Digging the Past Booklet

Here is the booklet that publishes the results of the project. It is available for free from Romero Communities, Athersley and New Lodge, and Experience Barnsley.

Download the booklet (You will need the free Adobe Reader to view it).

Copies will also be available at the 2016 South Yorkshire Archaeology Day.

South Yorkshire Archaeology Day

Hands on History will be at South Yorkshire Archaeology Day on the 19th November.

We are presenting the results of the project and volunteers will be there.

We will also publish a free booklet about the project results.

More details about South Yorkshire Archaeology Day can be found at https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/planning-and-city-development/urban-design--conservation/archaeology/arch-day.html

You can download the booking form for the day from the link.

Excavation Report for 2015

Here is the report on the 18 test pits we excavated in 2015.

Download the report (You will need the free Adobe Reader to view).

This years activity involved a geo-physical survey of a site previously identified between Royston and Carlton, Barnsley, field walking for artefacts on the ground surface, further test pits in private gardens and within school grounds. The test pits were able to be dated from the recovery and specialist assessment of the pottery, clay pipes, glass, animal bones, metalwork and industrial residues (iron and glass slags). Similar finds to the 2013-14 seasons were revealed and largely date to the 20th century.

You can also download the geophysics report and the field walking report.

Barnsley Museum Autumn Events

Find out about exhibitions and events across Barnsley's museums.

http://www.experience-barnsley.com/content/downloads/BM-Autumn-Guide-2016-09502732.pdf

Excavation Report for 2014

Read all about the finds we made during the 2014 archaeology season. We excavated 41 test pits in gardens and school grounds during the year.

Download the report (You will need the free Adobe Reader to view).

The excavation of a series of test pits across St Helen’s Ward during 2014 has revealed evidence of settlement from the early Medieval right through until the Modern periods. In 2014, test pits were selected to target known archaeological sites such as the water and paper mills at Smithies, abandoned cottages also at Smithies, and a farmstead off Laithes Lane, Athersley North. Our test pits were able to be dated from the recovery and specialist assessment of the pottery, clay pipes, glass, animal bones, metalwork and industrial residues (iron and glass slags). A myriad of finds were revealed the earliest was the rim of a jar or cooking vessel (mid C11th- mid C13th), a commemorative glazed plate to large granite millstones which dated to the 19th century. 

Finds deposited at Experience Barnsley

The finds, photos and reports from the project have been deposited at Barnsley Museum. They will be stored here for future generations to research as part of the archaeological archive of Barnsley.

Fieldwork Finishes

Archaeological fieldwork on the Hands on History project has now ended. We thank all volunteers, garden owners and schools who have been involved in the project since 2013.

Over the next few months, we will publish news of a free booklet, which finds will be displayed in Experience Barnsley and our talk at South Yorkshire Archaeology Day.

Fieldwalking Report 2015

Here is the report on the field walking. We looked for pottery and other finds in the area where the crop mark of a possible enclosure was identified.

Download the report.

The enclosure probably survives as a series of filled-in ditches below ground. There is no evidence for it on the ground surface.

Fieldwalking was conduced over two days in February 2015. Four volunteers under the supervision of Bill Bevan walked over part of the geophysics transect laid out by GSB Prospection to investigate a cropmark identified on aerial photographs in this area (see illustration 1).

The archaeological aim of fieldwalking was to look for artefacts that may date and interpret the features identified by the geophysics survey. The community training aim was to train and give practical experience in fieldwalking and recording techniues to Hands on History volunteers.

The overwhelming majority of the pottery was 19^th to 20^th century in date. There were some sherds of 18^th and early 19^th century pottery along with very small quantities of medieval and early post-medieval wares. These are described in the following pottery report. The quantities and distribution of earlier pottery does not help interpret the identified sub-soil features. The vast amounts of late 19^th/early 20^th century pottery suggests a specific series of events such as dumping or manuring from middens during this short period.

Back to School

It is that time of year again! The summer is almost over and the kids are going back to school. So are we!

During September and October we will be at Athersley North, Athersley South and Laithes Academy. About 180 pupils will find out about how archaeologists discover things, have a go at digging a test pit, discover the stories about their finds then do some creative writing about those stories. Look out for the results later.

2015 Test Pits

We have excavated a couple of test pits following interest from the gala. We didn't find much in them but all those who took part enjoyed the day.

Windy Gala

Thank you to everyone who came by, found out about our work and had a go at digging a test pit. It was a successful day depsite the wind constantly threatening to blow away our exhibition!

St Helen's Gala

Look out for us at St Helen's Gala on Saturday 18th July.

We will have an exhibition about our finds and you can have a go at digging a test pit with the help from our Archaeologist and community diggers.

The gala takes place on the Laithes Lane Memorial Field, Athersley from 11am to 3pm.

Romero Reporter

The special heritage edition of the Romero Reporter is being delivered to all households in Athersley and New Lodge. You can also download a copy here.

Romero Reporter

Finds reports from 2014

Here are copies of all of the finds reports from the 2014 test pits to download and read.

Pottery Report

Pottery Data Tables

Clay Pipe Report

Glass Report

Glass Photos and Tables

Glass Data Table

Metals, Slags and Industrial Residues Report

Animal Bones Report 

Geophysics Report

The team conducted a geophysical survey in March.

The team surveyed the area with a cropmark of buried ditches between Athersley and Royston. We hoped to gain more information about the cropmark. The survey did show ditches but they seem to be in slightly different places! The survey also identified the traces of ridge and furrow. These are long ridges created by ploughing with ozen or horses in the past. Today, the fields are used to grow crops and none of these features can be seen on the ground.

Download the geophysics report

Aerial photograph showing the cropmark.

A plot of the features discovered by geophysics.

Fieldwalking

We have fieldwalked over the area where the geophysical survey is being conducted. We are doing this to look for pottery and other artefacts. Our aims are to find what sorts of objects survive in ploughed fields realting to Athersley's past and to see if anything helps to date the cropmarks.

From our first look at the pottery we have found lots of Victorian crockery plus some sherds of possible Medieval pottery.

We will publish the report once it has been finished.

A most unusual Spanish plate found in Athersley

One of the strangest finds from the 2014 season was a Victorian commemorative plate. Nothing strange about that you say? Well, it commemorated a notable Spanish general!

Commorative plate for the Spanish General Arsenio Martinez de Campos.

The plate came from test pit 59, on the site of an old farm near Sandra's Convenience Store.  This was a plate with a design commemorating General Arsenio Martinez de Campos and, in addition to a portrait of the general, also carried a registration mark on the underside indicating that the design had been registered on 17^th July 1878 and the plate was made by a firm named ADAMS.  Unfortunately the name Adams was a common one amongst pottery firms making a definite attribution difficult. The most likely candidate may be the firm of William Adams & Sons of Tunstall and Stoke-on-Trent. The absence of 'England' after the maker's name suggests a date prior to 1891 but, as noted above, after 1878.  In spite of this uncertainty, the registration mark and the maker's name confirm that the plate was of British manufacture and was not of Spanish origin.  General Arsenio Martinez de Campos (1831 – 1900) was a significant figure in late 19^th century Spanish politics and his career is summarised in the Encyclopedia Britannica as follows:

Arsenio Martínez Campos,  (born December 14, 1831, Segovia, Spain—died September 23, 1900, Zarauz), general and politician whose pronunciamento (military revolution) on December 29, 1874, restored Spain’s Bourbon dynasty.

            Martínez Campos received a military education and after 1852 served on Spain’s general staff. A competent soldier, he took part in the international expedition of General Juan Prim to Mexico (1861) and fought Cuban rebels (until 1872). On his return to Spain, he briefly taught military science and then was sent to put down rebellions in Valencia (1872), Alicante and Cartagena.

            After Alfonso XII, the son of the deposed Isabella II, had declared Spain a constitutional monarchy (November 24, 1874), and other generals disillusioned with the republic had rallied to him, Alfonso took the throne following Martínez Campos’s pronunciamiento. Martínez Campos then took command of Alfonso’s forces against the Carlists, made the fighting less brutal by signing agreements protecting the lives of the wounded and prisoners, and brought about the end of the civil war (February 1876). His humane policy, which he then applied in Cuba, ended the 10-year rebellion there on February 10, 1878, with the Peace of Zanjón.

            On his return from Cuba, Martínez Campos served briefly as prime minister in 1879 and two years later as minister of war. After war broke out in Morocco (September 1893), he was put in command and succeeded in negotiating the Treaty of Marrakech (January 29, 1894). The following year he was sent to Cuba again but failed to win over the rebels. He resigned and returned to Spain (1896).

(http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/367040/Arsenio-Martinez-Campos)

English potteries produced a large number of commemorative wares, including examples for export and, as the evidence from Sheffield shows, such export pottery was sometimes sold locally, usually because of over-production.  It is unclear whether this was the reason for a plate, presumably intended for the Spanish market, appearing in Barnsley or whether there was some local interest in the career of the general.  Further research into this subject might prove interesting.

The underside of the plate indicating that the design had been registered on 17^th July 1878 and the plate was made by a firm named ADAMS.

Schools 2014

All three of Athersley's schools have once again taken part on a series of workshops about archaeolgy. Two classes each at Athersley North, Athersley South and Richard Newman have had an introduction to archaeology, dug test pits, found out about the objects they've found and done an art/writing workshop about their finds.

Over 180 pupils have taken part this year. We will publish their artwork here soon.

Digging up School

No, we don't have an escape plan - we're excavating test pits at all three of Athersley's primary school again this year. After the success of the archaeology sessions and test pits last year, 180 pupils from Athersley North, Athersley South and Richard Newman will take part this autumn.

Two Test Pits

Photos from the test pits in two gardens in Athersley North.