Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

During the excavation of a pipe trench, undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust, in connection with the conversion of buildings at Archcliffe Fort for use by St. Martin's Emmaus Community, there was the discovery of a Post medieval cellared building. Also elsewhere in the trench there was evidence of make up layers. (location accurate to the nearest 50m based on available information).

Monument Types

• CELLAR (Post Medieval - 1540 AD? to 1900 AD?)
• LAYER (Make up layers, Post Medieval - 1540 AD? to 1900 AD?)

Full description

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During work undertaken by Canterbury Archaeological Trust in 1997 in connection with the conversion of buildings at Archcliffe Fort for use by St. Martin's Emmaus Community, a L-shaped drain trench, cut partly by machine and partly by hand, was dug. It lead out from the main range of the building, skirted around the outside of the added wing room and then extended along the foot of the forts north west rampart, a total of 45m. The trench was 0.60m wide and between 0.60m and 1.60m deep. There were only 2 significant features located in the pipe trench. At the north-east end, part of the south-west wall of a substantial 19th century basemented building situated opposite the extant structure was located. This consisted of a brick built cellar wall standing 1m high. Further adjacent sections of this demolished building have been cut through by previous service trenches. According to a detailed plan of the fort dating to 1884, this building was part of the quarters of the Commanding Officer for the South Front Barracks. Secondly there was a sequence of depositis revealed under a thin layer of modern conrete, that was consisted of mixed soil and rubble which represent the combined filling of numerous earlier service trenches. Undisturbed soil was immediately exposed outside the building area, at the South-western end of the trench consisted of a dark grey loam with pea-gravel. Perhaps representing casual yard metalling set in the angle between the main range and the projecting room. The 1997 drain trench cut across the main roadway into the fort some 5 metres to the south-east of the end entrance tunnel leading through the rampart. No evidence of early metalling or structures was noted here.(1)

<1> Canterbury Archaeological Trust, 1997, Further Archaeological Observations at Archcliffe Fort, Dover (Unpublished document). SKE7830.

Sources and further reading