Record Details

NHER Number:7598
Type of record:Monument
Name:Roman road, Brampton to Thorpe St Andrew

Summary

This is supposedly part of the Roman road that ran from Brampton to Thorpe St Andrew. Archaeological interventions have so far failed to identify any trace of this road, including a trial trench that was excavated across its line in 1973.

Images - none

Location

Grid Reference:TG 24310 16653
Map Sheet:TG21NW
Parish:BEESTON ST ANDREW, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
BRAMPTON, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
BUXTON WITH LAMMAS, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
HAINFORD, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
SPROWSTON, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
STRATTON STRAWLESS, BROADLAND, NORFOLK
THORPE ST ANDREW, BROADLAND, NORFOLK

Full description

Roman road from Brampton settlement (NHER 1124) to Thorpe St Andrew riverside.

Shown on Faden's map of Norfolk (S1).

The northernmost point of the road is recorded at TG 2223 2435, from which the course southward appears to follow a bridle path and then the modern road through Brampton, Buxton and Hainford parishes. The course of the road continues into Stratton Strawless and is lost in Hainford parish at TG 2364 1845.

The Broad Walk in Beeston St Andrew Park is straight and more or less aligned with the projected road line, but this is probably a coincidence.

The next section of the road starts at TG 2591 1170 and runs from Sprowston to Thorpe St Andrew, continuing as Woodside Lane, embanked at the south end on the eastern side. There is a slight rise where the Ranworth Way (NHER 8166) is crossed. The straight road continues south as Thunder Lane to TG 2620 0900.

See description by E. Rose (NAU) in file.
A. Cattermole (NLA), 23 October 2007.

1973. Trial Trench.
Single trial trench excavated across bridle path at northern end (Brampton; TG 2230 2405) revealed two pits Iron Age/Roman pits. There was no evidence that the bridle path was the Roman road, but it was noted that the nearby farm is called Street Farm, perhaps suggesting the bridle path was once a street.
See NHER 60057 for further details.
E. Rose (NAU), 29 January 1990 and A. Cattermole (NLA), 23 October 2007. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 12 May 2014.

June 1978. Field Observation.
Examination of sewer trenches across course of road at TG 2280 2255.
No evidence of road was recorded.
See description in file.
E. Rose (NAU) 29 January 1990.

June-July 1978. Field Observation.
Examination of sewer trenches along 20m stretch of road to south from Black Lion crossroads.
No evidence of road was recorded.
See description in file.
E. Rose (NAU) 29 January 1990.

September 1978. Field Observation.
Examination of gas pipe trench across course of road at TG 2241 2370.
No evidence for a Roman date.
See description in file.
A. Cattermole (NLA), 23 October 2007.

October 2007. Trial Trenching.
Single trench excavated where postulated line of road will be crossed by Norwich Northern Distributor Road.
No potentially related remains identified.
See report (S2) and NHER 63587 for further details.
H. White (NLA), 25 March 2009. Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 29 July 2015.

April 2012-April 2013. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometry survey on proposed line of Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Block 38).
This survey identified no clear evidence for the Roman road (NHER 7598), although as noted following a subsequent survey (see below), it is possible that a faint north-north-west to south-south-east aligned linear feature at the western edge of the field represented an associated feature. It should though be noted that the Beeston St Andrew tithe map of 1842 (S3) shows a number of similarly-aligned plantation boundaries at this location.
See report (S4) and NHER 63587 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 14 July 2019.

May 2014-January 2015. Geophysical Survey.
Magnetometer survey on proposed line of the Norwich Northern Distributor Road (Area S13).
This survey identified two faint north-north-west to south-south-east linear anomalies, the westernmost of which lay close to the western edge of the field, on the postulated line of the Roman road (NHER 7598). As noted above it also be associated with one of the similarly-aligned plantation boundaries marked at this location on the 1842 tithe map.
See report (S5) and NHER 63587 for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 14 July 2019.

Monument Types

  • DITCH (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)
  • ROAD (Roman - 43 AD to 409 AD)

Associated Finds - none

Protected Status

  • SHINE

Sources and further reading

---Record Card: NAU Staff. 1974-1988. Norfolk Archaeological Index Primary Record Card.
---Article in Serial: Woodward, S. 1831. A descriptive Outline of the Roman remains in Norfolk, by Samuel Woodward, Esq., in a Letter to Hudson Gurney, esq. V.P., F.R.S., accompanied by a Map of the County. Archaeologia. Vol XXIII pp 358-373.
---Record Card: Clarke, R. R. and NCM Staff. 1933-1973. Norwich Castle Museum Record Card - Iron Age. Brampton.
---Record Card: Clarke, R. R. and NCM Staff. 1933-1973. Norwich Castle Museum Record Card - Roman. Brampton.
---Secondary File: Secondary File.
---Collection: Norfolk Historic Environment Record Staff. 1975-[2000]. HER Record Notes. Norfolk Historic Environment Service.
<S1>Publication: Faden, W. and Barringer, J. C. 1989. Faden's Map of Norfolk in 1797.
<S2>Unpublished Contractor Report: Trimble, G. and Watkins, P. 2008. Norwich Northern Distributor Route: Archaeological Evaluation by Trial Trenching. NAU Archaeology. 1363.
<S3>Map: Pratt & Son. 1842. Beeston St Andrew Tithe Map. No scale.
<S4>Unpublished Contractor Report: Harrison, S. and Webb, A. 2013. Norwich Northern Distributor Road, Norwich, Norfolk. Geophysical Survey. Archaeological Services WYAS.
<S5>Unpublished Contractor Report: Harrison, D. 2015. Norwich Northern Distributor Road, Norwich, Norfolk. Additional Geophysical Survey. Archaeological Services WYAS. 2731.

Related records

22951Related to: Possible Roman road (Monument)
52126Related to: Possible Roman road, part of route from Brampton to Thorpe St Andrew (Monument)

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