No 61 St Aldate’s, Oxford

In September 2010, Oxford Archaeology South (OAS) undertook an archaeological
field investigation at a proposed new student accommodation building at the site of
61 St Aldate's, Oxford. The Site lies just off the Grandpont, one of the principal
historical crossing points over the River Thames. The purpose of the work was to
provide baseline data regarding the preservation of archaeological and
palaeoenvironmental remains at the site.
A watching brief was maintained on all intrusive works associated with the removal
of the existing building remains. A number of trenches were excavated for new
services and to removed existing ones. Two foundation pits for a lift shaft and crane
base were also monitored. In addition two geoarchaeological boreholes were
undertaken on the site in order to mitigate the impacts of piling and to assess the
geoarchaeological potential.
No significant archaeological features or deposits were identified during the
watching brief. The service trenches revealed a sequence of modern building rubble
overlying thick post medieval land make-up deposits, on to a moderately well
preserved floodplain sequence. With the exception of the ground piles, the impact of
the development will be confined mostly to the post medieval reclamation deposits.
The trenches only went deep enough to investigate the upper alluvial sequence.
Only the boreholes were able to record the full alluvial sequence to Pleistocene
gravels.
The two boreholes produced a 3.4m deep Holocene sequence of organic silts and
alluvium overlying Pleistocene gravel and sealed by up to 2m of post medieval land
reclamation deposits. The results of the fieldwork would suggest the site was
reclaimed from the 11th century associated with the construction of the Grandpont,
and then late experienced significant ground raising activities in the post medieval
period. Prior to this the site may have been too wet for occupation and frequently
prone to waterlogging and flooding.
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