DID THE ROMANS COME TO CHEETHAM HILL?
use of the name temple
roman routes out of manchester
searching beneath the surface
lidar image of the area with bowling green highlighted
LOCATION OF ANOMALY IN RELATION TO SCHOOL PLAYING FIELD. THE ARROW SHOWS THE ENTRANCE GATE FROM BOYLE STREET
POSSIBLY A SIMPLE STRUCTURE LIKE THIS?
INTRODUCTION TO THE DAY OF THE FIRST SURVEY
SO WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THAT?
MY REACTION
INTERPRETING THE RESULTS
THE CIRCLE IS MY INTERPRETATION OF WHERE THE ANOMALY LIES. THE RECTANGLE IS WHERE THJE TARMAC AREA STARTS, AND SHOWS CONSIDTENTLY LIGHTER SHADING GENERALLY.
ARCHAEOLOGY SURVEY - PHASE TWO
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When the archaeology team came to the potential Roman site a few weeks ago they had a technical problem with one of their machines, the ground magnetometer.
This meant that they were only able to do half of the work they intended to complete. We now have a date for them to do the second half of the work. Saturday 18th May.
It also means that anyone who wanted to come to the site visit last time but couldn't make it, has another chance. I will give a short talk and show people around at 11am.
It will take about half an hour and I and the team will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
If you want to be included in this site visit, please email me using conduitzzz@outlook.com and I'll put your names on the list.
I was very lucky to acquire this ink drawing of Temple House grounds. It was sent to a Mr J. E. Barker, 8 Maple Street, Cheetham.
Presumably drawn by the person who sent it, it has a short note , in French, signed, simply, George.
It shows the grounds of the house, the lake and, in the distance, what appears to be the tower of St John's Church on Waterloo Road. that would mean the point of view was from somewhere alongside Cheetham Hill Road, looking approximately northwest. This is the actual size of the card
MORE ABOUT SPRINGS NEARBY
I mention, in my 'The Case For Temple' that I heard, first-hand from someone who, when working in the cellars of the two large houses on the corner of Smedley Lane and Cardinal Street, observed a channel, lined with ceramic or terracotta tiles, which was draining water from a natural spring.
Today, I was passing by and a man was working in the garden. I made enquiries. As I briefly explained my interest he had a light bulb moment (You could almost see the bulb coming on over his head) and he told me that one of the basement flats had suffered, numerous times from water coming up through the floor!
He said that the landlord had explored any possible causes from outside the property and hadn't found anything. They had taken up flooring but had still been unable to find the source of the water.
My suggestion is that, when the flats were being created in the cellars, there was no sign of any water, perhaps because the water table was low at that time, and that either they didn't understand the significance of the drainage channel or that it had already been covered over by a previous owner.
There is a lot of clay in the area. Around my own house, for instance, when there is heavy rain, parts of the garden become waterlogged, as a pan of clay fills up with water. The same may be true of these cellars. It may not be a spring but, rather, a 'seep' where the water only appears under certain circumstances.
So, I now await contact from the flat owner and I will report back in due course. In the meantime, I expect a call from the landlord anytime now to find out more about the source of the water!