North West Wetlands Survey

Since 1990 a major programme of archaeological and palaeoecological work, based at the Lancaster University Archaeological Unit, on the lowland wetlands in the 7 counties stretching from the West Midlands to the Scottish Border: Shropshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, and Cumbria has been undertaken. This programme has been carried out in partnership with county authorities, the National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside, and the Greater Manchester Archaeological Unit.

A pilot study had identified areas of peat and collated the known archaeological and palaeoecological data for prehistoric activity associated with the lowland wetlands of the 5 northern counties (Peat and the past, Howard-Davis, C, Stocks, C, and Innes, J, 1988). This highlighted the need for detailed field investigation, integrating palaeoecological and archaeological study to produce an assessment of individual sites and the wetland landscape. The initial stage of the main project was devoted entirely to data gathering, although annual reports were published during this time (199094). Within the study area, all areas of peat (defined by the Soil Survey) have been visited to establish condition and landuse. Survey of arable land was based on rapid fieldwalking of large samples of the surviving peat and the skirtlands of mineral soil, where erosion has potentially exposed vulnerable remains previously protected by the peat. This technique, based on the methodology developed by the Somerset Levels and Fenlands projects, allows the definition of sites over wide landscapes. Areas of pasture have been subject to more extensive fieldwalking, although where earthworks have been identified, these have been surveyed topographically. Where sections through peat deposits have been exposed, either by formal peat cutting or by drainage channels, these have been inspected, and the survey team has also been consulted on relevant planning applications. The archaeological work in each county has been enhanced by a survey of documentary sources, which has examined the potential for former peat masses, as well as the evidence for reclamation of the wetlands, and an assessment of extant aerial photographic evidence.

The programme of palaeoecological sampling has established the level of peat survival and the definition of mire ontogeny by means of gross stratigraphical transects. This has been followed by limited analysis of selected samples (using macrofossil study and palynology), and detailed analysis of at least one core in every county. A radiocarbon dating programme has provided an absolute chronology for selected sites in conjunction with this work. Much of the data processing has been carried out by use of a Geographic Information System which also allows the flexible transfer of data to the county sites and monuments records as well as visual output of composite data in the published volumes. Its greatest value, however, lies in the ability to interrogate the data to create reconstructions of landscapes and predictive models, to aid future management of the resource. Since 1994, volumes describing the results for Merseyside, Greater Manchester, and North Lancashire have been published, Cheshire is currently in press; South West Lancashire and Shropshire/Staffordshire will be published in 1997, and Cumbria is scheduled for publication in 1998.

Clear trends are now becoming apparent as a result of the detailed information amassed as a result of this survey. Although many wetlands are undoubtedly under threat from development, particularly as landfill sites, and through constant agricultural improvement, peat does survive well in places in every county, especially in areas of permanent pasture. In every county studied to date, palaeoecological work has identified burning episodes combined with a reduction in the tree pollen record, sometimes in relatively close association with archaeological evidence of human activity, dated to the Mesolithic period. If such episodes are accepted as human modification of the landscape it demonstrates that palaeoecological investigation of this sort is capable of recovering evidence of such activity, even in the absence of material culture.

A feature of the survey of the Shropshire wetlands has been the number of burnt mounds identified around the headwaters of the streams feeding the valley mires of the county. The incidence of these, and indeed of lithic material generally, drops sharply to the north at the Whitchurch Ridge.

The Mersey basin, including much of Cheshire, eastern Merseyside, and Greater Manchester, is notable for the absence of lithics of any period, each area being characterised by a sparse scatter of material, in contrast with the rest of Merseyside, and parts of Lancashire. Site visibility is clearly an important issue, and the work in Merseyside has demonstrated both the value of repeat walking of selected areas, and also that even a single flint on the surface can, on excavation, be indicative of significant sites. It is unlikely, however, that ground conditions, or even the scale of urban and industrial development in the region, can be the only reasons for the major lacunae, and a genuine archaeological reason must be considered.

Although the volume of archaeological material collected in the course of survey has not been as large as in some other parts of the country, the percentage of material from North Western lowland wetland areas has increased significantly and some areas have been surveyed systematically for the first time. This is resulting in a complete reconsideration of traditional views on past exploitation of the region's wetlands, and is also creating the regional perspective necessary for the future management of this valuable archaeological resource.