2000:1066 - ROSBERCON, New Ross, Wexford

A pre-planning archaeological assessment was recommended by Dúchas The Heritage Service for a proposed housing development in Rosbercon, New Ross, Co. Wexford. The site is within the zone of archaeological potential for the town and is adjacent to an area where human burials and wall foundations were excavated by Sarah McCutcheon in 1995 (Excavations 1995, 88, 95E0086). These excavations were carried out as part of the archaeological mitigation for the drainage scheme serving the area. The development site is known locally as Stafford’s Yard. It originally functioned as a coalyard and was used as a contractor’s compound until it was acquired by the developers.

The assessment involved the excavation of test-trenches within those areas of the development where maximum ground disturbance was to take place. The chosen method of construction was piling, and the existing ground level needed to be raised in most areas within the proposed location of the houses. In all, five test-trenches were opened. Two were placed in a north–south direction along the line of the proposed houses, and these were excavated to a maximum depth of 1m, as ground disturbance for piling will not exceed a depth of 0.5m.

Test-trench 1 was 42m long and was excavated to a depth varying from 1.5m at the northern end to 0.8m at the southern end. The soil profile at the northern end consisted of successive layers of deliberately introduced layers of fine-grained clay, small stones and modern rubble. These layers contained small quantities of domestic debris, including butchered animal bone, modern delft, metal and broken bottles. The base of a modern stone boundary wall was noted at the southern end of the trench. This lay 0.12m below the present surface and overlay modern rubble and infill. There were no archaeological deposits or features present in Test-trench 1.

Test-trench 2 was 70m long and was excavated to a depth of just 1m, as most of the ground in this area of the site will need to be raised. Trenching revealed a layer of modern rubble and coal overlying a white, concreted clay deposit. The clay was excavated to a depth of 0.2m and contained modern brick and coal.

Two other trenches were placed along the line of the combined foul and storm pipe servicing the site. These were excavated to a depth below the intended level of the pipe in order to ensure that no archaeological material was present. Test-trench 3 was 60m long and was excavated to a depth varying from 1.9m at the northern end to 0.9m at the southern end. The southern half of the trench consisted entirely of modern rubble from a collapsed building or wall. The layers of overburden at the northern end of the trench were similar to those noted in Trench 1 and were consistent with the introduction of fill to raise the ground level and avoid flooding. The base of the original boundary wall for Stafford’s Yard was noted at the southern end of this trench. The top of the wall was just 0.1m below the existing ground level and was constructed of horizontally laid shale bonded with mortar. It was not set on a foundation and was built directly on top of modern infill material. The wall was 0.83m thick and survived to a height of 0.6m.

Test-Trench 4 followed the east–west line of the foul pipe, leading from the north-western boundary wall across the yard and onto the public roadway where the entrance into the proposed development is located. The trench was 43m long and was excavated to a maximum depth of 2.4m. The basal layer consisted of a loose, brown silt, almost 0.5m in depth. Layers consisting of various infill deposits of rubble and clay overlay this. All of these layers appeared to have been deliberately introduced in relatively recent times to raise the ground level and prevent flooding. Modern brick and delft were noted throughout the excavated soil profile, and nothing of archaeological significance was recorded.

A fifth trench was placed along the line of the houses in the northern end of the site, close to the area where a human burial was discovered during trenching in 1995. It was 50m long and was excavated to a depth of 1m. Water was encountered at 0.8m, as it was full tide at the time the trench was excavated. The soil profile consisted of garden soil overlying a light brown, stone-free clay. It was decided to abandon the excavation of this trench because the quantity of water impeded the recognition of any features or finds. The houses in this area of the site will need to be constructed on pile foundations, and this will require the ground level to be considerably raised.

In summary, five test-trenches were placed within the development site. These were all excavated to a depth well below the intended level of ground disturbance, and no features or finds of archaeological significance were noted. The substrata throughout the excavated trial-trenches indicated modern infill, which was introduced to raise the ground level and prevent flooding. The foundations for the houses were kept well above the existing ground level to ensure that the level of the development is above the highest recorded tide.