Redwood Farm, Caxton Road, Great Gransden, Cambridgeshire: Archaeological Evaluation Report

PCAS Archaeology Ltd. was commissioned by Brown and Co to undertake a scheme of archaeological evaluation on land at Redwood Farm, Caxton Rd, Great Gransden,, Cambridgeshire to inform and advise the development layout and construction methodologies as part of an archaeological mitigation strategy for a proposed mixed development to include a staffing facilities building, feed mill, slurry tank, attenuation pond, landscaping and associated infrastructure. This development will also replace the existing pig rearing unit and work will be divided into two phases. The results of the evaluation contained in this report pertain to Phase 1 only. The site is located on the southwest periphery of the village of Caxton, in the parish of Great Gransden and lies 400m west of the medieval Parish church of St Andrew. Excavations 500m northeast of the development revealed six phases of Roman and medieval activity (MCB20254). The evaluation comprised 18 trenches (Phase 1). The majority of the trenches proved negative, with a single ditch, possibly for water management being recorded in Trenches 1, 2 and 10 and a partially exposed pit in Trench 17. The majority of the features remain undated apart from nine sherds of 11th-13th century pottery recovered from the ditch in trench 2 and a single fragment of post medieval roof tile from the pit in Trench 17. The majority of the trenches proved negative, with a single ditch, possibly for water management being recorded in Trenches 1, 2 and 10 and a partially exposed pit in Trench 17. The ditch in Trench 2 yielded 11th-13th century pottery recovered from the ditch in trench 2 (while sections through the same ditch in Trench 1&10 were void of any dating evidence) and a single fragment of post medieval roof tile was recovered from the pit in Trench 17.