Archaeological Desk-Based Assessmnet of Bradshaw Hall, Eyam, Derbyshire

In March 2006, ARCUS were commissioned by John Cunnington Architects, on behalf of Mr and Mrs Hill, to undertake a desk-based assessment of the site of Bradshaw Hall, Eyam, Derbyshire (SK 2156 7673). The assessment was required to inform a planning application for redevelopment of the site, including the reconstruction of the hall and the construction of a new garage. The desk-based assessment comprised a site visit, documentary and cartographic research. The site may have been occupied from the medieval period onwards by the Stafford family, who were granted land in Eyam in the late-twelfth century. A large hall was - located at the site in the sixteenth century, with the three-storey Bradshaw wing added c.1611 by Francis Bradshaw. A small shed to the southwest of the hall may be associated with the sixteenth-century Stafford Hall. The hall was abandoned during the plague of 1665-66, and was afterwards leased out by the Bradshaws. It was part of their Eyam estates, later owned by the Galliards from the early eighteenth century, and passing to the Smiths of Dumfriesshire c.1789. The larger section of the hall, constructed by the Staffords, was pulled down at around this time, being ruinous, and the Bradshaw wing was converted to a cotton manufactory in 1791. A fire at the manufactory caused some damage to the interior of the building, and the roof may have been replaced. By the 1840s, it was no longer in use in the cotton industry, and the building appears to have been used as a barn throughout the remainder of the nineteenth century. The majority of Bradshaw Hall collapsed in 1962, with only the northern section remaining intact, and parts of the east and west walls still standing. The building is in an unstable condition, but is of significant historic interest. Archaeological building recording is recommended prior to any reconstruction, subject to safety considerations. Any groundworks within the site have the potential to encounter sub-surface archaeology related to the occupation of the site from the medieval period onwards, including the hall sites and the cotton manufactory. This could include middens, pits and activity areas as well as foundations, cellars and floor layers. It is therefore recommended that a programme of archaeological mitigation works is agreed with the Peak District National Park Authority Archaeological Services prior to any groundworks at the site.