was rebuilt in Georgian style in the earlier 20th century. In the 19th century the White Hart kept 50 coach horses and 15 post horses. In 1848 it housed the excise office, and petty sessions were held there. The Lion and Lamb, the Swan, and the White Horse all have modern buildings. The Lion and Lamb may have been identical with the Lamb, mentioned in 1581, and has certainly traded since 1700. The Swan was previously the Gun, listed in 1769 and 1779. There was an earlier Swan in the 16th century. The White Horse was recorded from 1742.
The King’s Head, on the western corner of Crown Street and High Street, was named in 1788 as a former inn. It was reopened by 1826, and traded until c. 1971. When it was rebuilt c. 1896 a local historian noted that the old structure was of great age, and that the cellar was made of blocks of solid chalk …’ – at www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/essex/vol8/pp90-109 .
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