Broubster Cottage, Shebster, Reay, Caithness Land 230M to SE Erection of House, Installation of Services and Formation of Access
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Broubster Cottage, Shebster, Reay, Caithness Land 230m to SE Erection of House, installation of services and formation of access CA/08/472 Archaeological Trial Trenching Catherine Dagg For James Sutherland 3 Moorside Court Thurso Caithness KW14 7LF Broubster Cottage, Shebster, Reay, Caithness Land 230m to SE Erection of House, installation of services and formation of access Planning Ref. CA-08-472 Archaeological Trial Trenching Site Name Broubster Cottage NGR ND 0227 6181 Development House, services, access Client J Sutherland Required Work 10% trial trenching OASIS ref. Catherin2-146940 1.0 Executive Summary A programme of archaeological trial trenching in advance of the construction of a new house and services located no archaeological features; the only modification of the landscape being shallow drainage ditches dating to the 19th and 20th centuries. 2.0 Background Archaeological work, in the form of 10% trial trenching, was required, as a condition of planning consent, on ground breaking work associated with the construction of a new house services and access at land SE of Broubster Cottage, Shebster, Parish of Reay, Caithness. This was considered necessary as the project may have impacted on valuable features of historic and archaeological importance. The trial trenching would allow any archaeological features or deposits to be identified and recorded before ground breaking work commenced and, if significant features were identified, the postponement of development until further archaeological mitigation were set in place. A Project Design was agreed with HCHET with reference to Highland Council’s Standards for Archaeological Work and covered on-site monitoring, recording, production of report and management of any recovered artefacts or environmental samples 3.0 Site Description The proposed new house site is located on open ground to the east of the Shebster-Shurrery road and west of Forss Water. The ground undulates on a gentle slope down to the broad valley base. S small stream or drain running NE from the road to the river, noted on satellite images, is visible as a slightly banked linear features on the ground and appears to be an artificial or straightened watercourse. A second drain, running directly east from the road forms the northern boundary of the development site. No platforms which may represent the site of former structures are present. A slight knoll, which offers the only level ground within the area, was targeted in Trench 1. Vegetation cover was lush, indicating recent undergrazing, and consisted of poor grasses and moss, colonised by rushes and dwarf willow. 4.0 Planning Background and Constraints 4.1 Sites with statutory protection There are no Scheduled Monuments, Listed Buildings, designed landscapes or gardens in the immediate vicinity of the proposed development. There are many Scheduled Monuments along the Water of Forss, most of which now lie within forestry plantations. The nearest SAM to the development is 3km to the SE: SAM 426,Bridge of Broubster, standing stones 1350km NE of, at ND 0470 6080. This is located in open ground on the edge of a forestry plantation. From here the development site forms part of a group with existing modern housing on low-lying ground which does not break the horizon. The development will not have a significant impact on the setting of this monument. The impact is similar on other SAMs further south. 4.2 Archaeological Background There are no recorded archaeological sites within the development area. The area is rich in prehistoric monuments and several hut circles are recorded in the vicinity, notably a line of six hut circles to the north: MHG 33290, MHG 33291, MHG 33292, MHG33293, MHG18455 and MHG1012. A seventh hut circle is recorded west of the road, within the forestry plantation, MHG1019. Two archaeological surveys have been carried out, EHG439 to the north and EHG to the south, leaving a 500m wide area apparently unsurveyed between the two, which includes the development site. This work was carried out in 1985 by R Mercer. 4.3 Historical Background The ground west of Forss water which includes the development site is marked on both the 1st edition OS map (Caithness X surveyed 1872) as Clais an Fhearchair, which corresponds to the farmstead of Clashnaracher. This, according to evidence given in 1841, was near enough to the settlement of Achreregan for the question to be asked as to whether they were one and the same place. However, they appear to be separate, with Clashnaracher to the NW of Achreregan. Although the name appears to have been taken from some natural feature by the river, the actual farmstead is more likely to have been west of the present road, where the 1st edition OS map records the only improved ground. Broubster Cottage stands on the site of a previous building, held to have been occupied by an estate 0fficial and this is probably the farmstead’s location. The Broubster area was always marginal agricultural ground, gradually encroached upon by the improvers. Around 1805 one George Innes introduced sheep at Isauld, extending up the valley of the Isauld Burn and building a long dyke at Clashnaracher to define his first boundary. Clashnaracher and other farmsteads to the south of this dyke survived until a major programme of clearance was initiated in 1838. By 1841 Angus Ross at Achreregan was the only tenant left on the west side of the river The open ground to the west of the river appears to have been historically common grazing, but the development area has recently been taken in as a crofting apportionment. 4.4 Cartographic Evidence Roy’s Military Survey 1750s. This map shows virtually no settlement or land use in the area, and no named settlements which might equate to Clashnaracher John Thomson’s Atlas of 1830 also records virtually no settlement in the area Ist edition Ordnance Survey map Caithness X surveyed 1872 shows the development area as unimproved and unenclosed ground. The drain which crosses the development site is not recorded. To the north, four circles are indicated, which may be four of the recorded hut circles. A rectangular area of improved ground west of the road includes Broubster Cottage and kennels, and irregular areas of improved ground accompany the two farmsteads of Achreregan Mor and Achreregan Begg to the east. A boundary dyke, running straight and approximately ENE-WSW, to the north, may be the dyke built by George Inness of Isault in 1805. 5.0 Field Methodology The evaluation was carried out on 21.8.12 in fine weather conditions 5.1 Initial Survey Two anthropogenic features were noted during an initial visual evaluation of the site: 1. Bank, drain from ND 02243 61805 to ND 02240 61825: a low spread bank, no more than 300mm in height, adjacent to a shallow, infilled ditch. This corresponds approximately to a drain indicated on modern mapping, joining feature 2. 2. Ditch, drain, from ND 02210 61820 to ND 02235 61831 A straight shallow ditch running from the road NE to join a larger ditch system east of the development sit 3. 5.2 Trial Trenching Trial trenching was conducted across the entire development site, consisting of two linear trenches and two block trenches. Proposed locations of trenches, carried out as a desk-based exercise based on cartographic and satellite image evidence, were replaced by trenches which the initial survey suggested would more accurately investigate possible areas of archaeological interest: Excavation was carried out by machine, removing material in spits of no more than 100mm until a natural clay subsoil was reached. Plan 2. Location of Trial Trenches Trench 1. Block trench 10m by 10m Location: ND 02239 61794 to ND 02253 61793 (corners) Justification: covers area of slight knoll in south west quadrant of site, and south west section of feature 1, linear bank, ditch. Stratigraphy: Grassy turf. Peaty soil to a maximum depth of 200mm, overlying orange clay subsoil containing small to medium sized stones. Features: Feature 1, bank and drain almost imperceptible in section. Excavated drain does not extend down into subsoil and bank consists of redeposited topsoil Trench 2. Linear trench 40m by 1.5m Location: ND 02247 61840 to ND 02268 61801 Justification: covers full length of development site, north-south immediately west of east boundary, and crosses feature 2, ditch Stratigraphy: Peat depth varies from 200mm to 400mm, directly overlying clay subsoil. No trace of buried soil surface. Features: Feature 2, ditch, at ND 02250 61830, has shallow scooped profile and barely extends into subsoil. Low bank to the south consists of re-deposited topsoil. Immediately north of this scoop, two small slabs of Caithness sandstone may be the remains of attempts to line or cover the ditch, but, if so, do not appear to be in their original position. A second wet indentation at ND 02247 61833 indicates another drain approaching from the north west. Trench 3. Block trench 10m by 5m Justification: crosses Feature 1, bank/drain Stratigraphy: 300mm of peat directly overlying stony clay subsoil Features: Feature 1, drain, barely discernible in section. Trench 4. Linear trench 20. By 1.5m Justification: Covers apparently featureless gentle slope north of Feature 2, ditch Stratigraphy: 300-400mm of peat directly overlying stony clay subsoil Features: Shallow peat-filled undulations on the subsoil surface were initially thought to be possibly anthropogenic, but are more likely to be natural and may be the indicators of former tree roots 6.0 Conclusions of Evaluation With the exception of shallow drainage ditches and associated banks of excavated topsoil, no archaeological features were located within the development area. Some of the drainage ditches correspond to drains recorded on the 1st edition OS map and are therefore dated to the mid-19th century, while others appear to me more recent.