Land off Yarm Road, Middleton St George, Darlington, Durham. Archaeological Evaluation (OASIS ID: wessexar1-312624)

Wessex Archaeology was commissioned by Commercial Developments Projects Limited, to undertake an archaeological evaluation in Middleton St George, Darlington, Durham. The proposed development comprises the construction of ten residential dwellings, an area of open public space with connecting roads and a shop with associated parking. A planning application submitted to Darlington Borough Council was granted subject to planning conditions, including a condition for a programme of archaeological work. All works were undertaken in accordance with a Written Scheme of Investigation (WSI) which detailed the aims, methodologies and standards to be employed in order to undertake the evaluation. The WSI was approved by Nick Boldrini, Historic Environment Record Officer, Durham County Council Archaeology Section, on behalf of the Local Planning Authority (LPA), prior to fieldwork commencing. The only archaeological features recorded were the bases of plough furrows, identified in all three trenches and all aligned northeast to southwest. The spacing between the furrows was seen to be regular and was on average between 3 m and 4 m. A selection of the furrows were hand excavated to confirm their interpretation and characterise them. Most examples survived to a width of c.1 m and a depth of up to 0.1 m and were filled with subsoil. No finds were recovered to assist with dating. These features likely represent the remnants of ridge and furrow, typically of medieval and post-medieval date. One trench to the west of the site contained an additional layer of made ground (containing modern brick and tarmac fragments) below the topsoil. The programme of trial trenching has been successful in characterising the areas accessible and has found no significant archaeological remains