The archaeological dig we reported in our April edition for the search of the Old London Road in Towton has now been completed. The dig, was funded by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, that the Towton Parish Council applied for, in order to run a project that the local community could share in and which would provide even more information about the history and heritage of the village.
The overall project coordinator, Cllr. Graham Webb, said “The dig took place over 4 days and was a great success. An enthusiastic group of 15 volunteers from Towton and surrounding villages supported professional archaeologists from the University of York to excavate a trench across the bridleway to see if the road was first constructed by the Romans. It was enjoyable and fascinating and there is money left to resurface parts of the bridleway to improve access for future generations.”
Sadly, no Roman Road was found. However, the surface of the Mid C18 Turnpike was found (not quite in line with the current bridleway) and several “anomalies” that suggest ancient field boundaries (deep ditches). Geophysical survey work was carried out on the fields either side of the trench which may reveal other elements to add to the overall picture in due course. Overall the dig was a significant success and there was tremendous support from the volunteers, the landowners, the local community and general public that visited the site to watch the work. Also the weather was near perfect! The Excavation Project Director, Tim Sutherland, said “It’s a shame we didn’t find a Roman Road – but that doesn’t mean to say there isn’t one there close by! Other evidence suggests there could be. It was a well organised and valuable dig – let’s hope we get another chance to excavate soon in this fascinating landscape”.
