Can you help solve mystery of Roman fort?

ARCHAEOLOGIST John Wild has spent decades trying to unravel the 2,000-year-old mystery of a Roman fort in Rotherham. Now 87 and partially handicapped, he can no longer dig himself and has asked the Advertiser to help find the solution. Here, he explains w

ARCHAEOLOGIST John Wild  has spent decades trying to unravel the 2,000-year-old mystery of a Roman fort in Rotherham. Now 87 and partially handicapped, he can no longer dig himself and has asked the Advertiser to help find the solution. Here, he explains what he has discovered so far.

LIFE is a collection of jigsaw pieces which, if assembled in the correct order, leads to a perfect existence.

The same applies to history. Legends, myths and historical artefacts supported by historical facts may solve many of our local mysteries.

Is it possible after nearly 2,000 years to suggest there was a Roman fortlet or mansio on Guilthwaite Common?

Take the letter sent by Charles Julius Bertram to Dr William Stukeley, the antiquarian, in 1747 stating that a friend of his had a 14th century document scribed by a Richard of Westminster.

Dr Stukeley was aware that a monk, Richard of Cirencester, worked at Westminster at that time and accredited this work, “De Situ Britanniae” to him. The document showed a series of journeys through Britain, which listed Roman forts, many known but others unknown.

Since the 18th century, antiquarians have queried many aspects of the work and declared it to be spurious.

However, this is a matter of opinion not accepted by others and not by me.

How does “De Situ Britanniae” affect this region? One of the itineraries shows a Roman road from Legiolio (Castleford) to Chesterfield listing a fort AD FINES between the two places.

This fort is scribed as XXIII (23) miles from Castelford. But because of a scribal error this could be XXI miles bringing it on to Guilthwaite.

Thus the first piece of my jigsaw will be a field near Morthen.

Are there any other Roman roads which would join this road?

Luckily in the 1950s, Miss Dorothy Greene excavated a Roman road at Oldcotes running through Kings Wood, Firbeck and onwards to Thurcroft. If, as I suggest, the mansio existed in this Morthen field it would run into the eastern gateway.

However, two roads do not make up the four needed for the ways in and out of a fort. Is there any evidence of a third road?

In the middle of the 1950s another Roman road was discovered at Spa Farm, Treeton. Its course ran south of Guilthwaite Hall and Upper Whiston. It was observed by Miss Greene and myself to be running into the same field at Morthen. This would run into the southern gateway of the fortlet.

On this evidence three roads ran into this field. The fourth, not yet identified, trained on Whiston and probably the Roman fort at Templeborough.

In 1829, Mr W Askham, the master of Eckington School, wrote to Stephen Glover, the local antiquarian, stating that some time earlier he had seen labourers levelling a square enclosure about four miles from Beighton on Guilthwaite Common.

He mentioned seeing a paved area with postholes for tethering horses.

Was he describing a Roman mansio—a stopping place for Romans to change horses and rest overnight? My feeling is that Mr Askham approached the Morthen Field by walking along the Brampton Straight Mile.

Once again the jigsaw pieces fit. But it was not until 1992 that I obtained an aerial photograph of the Morthen area and discovered crop marking in this Morthen field with the south-west corner of a Roman fortlet visible.

That was as far as I could go. I needed local help to survey the site. None was forthcoming.

Frustrated, I wrote to Time Team who became very interested. It appeared they agreed to visit Rotherham but were persuaded to excavate at an ironworks site at Kilnhurst instead of surveying my site.

I am now in my 87th year and semi-handicapped. Forty years ago I would dig and confirm this site as Roman, but after 65 years hunting Roman roads, I can only dream that someone, somewhere with the modern equipment will survey the Morthen field and say, “Old man, you were right!”

There is a wider aspect to this article. If the fort AD FINES is found, does it prove that Bertram’s letter was genuine and other unknown Roman forts could be found.

 If you can help John solve the riddle of the Roman fort, contact the Advertiser newsroom on 01709 768141.

 

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