Faverdale East, Darlington
Edited by Graham Sherwood 14th March 2004
Why was the Faverdale East site being developed?
- Development was part of the strategic development policy of Darlington Borough Council (DBC).
- The northern part of the site was proposed for development as a distribution centre for Argos.
Why was an archaeological project initiated?
- It is Council policy in County Durham & the Borough of Darlington to request an archaeological evaluation on all greenfield sites more than 1 hectare in size.
- Planning permission for development at Faverdale East was subject to a condition requiring an archaeological evaluation.
- The site lies directly south of the site of Whessoe ‘Deserted Medieval Village’ (DMV) - the potential for archaeological remains was considered high.
An initial Archaeological Evaluation
- 4 hectares of geophysical survey: c. 10% of the development site - in April 2003
- Trial trenching: c. 2% of the development site
- Two phases of trenching: Phase 1 (easternmost fields) & Phase 2 (westernmost fields)
- Phase 1 - summer 2003 - 23 trial trenches
- Phase 2 - July 2004 - 23 trial trenches
Did geophysical survey reveal any possible archaeological features?
Geophysical Survey
- Geophysical Area 1 (northern part of Field 1) appeared to show numerous sub-surface archaeological remains.
- Features were assumed to relate to the DMV site to the north.
- Geophysical results from other areas were much less promising.
Click here to find out about the trial trenches
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