How has the the COVID-19 pandemic affected archaeology in North West England? How much fieldwork has there been and where has this been undertaken since March 2020? If you follow CBA North West’s twitter account (@cbannorthwest) or their Facebook group (CBA Northwest) you will have seen that commercial archaeology digs have been taking place throughout…
Throughout the three lockdowns, ever since the 23rd March 2020, I have been photographing the late medieval moat at Timperley Old Hall, Altrincham, Greater Manchester. I have written about this site on a couple of occasions, ironically in February 2020 just at the COVID-19 crisis was starting to develop. Little did I know then that…
The COVID-19 pandemic may have reduced the amount of community archaeology and research excavations across Britain, but it has also provided an opportunity to complete the post-excavation side of many projects. One such is the hunt from the Great Keep at Hoghton Tower in Lancashire. Funded by a grant from the Castles Studies Trust, a…
This year’s Council for British Archaeology Festival is a two-part affair with a nine-day digital festival in July to be followed by physical events in October/November. As a response to the COVID-19 impact on archaeology and heritage this has been inspired. I have been able to contribute several items: an online interview on the impact…
At the beginning of July the I was lucky enough to be involved with ‘Shaped by Steel’ twitter conference run by the ‘Social Worlds of Steel‘ project at Swansea University. Nine sessions and 27 papers spread over two days (1st to 2nd July 2020) covered topics ranging from landscapes, place, and worker identities to climate…
The COVID-19 pandemic has a brought a temporary halt to voluntary and community archaeology fieldwork in Britain, although many groups have continued to undertake post-excavation work and documentary research. Some organisations such as the Council for British Archaeology and DigVentures have innovated in providing online resources and festivals. There is always a backlog of fieldwork…
Since 1987 the South Trafford Archaeological Group have been housed in their own archaeology display centre and headquarters behind Timperley Old Hall, on Altrincham Golf course. The pre-fab, four-roomed, building was a donation in 1985 and cost more than £5,000 to re-erect by the time is was opened by Prof Michael Wood in June 1987.…
Earlier this month I was lucky enough to take part in the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology’s first twitter conference. Indeed, I had the scary task of tweeting the first paper, which meant keeping to time and making sure that I didn’t get cramp in my thumbs! Fortunately, three days of prep meant that I had…
These are difficult times for the several thousand voluntary archaeology and heritage groups in the UK. Normal forms of interaction – monthly meetings, walks, tours, finds processing, library research, and field work – are all closing down as the CORVID-19 virus, and the measures needed to combat it, takes hold. At least three major surveys…
We left the story of the development of the Council for British Archaeology in North West England in 1948, at the end of its first four years, which had been dominated by the aftermath of the Second World War in the region. The following decade of the Group’s history saw a number of changes to…
