Cockshott's Farm, Heyhouses Sabden, Lancashire- Watching Brief

A watching brief was undertaken by Oxford Archaeology North (OA North) on 28th and 29th June 2005 at Cockshott’s Farm, Heyhouses, Sabden, Lancashire (centred on SD 781 377). Ingham and Yorke on behalf of Mr Bobby Gill, propose to develop land which lies within an area of archaeological potential. Following a request by Lancashire Council Archaeological Service for a watching brief during topsoil stripping in advance of construction of farm buildings and an associated slurry pit, OA North were commissioned to undertake the work. No archaeological horizons were encountered during the watching brief, but an assemblage of finds recovered from the up-cast spoil was of some interest, as some sherds dated to the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century. No finds of earlier date were encountered that might enhance our understanding of the development of the area from its inception in the medieval period.