Section 1 & 2 – Introduction & History
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i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BACKGROUND The ownership of this project changed during the course of the archaeological program but after completion of the excavation stage. Casey & Lowe were initially commissioned by City of Parramatta to undertaken the archaeological program (2015-2016). Subsequent to this Walker purchased 3 Parramatta Square (3PS) from Council and took over responsibility as applicant and the finalising of the conditions of approval, notably the excavation report and the Heritage Interpretation Plan. SUMMARY RESULTS Archaeological investigations of the whole of the 3PS study area, focused on salvage excavation of a multiphase site which yielded substantial remains and evidence of post- 1788 land modification, water management, occupation, architecture and artefacts. The study area was composed of four historic allotments, Lot 28, Lot 1 (181), Lot 30 and Lot 32 (Figure 1.2). The largest allotment, (Lot 30) representing three quarters of the site, was originally granted to John Thorn and later owned notably by local innkeepers John and Harriet Holland. A small portion of Lot 32 to the east of Lot 30 was originally part of the White Horse Inn and then Hilt’s Coaching Service whereas Lot 28 & Lot 1 (181) had various owners and was not developed until the late 19th century. The archaeological remains found and use of each allotment differed across the site reflecting this varied ownership and uses. Unusually for a site in Parramatta it was stratified with considerable build-up of deposits, which included more than 1m of fill in the southwestern area. Most archaeological sites in Parramatta are shallow and more complicated to interpret the archaeology. Notably while there were impacts from the substantial Post Office footings the depth of fills means that archaeology of the c.1822 house partially survived including remains of ironbark timbers, also a very rare survival on early Parramatta sites. The key archaeological remains included: Landscape Modification, Agriculture & Climate 1. Development of archaeological and historical understanding relating to the nature of Public or Government Farming in Rose Hill (1789-1790s) during early settlement. Buried topsoil was identified with a low Phosphorous content which means the soil needed to be fertilised by animal manure but none was available in necessary quantities to maintain exhausted soils their continued use was not sustainable. Therefore, public farming needed to keep expanding out beyond the original farming areas, by the clearing and preparation of new grounds for planting. Prior to excavations at 3PS and Western Sydney Stadium clear evidence for low Phosphorous in the original topsoil was historically not understood by the British colonists and therefore it could not be managed. The low Phosphorus means that each crop planting produced a poorer yield as the wheat, corn, oats and other grain absorbed the Phosphorous from the soil. This resulted in poor crop yield making planting on older cleared ground unsustainable. Therefor by July 1790 the original cleared ground was the site of the laying out of the new township, which became Parramatta. Historically, issues arising from planting in low Phosphorus soil was blamed on drought, heat or heavy rain, although the lack of suitable manure was acknowledged by a few CASEY & LOWE 3 PARRAMATTA SQUARE (3PS) PARRAMATTA ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION ii with farming experience. It is only with the analysis and interpretation of soil from a sealed environment (not impacted by later 19th and 20th-century fertilisers) during the excavation of 3PS were we are able to gain new understanding of early public farming in Parramatta (Rose Hill) and a new framework for understanding these difficulties. Therefore, the archaeological investigation provided new insight through which to interpret the nature and expansion of public farming which is unavailable from the historic records. This report has explored the historical and archaeological context for public farming in Parramatta and offers a fresh way in which to examine its historical development. It also reveals the complexity of achieving successful farming which was essential for sustaining the emergent British colony. 2. Other evidence for land modification included channelisation of a natural drainage line at the northwest corner of the site (Lot 28), initially with an ironbark timber barrier, perhaps as early as c.1800, and subsequently the construction of a sandstone box drain, known as the Town Drain, within the channelised drainage line c.1840 (Figure 3.77). The modification and control of the drainage line to manage the ground water enabled the northern area of the site, which was low-lying, waterlogged and flood prone, to be made habitable and for the first house to be built c.1822. The discovery of an ironbark timber barrier also led to a new interpretation of the landscape illustrated in the 1793 drawing by Brambilla (Figure 3.12) which shows a very different Parramatta to the one illustrated 16 years later by Evans c.1809, (Figure 3.13). The 1793 drawing shows the landscape of the public farm with drainage ditches to carry water around the fields, with the new 1790 street grid and convict huts lining the streets, also some areas include timber lines which are shorter than fencing. By c.1809 the landscape has been remade into fenced lots with multiple structures lining the street of the township. 3. Evidence was found for early 19th-century (c.1830s) agricultural use of a large area on the south western part of the site (Lot 1 (181)), where rows of plough lines were found dug into the natural A2 horizon subsoil (Figure 3.63). Interestingly, this ploughing activity was only undertaken once which may be related to the soil quality discussed above. 4. Evidence for British introduction of exotic species, was found within buried historic topsoils and drainage fills. Data extracted from these buried topsoils and drainage fills also provided information regarding environmental conditions in the early 19th century which would have affected the efficacy of agricultural activity in the area. Water Management Due to the flood-prone nature of the site frequent evidence was exposed revealing attempts at water management, including a drainage network in the form of timber-lined and brick drains, a well, a sump and cesspits (Lot 30, Lot 32). There was also evidence for deliberately raising the level of the site for construction purposes on Lot 30. This occurred in two phases of house building, where initially the surface level was raised with sand fills beneath the early c.1822 cottage (Figure 3.103) and then a later levelling event when sand was introduced to raise the construction surface beneath the 1884 terraces Harleyville and Northiam on the eastern side of the site, and a thick clay layer was introduced to raise the working surface beneath the 1888 villa Cranbrook on the western side of the site (Figure 3.245). This late 19th-century phase of construction was undertaken by Harriet Holland. CASEY & LOWE 3 PARRAMATTA SQUARE (3PS) PARRAMATTA ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION iii Harriet was responsible for constructing initially the two two-storey terraces for rental purposes, then her own large villa home. Occupation and Structures Early Cottage, c.1822-1884 The earliest evidence for residential occupation of the site was found within Lot 30 as the remains of a timber cottage dating from c.1822 (Figure 2.9). The main evidence for the cottage were postholes and a large ironbark timber baseplate which was mostly intact. The cottage plan had four rooms with a front and rear verandah, substantial remains of a sandstone and sandstock brick fireplace in the original kitchen and the impressions of floor joists in some of the rooms. The cottage underwent several modifications and extensions and was occupied until its demolition in 1884. An extensive underfloor deposit was found associated with the occupation of the cottage which contained a vast array of artefacts including coins, ceramics, glass, bone, shell and miscellaneous artefacts. This deposit was excavated within a grid and wet-sieved which allowed for spatial analysis to be undertaken to aid in the identification of room function. A sandstock brick sump was also found with a timber lined channel draining into the Town Drain on the western side of the cottage which contained quantities of artefacts (deposited to c.1860s) and was possibly associated with George Cavill a long-term owner (1845-1863) and resident of the early cottage. Modifications to and extension of the cottage were identified in the rebuilding and repurposing of a room at the rear which originally functioned as a kitchen and was then used as a living or dining area when a new kitchen and fireplace was built on the eastern side of the structure c.1850s, presumably by George Cavill (Figure 2.16). This new external kitchen was accessed by a brick paved rear verandah. A small well was found in the front yard to the north of the new kitchen probably constructed at this time. These occupation remains were sealed by the demolition of the cottage and the clay levelling fill introduced for the construction of a new villa home, Cranbrook, built by Harriet Holland in 1888 as her own residence. Redeveloping the site in the 1880s The remains of the late 19th-century development of Lot 30 included a series of brick footings cut into levelling fills. The footings were associated with three houses including the pair of two-storey terraces on the eastern side of the allotment (Harleyville and Northiam) and the large single-storey villa on the western side (Cranbrook). The levelling fills contained some occupation material that was disposed of as part of the levelling event. These included pits which predated the houses filled with discarded bottles and shoes (Figure 3.239). It is thought that many of the artefacts disposed of in the fills were opportunistic rubbish deposits thrown out by Harriet Holland from the Star Inn, who owned this lot and was building a new villa home.