East Riddlesden Hall, Keighley, West Yorkshire, Archaeological Survey Report

The National Trust commissioned Oxford Archaeology North to undertake an historic landscape survey of land associated with East Riddlesden Hall, Keighley at SE 07800 42050, in order to inform the management of the estate lands. It incorporated a documentary study, a walk-over survey of the estate lands to the east of the hall, a building survey of some modern agricultural buildings, a geophysical survey of a field purported to have a Roman road, and a topographic survey of the bank of River Aire to identify the extent of recent erosion. The survey was undertaken between February and April 2008.
The documentary and walk-over surveys established that the land to the east of the hall was for the most part the flood plain of the River Aire and has in the past served as water meadow land. The archaeological resource was relatively thin on the ground, reflecting that it was land of limited value because of its propensity to flood. The earliest activity within the study area was the discovery of residual flint tools found during the 1998 excavations in the vicinity of the ‘Starkie Wing’, and which are indicative of Neolithic activity on the site or environs. The putative line of a Roman road, believed to be the Manchester to Ilkley road, crossed the River Aire just below the hall and extended through what is now called Maze Field. The interpretation of the road as Roman is reliant upon excavations undertaken in 1982, and the geophysical survey, undertaken as part of the present study, identified a line of probable road or track, of unknown date, extending directly towards the river.