Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey Historic characterisation for regeneration BODMIN HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT SERVICE Objective One is part-funded by the European Union Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey Historic characterisation for regeneration BODMIN HES REPORT NO. 2005R064 Graeme Kirkham September 2005 HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT SERVICE Planning Transportation and Estates, Cornwall County Council Kennall Building, Old County Hall, Station Road, Truro, Cornwall, TR1 3AY Tel (01872) 323603 fax (01872) 323811 E-mail [email protected] Acknowledgements This report was produced by the Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey project (CSUS), funded by English Heritage, the Objective One Partnership for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (European Regional Development Fund) and the South West of England Regional Development Agency. Peter Beacham (Head of Designation), Graham Fairclough (Head of Characterisation), Roger M Thomas (Head of Urban Archaeology), Ian Morrison (Ancient Monuments Inspector for Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly) and Jill Guthrie (Designation Team Leader, South West) liaised with the project team for English Heritage and provided valuable advice, guidance and support. Nick Cahill (The Cahill Partnership) acted as Conservation Advisor to the project, providing vital support with the characterisation methodology and advice on the interpretation of individual settlements. Georgina McLaren (Cornwall Enterprise) performed a key advisory role on all aspects of economic regeneration. The Urban Survey Team, within Cornwall County Council Historic Environment Service, is Kate Newell (Urban Survey Officer), Dr Steve Mills (Archaeological GIS Mapper; to July 2003) and Graeme Kirkham (Project Manager to Spring 2004). Bryn Perry-Tapper is the CSUS GIS supervisor and has played an important role in developing the GIS, HER and internet components of CSUS. Jeanette Ratcliffe was the initial Project Co-ordinator, succeeded by Peter Herring from Spring 2003 and Peter Rose from Spring 2005. Air photographs are from the Cornwall County Council Historic Environment Record. Other photographs are by the report author and Nick Cahill. Thanks are due for comments on the consultation draft of this report to Bodmin Town Council, Bodmin and Surrounding Area Forum, North Cornwall District Council, Ann Kerridge CC, Steve Rogerson CC, Nick Cahill (The Cahill Partnership) and Georgina McLaren (Cornwall Enterprise). Maps The maps are based on Ordnance Survey material with the permission of the Ordnance Survey on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (c) Crown copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution and/or civil proceedings. The map data, derived from Ordnance Survey mapping, included within this publication is provided by Cornwall County Council under licence from the Ordnance Survey in order to fulfil its public function to publicise local public services. Cornwall County Council Licence No. 10019590. Cover illustration The centre of Bodmin from the south west, August 2003 (CCC Historic Environment Service, ACS 6052) © Cornwall County Council 2005 No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the publisher. Contents Summary 1 1 Introduction 5 Regeneration and the historic towns of Cornwall and Scilly 5 Characterisation and regeneration 5 Cornwall and Scilly Urban Survey 6 CSUS reports 6 Extent of the study area 7 2 Bodmin: the context 8 Landscape and setting 8 The regeneration context 9 Historic environment designations 12 3 Historic and topographic development 13 Before Bodmin – the prehistoric period 13 Early medieval Bodmin 13 The medieval period 15 ‘From west to east along in one street’: Bodmin’s medieval topography 19 Without priory or friary: Bodmin in the post-medieval period 24 ‘Poor old Bodmin’ 27 ‘The capital town of the Principality’ 29 Bodmin up to date 40 4 Archaeological potential 43 Indicators of archaeological potential 44 5 Bodmin: statement of significance 45 6 Present settlement character 46 Physical topography and settlement form 46 Survival of standing historic fabric 47 Architecture, materials and detail 48 Views and streetscapes 51 Identifying Character Areas 52 7 Regeneration and management 54 Character-based principles for regeneration 54 The historic environment and regeneration: key themes for Bodmin 54 8 The Character Areas 60 1 Down Town: Fore Street, Honey Street and Mount Folly 60 2 Church Square, Turf Street, St Nicholas Street and Priory grounds 68 3 Top Town: Lower and Higher Bore Street and St Leonard’s 72 4 Dennison Road - Berrycombe Road 77 5 The Berry area: Church Lane, Castle Street and environs 81 6 The county institutions: St Lawrence’s, Bodmin gaol, Bodmin barracks 84 Appendix 1: archaeological interventions 89 Sources 90 Figures Bound at the back of the report 1. Location and topography 2. Ordnance Survey 2nd edition 1:2500 map (c 1907) 3. Historic development 4. Historic settlement topography 5. Surviving historic components 6. Archaeological potential 7. Character areas Character area summary sheets 1 – 6 (A3 fold-outs) Abbreviations CCC Cornwall County Council CSUS Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey DCMS Department for Culture, Media and Sport DTLR Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions EH English Heritage GIS Geographical Information Systems NCDC North Cornwall District Council South West RDA South West of England Regional Development Agency TPO Tree Preservation Order Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey Bodmin Summary regeneration planning for the town and its environs. • Bodmin’s historic built environment – Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey buildings, historic topography and The Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey is a streetscapes – represents a major asset, the pioneering initiative aimed at harnessing the primary component of the town’s unique quality and distinctive character of the historic character, interest and significance. The environment to successful and sustainable importance of this distinctive ‘sense of regeneration. The Survey is investigating 19 place’ in differentiating Bodmin from historic towns and creating for each an other competing centres means that information base and character assessment actions which maintain and enhance the which will contribute positively to historic environment are potentially key regeneration planning. The project is based contributions to regeneration. within Cornwall County Council’s Historic • The urban hierarchy and diversity which Environment Service and funded by English Bodmin’s different Character Areas Heritage, Objective One and the South West represent are key elements of the town’s RDA. character. Respect for this hierarchy and for the distinctive differences between Bodmin areas should be key considerations in planning and executing future change. The Objective One Single Programming • Document notes Bodmin as one of Cornwall’s Bodmin’s natural setting is an important major employment centres, with significant element of its character, particularly in capacity for increased commercial and terms of the striking views across the town industrial activity. It offers the following and to the surrounding countryside; the profile of the town: strong element of trees and greenery within and around the historic urban area Bodmin, with 43% of its 12,775 population is of major significance. These factors under 30, has the youngest age structure of should be given appropriate consideration any of the Cornish towns. It is also one of in conceiving and planning future change. the fastest growing, experiencing a 40% • Commitments to both achieving real increase between 1971 and 1996, despite quality and to maintaining, enhancing or the rundown of a large hospital. Activity reinstating character should be rates are high and unemployment relatively fundamental both in new developments low. Located at the intersection of the two and changes in the public realm, and in main trunk roads, the A30 and A38, approaches to repairing past mistakes. Bodmin has developed major new industrial estates and, in 1991, 21% of the • Bodmin should be perceived - and workforce worked in manufacturing or accordingly managed, presented, mining. interpreted and promoted - as an historic Cornish town of great quality, unique Character-based principles for character and high significance. regeneration (See Section 7) The following principles, derived from analysis of Bodmin’s overall character and assessments of its individual Character Areas, are recommended as key components of all September 2005 1 Summary Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey Bodmin Regeneration and the historic • Review conservation designations environment: key themes for Bodmin • Identify, record and understand the (See Section 7) archaeological resource • Develop historic and cultural tourism. Characterisation has highlighted a number of regeneration and conservation opportunities, which fall broadly into the following themes. • Recognise the asset represented by Character Areas and regeneration Bodmin’s distinctive character and high opportunities quality historic environment This study identified six distinct Character • Recognise and implement priority Areas within Bodmin’s historic urban area. Its opportunities for change findings on these areas (Section 8), together • Reinstate character and quality where with an assessment of overall settlement these have been eroded by inappropriate character (Section 6), offer a means of past development