EWX1905 - Bridport Tannery, Rope Walks, Bridport; observations and recording 1998

A watching brief was carried out on the site of the Bridport Tannery, Rope Walks, Bridport, during redevelopment in 1998. The watching brief covered the original site of the tannery, plus the backlands of the properties to the south The site had been heavily disturbed by the 19th century tannery and a number of walls, a cellar, a wooden conduit system and a tanning pit were revealed. Three medieval pits and several post-medieval pits were also recorded (1). The site lies on the line of the postulated northern town ditch of Saxon Bridport. However, no trace of a ditch crossing the site was observed. Although the site was disturbed, it was thought unlikely that all traces of a large ditch would have been destroyed had it crossed the site (1).