Gainsborough Park

Description

Medieval earthworks including a dry moat. This site was initially interpreted as 'Roman intrenchments' but is now thought to be a medieval manorial site. The site lies within the medieval deer park. It is presumably a park-keeper's house or lodge with paddocks, orchards or gardens, and to the north east a small circular building surrounded by a ditch which is possibly a dovecote. The earthworks were destroyed between 1963 and 1967, but were depicted on early large scale Ordnance Survey sheets as comprising a large almost square enclosure, with ditched closes on the same alignment appended to its w and s sides. Immediately to the north west lay a further perhaps ditched or moated platform with ancillary features, all on a slightly different alignment from the first, which may indicate a two-phased development. Traces of these earthworks are visible on aerial photographs. (Lincolnshire HER)

MOATED COMPLEX (SK 836881) at Park House lies against the S parish boundary and within a Medieval deer park (see SK 88 NW 18). It is presumably a park-keeper's house or lodge with paddocks, orchards or gardens, that appear to have continued at least until the end of the 16th century but had evidently been abandoned by c. 1690. At that date the field name was Chappell Garth Close. The earthworks (the subject of an O.G.S. Crawford AP in July 1932) were completely destroyed between 1963 and 1967, but were depicted on early large-scale OS sheets as comprising a large almost square moated enclosure, sufficiently strongly marked to be portrayed on early 19th-century estate maps, with ditched closes on the same alignment appended to its W and S sides. Immediately to the NW lay a further perhaps ditched or moated platform with ancillary features, all on a slightly different alignment from the first. This distinction, also noted by Stark, may indicate a two-phased development. Stark also reports 'at no great distance to the NE...foundations of a small circular building surrounded by a ditch...attributed to Cromwell'. This might coincide with Mill Hill Plantation of OS maps (SK 835884), but might alternatively be a dove cote. No field investigation undertaken (Everson 1982).
The moat and ditched enclosures associated with the park keeper's lodge described by the previous authorities, were visible as earthworks, but subsequently levelled and visible as cropmarks and mapped from good quality air photographs. The moat, 70m by 65m, is more accurately centred at SK 8364 8811. Surrounding the moat on three sides are ditched enclosures, interpreted as a garden or orchard or paddocks. To the north, centred at SK 8365 8823, is an earthwork mound, 10m in diameter, which may be the site of the circular dovecote building described by Everson. (Morph No. LI.693.3.1-3) (Yvonne Boutwood/25-MAY-1995/RCHME: Lincolnshire NMP). (PastScape)

Comments

Good sized moated house site, although arguably not of sufficient strength to be called fortified or of manorial status. Included in Gatehouse because of its listing by Salter.