TDP Newsletter Winter 2010

The Thames Discovery Programme is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fundand managed by the Thames Estuary Partnership with support from the Thames Explorer Trust

welcometo the TDP newsletter - Winter 2010

Latest News

COMING SOON!!!

Charlton – On BBC One’s Inside Out!

The BBC recently filmed the TDP in action for the INSIDE-OUT series (Monday evenings, between 7 and 8pm on BBC1). We don’t have a transmission date yet, but please watch out for it!

This particular programme looks at the spectacular stack of ship timbers many of you FROG members helped record last summer at Charlton, near the Thames Barrier.

The stack of timbers, all that survives from a 200ft- long warship, serves as a memorial to London's rich maritime history. It can remind us of the men who built those ships, who sailed and served in them, and the lost maritime industries such as rope-making and sail-making, no longer practised on the banks of the Thames.

Find out more about the history of the timbers and the background naval history on our website www.thamesdiscovery.org or by watching this BBC edition of Inside Out.

Gustav Milne - Project Director

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS!

We are now in the second year of the project so we look forward to a very busy and successful 2010! This Winter edition of the TDP newsletter is stuffed with things for you to do, visit and get involved with across London alongside the Thames Discovery Programme and partners. The Thames Seminar series has started and details are enclosed. We have a wide range of speakers and topics, all our evening seminars are FREE and well worth battling the British weather on a Monday evening!

A big thank you to all the FROGs who have contributed to this newsletter. If you have any questions or comments about any of the contents, or would like to contribute, please get in touch with me by email: [email protected] or by phone 07917 758 833. You may have noticed we don’t have a working answer phone at our offices, and the Museum of London are working on this. We apologise for any inconvenience.

Best wishes

Lorna RichardsonArchaeology Outreach Officer By N. Cohen

Big Freeze at Anchor & Hope Wharf Charlton 1895National Maritime Museum

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http://www.thamesdiscovery.org

http://www.thamesdiscovery.org

mailto:[email protected]



MUDLARKERS & TDP JOIN FORCES TO EXCAVATE A SKELETON!

In June 2009, one of our FROG members, Jeremy Fielden, mentioned that he had seen some amazing photos of a human skull found on the foreshore near Burrell’s Wharf on the Thames and Field website.

Over the past six months the TDP, together with the Mudlarker who discovered the skull, Nick Stevens from the Thames and Field Metal Detecting Society, have continued to investigate this and we have some very exciting news to report!

Initial Discovery

Nick first discovered the skull while walking along the foreshore in April 2009. He informed the police who came down to the site straight away and removed it for further examination. They decided that it was not a forensic case and so the skull was passed to the care of the Osteoarchaeology section at the Museum of London, where it was assessed by Don Walker and Natasha Powers.

Dating the Skeleton

However, the date of the skull was not determined until the TDP, with the generous support of English Heritage (thank you to John Meadows and Jane Sidell), sent a sample for dating. The sample returned a date of cal AD 1735–1805 (52.8% probability), placing the remains firmly in the post-medieval period – a very intriguing date indeed. Examination of maps dating to this period, such as the Rocque map of the mid 18th century, show that the Isle of Dogs was largely undeveloped at this time; the main features of interest are the line of mills stretching along the western side of the Isle (hence ‘Millwall’), ‘Horseferry House’ at the southern tip of the peninsula and a gallows in between…..


Latest News Continued...

By L. Richardson

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The TDP Get Involved

The police did return to the site and could not find any further bones (although they did retrieve some animal bones). However, the fact that the skull had survived with its jawbone intact suggested a possible articulated burial so in December 2009, Nick and I returned to the foreshore to try and re-examine the spot. Unfortunately the marker Nick had placed was gone. Not to be deterred we went back again on January 4th 2010 and found parts of the upper torso and arm. Then the tide came in…We came back the following day with a full team: Gus Milne, Lorna and myself (Nathalie),from the TDP team, Nick Stevens from the Thames & Field Metal Detecting Society, Don Walker (MoL Osteoarchaeology), Mark Burch and Sarah Jones (MoLA Geomatics) and Brigid Geist (FROG member). We also brought Anies Hassan of Tollan Films to record the remains in situ.

The Find

What we have recovered is very exciting – a largely complete skeleton of a fairly young individual (probably around 12 years old) – buried on the foreshore. Although it was difficult to see a distinct grave cut, we can be certain that the body had been placed in a hole, given the changes noticeable in the immediate context of the burial and the articulation of the skeleton (basically where and how the body was laid out). We were even able to recover most of the very small bones of the hands and feet.

Excavation was challenging to say the least – as the burial lay very close to the low tide level we only had around an hour to uncover, lift and record the bones, and this process was made more dif cult by the fact that every time a vessel went by the resultant waves threatened to wash away any exposed material. Consequently once the bones were exposed, they were photographed and immediately lifted so that they weren’t lost.

I look forward to updating you all with more information about this exciting nd – all of the remains are currently with the Osteoarchaeology section for further analysis. This project is also a fantastic example of the different groups involved with searching the foreshore working together and it will be great if there are more projects like this in the future. You will be able to see a film about the discovery on the TDP website shortly.

Nathalie CohenTeam Leader


Latest News Continued...

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Updates

DATABASE & GIS UPDATE You may have noticed that ARK, the Archaeological Recording Kit, is not active on the website at the moment. We have taken it off public access for now so we can get more of the data backlog from the Thames Archaeological Survey uploaded and into a coherent state, ready for use as the unique project archive and research tool for Riverpedia activities.

We know that quite a few of you have expressed an interest in working with both ARK and the Geographical Information Systems aspects of the project and we will be making a more formal call for involvement in the near future.

Sue Harrington GIS Officer

FROG FORUM NOVEMBER 2009

Our rst ever FROG Forum on November 14th 2009 was a huge success. We had a packed morning of lectures, and the afternoon was devoted to the foundation of site-specific Foreshore Recording & Observation Groups. Further details about the site groups and how to get involved are below:


By Nick Bertrand

By Peter Kyte

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FROGS MAKE EARLY SHOWING ON BERMONDSEY FORESHORE In early December, Sunday the 6th, we set off for Jacob’s Island, up river from Cherry Tree Stairs, near Butler’s Wharf, via the concrete quayside at Chamber’s Wharf. Despite the low tide of 0.66m there was no sign of the Neolithic peat. The same was true of the nail scatter at Reed’s Wharf (a boat builders until the late 19c when steel replaced wood, it became a breakers yard, hence all the nails on the foreshore (see pictures below, taken in 1992 and last month). Today not much to see in the way of nails, could be the mooring of domestic barges at this spot has produced currents that have dispersed them down stream?

Luke was more successful in his search for finds at the water’s edge…a man’s razor complete with blade (1990’s), two bottles of Corona beer (unopened), two credit cards (recent), mobile phone (not working), two 18c. pipe bowls and an unused condom…every thing you might need for the weekend! For those who hadn’t been before it was the perfect introduction. We took in newly exposed ship’s timbers, (could be 18th Century), gridirons, causeways, revetments, and wooden quaysides.

We adjourned for our ‘apres foreshore’ to the Angel public house close by. We had lunch in the upstairs room with a panoramic view of the River. A perfect meeting place, we pushed four tables together, had lunch, then spread out old maps and a ten foot join-up of photographs from the 1937 PLA archives published in London's Lost Riverscape, published by The Museum of London. Along this half mile stretch of river, sadly, there only remain a few 19th century warehouses (now expensive apartments), but probably just as well, as during the 18th and 19th century these were cholera infested slums of Jacob’s Island, visited by Charles Dickens and chosen as the venue of Bill Sykes’ death. The pub landlord was intrigued and produced three local history books of his own and an invitation to return at any time. The occasion gave us the opportunity to get to know each other, revealing our enthusiasms and skills that will result in some ne research projects and publications I’m sure. Do let me have your thoughts and ideas. Our next meeting will be at the Southwark Council Local History Library (still in Peckham for the next few months) early in the new year, probably on a Saturday. Will keep you posted. Please email me if you are interested in joining the Bermondsey FROG team! Peter BaistowForeshore Champion, Bermondsey [email protected] 07796 492132


Updates

By Peter Baistow

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CITY OF LONDON FROG

The City FROG is championed by Maggie McDonald who writes “…the group is great: photographers, people just discovering archaeology, someone who lives by the river, people keen to digitise information, working archaeologists, people from COLAS who have worked on these sites and are full of knowledge about their history, and so on. Lots of enthusiasm and the sites are fascinating: an unexcavated boat for the lowest of low tides, a grid, stone steps ideal for geomatics to put pins into, eel sher , and

causeway and so on. We thought a walk over the site would be a good idea as a first outing…” So if that has whetted your appetite for more City of London foreshore, and you’d like to jo in in , p lease con tac t Magg ie by ema i l : [email protected], or leave a message with the TDP and we’ll pass your details on!

CHARLTON FROG

Charlton FROG will be starting with a bang as soon as the weather warms up! Charlton is a little more exposed than the rest of the TDP sites we have visited so far, so we can’t blame them!! For more i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t forthcoming meetings and eldtrips, please get in touch with Steve Giffin, Charlton FROG Champion by email: [email protected] , or leave a message for him with the TDP.

WEST LONDON FROG GET STARTED!

The successful afternoon workshop at the Forum has established the Isleworth & Strand-on-the-Green FROG, with enough enthusiasm to cover much of West London in the future! Our first preliminary site visit to Isleworth will be taking place on Sunday 14th February in the snow and ice (well, we hope not!) and all are welcome to join in. We will be meeting at 9.30am outside the London Apprentice pub on Church Street and having a tootle along the foreshore before meeting at the pub to make plans for the rest of the year. If anyone would like to come along, or is interested in joining the group, the FROG Champion is Margaret Broomfield. Please email her at [email protected] We are especially interested to hear from anyone who would like to do some research on river related topics in the West London area (see the Riverpedia s e c t i o n below for more details).


By Peter Kyte

By Peter Kyte

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CROSS-RIVER FROG

The Foreshore Teams for the different areas are starting to come together now after the successful sessions at the Forum at the end of last year, and it’ll be great to see the same happening for the zones at Putney and Fulham.

The speakers for the afternoon session, Pamela Greenwood, Keith Whitehouse and Phil Emery, are keen to support future FROG work at the sites so please do let me know if you have any ideas for projects and fieldwork.

Following on from the ne examples of the other FROG teams, there are a number of different roles that some of you might like to get involved with – these are for each site: Frog Champions, Field Co-ordinators, Field Assistants, Research Co-ordinators, Research Assistants, Digital Officers, Photographers and so on…

Please email me (Nathalie) if you are interested in getting involved: [email protected]

Nathalie Cohen

Forthcoming Events

FAMILY EVENTS: ARCHAEOLOGY WITH THAMES EXPLORER TRUST

Discover the hidden treasures of the ThamesMeet under the north end of the Millennium Bridge11.30 am — 1.30 pm 7th February & 4th July 2010

To book a place call us on 0208 742 0057Cost: £5 Adult, £3 ChildPlease bring wellies or walking boots & come prepared to get a little muddy.

GUIDED WALK 23/01/10

“A Walk along the Southside”

Join the Thames Discovery Programme for a guided tour of Southwark Cathedral and the foreshore at Bankside on January 23rd 2010. We will meet at the Millennium Courtyard entrance (on the north side of the Cathedral) at 10.00 and spend around an hour at the Cathedral discussing the archaeology and history of the buildingWe will then head to the Globe Stairs, and walk along the foreshore of the south bank. The walk will finish at the Founders Arms PH at about 1.30.

Please note there is a small charge for this event (£2.50 per person, payable on the day) to cover a donation to the Cathedral, and visitors are also advised that there is a further charge payable for photography – please see the Southwark Cathedral website for further details: http://cathedral.southwark.anglican.org/.

Numbers are limited so please email or call Nathalie to book your place.


By N. Cohen

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The Thames Seminar Series Monday evenings 6pm – 7.30pm // January – March 2010 // London Archaeological Archive and Research Centre

18th January A Tale of the Thames: Why is There Archaeology on the Thames Foreshore?Elliott Wragg, Field Officer , Thames Discovery Programme

25th JanuaryThe Dirty Thames: An Adults-only Exploration of the Filthy, Seamier Side of the River ThamesAndy Hawkins, Project Officer , Thames Explorer Trust

8th FebruaryGreenwich Tide Mill: Excavations at Greenwich WharfSimon Davies, Contracts Manager, Museum of London Archaeology

15th FebruaryThe Thames under Fire: on the Frontline of London's BlitzDr Gabriel Moshenska, Research Fellow, Institute of Archaeology, UCL

22nd FebruaryAlong the Black Waterfront: the Black Heritage of the River ThamesS. I. Martin, Author of Incomparable World and Britain's Slave Trade

15th MarchThe Future is Getting Wetter - Dealing with Erosion on the Thames ForeshoreDr Fiona Haughey, Archaeologist, Director Archaeology on the Thames Project

22nd MarchA Right Royal River? A History of The Crown Estate and the River ThamesNeil Jacobson, Head of Coastal Operations, The Crown Estate

29th MarchThe Viking-Age Thames and its Role in War and Civil DefenceDr Stuart Brookes, Research Fellow, Institute of Archaeology, UCL

All lectures held at :

The London Archaeological Archive and Research Centre (LAARC), Mortimer Wheeler House,

Eagle Wharf Road, London N1 7ED

For more information please contact: [email protected] or call 0207 566 9310www.thamesdiscovery.org

NO ENTRANCE FEE AND NO NEED TO BOOK!

Please try to arrive ten minutes early to help avoid any disruption. Tea and coffee will be served.

Produced by duparcdesign

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http://www.thamesdiscoveryprogramme.com

http://www.thamesdiscoveryprogramme.com


RESEARCH AREAS & THEMES

Could you assist us by contributing to one of our own major long-term research projects? There are several of these, including: RIVER CROSSINGS: the story of ferries, ferrymen, their vessels and their associated causeways (what had the greatest impact on them: bridge-building, steam shipping or the railways?) and the development of London's bridges (anyone fancy writing up a study of the 1729 Putney Bridge, for example?) We would like you to compile the histories of each one of London's ferries. Perhaps there is one near you, that you'd like to research?

FROM WOOD & WIND TO STEAM & STEEL: How shipbuilding on the Thames was revolutionised in the 19th century, and the great impact this had on the Thames-side communities, industries and trades. We have wooden shipbuilding sites at Bermondsey, wooden ship-breaking sites at Charlton, and major iron ship-building sites at Millwall and Blackwall, so there's lots to do to put these major foreshore sites into their social, technological and economic context (have your read about Thames-side life in the 1850-60s in Mayhew's books on 'London Labour and London Poor'?).

THE RIVER IN WAR & PEACE: A huge topic and one we hope will attract a number of participants!

A STUDY OF THE THAMES IN THE 1930s, 1940s &1950s. These decades saw the Thames transformed physically, economically and socially in every way. The story of the Thames and its riverside community is arguably the story of London in this most turbulent of periods. We can tap into many of your own memories here, as well as looking at a range of archival material from foreshore sites to news-reel footage. We are looking for more than just a range of contributions: we are actually looking for a TEAM of researchers. Initially, we'd like to see several of you working on studies of the Thames in West London, Central London, or East London in the 1930s, then during WW2, and then in the aftermath, through the 1950s. If we can compare results of this research from these different areas and different decades, the results could be most revealing!

LITTLE SHIPS: We can look at the range of Thames vessels that served at Dunkirk, and the tales of their hastily-manned crews. How many of those vessels are still moored on the Thames, and how many of their crew are still alive today?

DAD'S NAVY: We are all familiar with Dads Army (Home Guard), but less has been written about the ships and crews that were requisitioned for the war effort, the Thames trawlers that were turned over to mine-sweeping duties (often with fatal consequences), the fleets of barges used to store fuel or munitions or to tether barrage balloons; the Londoners who volunteered for mine-watching duties (parachute mines dropped into the Thames to disrupt shipping etc). An interesting topic for an enthusiast!


Building of the Great Eastern 1857National Maritime Museum

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FIRE BOATS & THE RIVER POLICE IN THE BLITZ : The 'Massey Shaw' fire boat still survives: what was its role in the Blitz? What tales do the River Police have from this terrible period? ! They have a fascinating museum and archive at Wapping, in which much might be revealed.

THAMES FLOODS:We would also be keen to see any information on the Thames floods in 1928 and in 1953, and how they impacted on London. Given the vulnerability of London to flooding, we would also be most keen to see how London coped with bombs that breached the river walls in WW2. We can look at the! recently published 'London Bomb Damage' maps and see if we can find evidence for the contemporary repairs to the river wall. It is worth noting that when Teddington Lock was bombed and the flow of the River (and therefore its navigability) seriously altered, the event was not reported officially: such damage was considered too sensitive. Its is therefore quite likely that if river wall was breached by bombing in WW2 somewhere else in London, with a consequent flood-event, this too would have been hushed up for security/propaganda reasons). The evidence, however, might still be visible on the foreshore.....

AFTERMATH:Once the war was over, what happened next?! How different were the Thames and its communities in the 1950s from the 1930s? Physically, it was very different. For example, compare the famous photographic panorama of 1936 with the Bomb Damage maps; so much had changed (not all bad - remember the Festival of Britain site in 1951?)! How long did it take to get the docks working again?! How long did it take to get people housed again?! And how different was the economy and society in 1930 and 1950 in your chosen area?

These topics are by no means exhaustive! This is what RIVERPEDIA is all about; we're here to provide you with basic information, support and direction. Then we'd like to get you talking, get you undertaking research (individually or in groups), get you writing, and then telling us all what you've come up with. It"s down to you....

Gustav Milne - Project Director


Police boat rowing off entrance to London Docks 1890 - National Maritime Museum

Captured German Submarine U15 at Tower Bridge 1919National Maritime Museum

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INDUSTRIES OF SOUTHWARK, BERMONDSEY & ROTHERHITHE

Stephen Humphries Talk to Rotherhithe & Bermondsey Local History Society

25 November 2009

As a newcomer to the Society meetings, I was very impressed with Stephen Humphries’ talk. He was obviously very knowledgeable on his subject and has done a great deal of research over the years. He made his presentation interesting, despite having to cover a long list of industries. I counted in excess of thirty industries, not including docks, canals and railways. There were the old industries such as the rope works, suppliers of anchors, masts and sails; in addition the Thames’ industries of shipbuilding, barge repair, ship breaking and tug companies. His talk was illustrated by a very ne collection of photographs.

The leather and associated industries provided a very good example of how industries were often located near docks and were interrelated, for example the fur trade, wool staplers, tanners, carriers, hat makers and the manufacture of gelatine. Other local industries included big names such as Peak Frean, originally known for their ships biscuits (no doubt they made the ones without the weevils) , Crosse and Blackwell, Nestle and Metal Box Company. Also there were famous engineers who worked in the area in 18th and 19th century, for example the Brunel’s, Rennie’s and a there was a link with the Stephensons. Bermondsey’s industries suffered the fate of many as a result of the decline of the London Docks, greater congestion on the roads and no doubt the opportunity to move to more appropriate sites with plenty of space. Most had gone by the 1960s and the last went in 1970. Hugh Dulley – FROG Member


FESTIVAL OF BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGY 2010

It may be frosty January, but we are already thinking ahead to this year's Festival of British Archaeology, which is running from the 17th July - 1st August. Are you interested in volunteering to give a guided walk on your site? Can you help run a TDP information stand? Would you like to give a talk about your site? Are you interested in children's activities? Do you have any artistic talents you could put to use with the public, and create a FoBA art project? All ideas and offers of help are very welcome! If you are interested, please g e t i n t o u c h w i t h L o r n a : [email protected]

By Peter Baistow

South West India Docks 1880National Maritime Museum

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TDP Newsletter Winter 2010

Documents

Transcript of TDP Newsletter Winter 2010