York Historic Environment Record

Between the 22nd July and the 12th August 1997, York Archaeological Trust carried out an archaeological investigation at The Fox Public House, Tadcaster Road, Dringhouses on behalf of Bass Taverns Ltd. The site lies some two miles (c.3.25km) south-west of York, on a glacial ridge that runs south from the city centre to Dringhouses, and on to Copmanthorpe and Tadcaster. The area investigated was situated to the rear of 60 Tadcaster Road, a property adjacent to the public house which was incorporated within the renovation scheme. The investigation revealed important evidence for the survival of archaeological deposits from the Roman to the post-medieval periods. The earliest features identified were a Roman ditch, a gully and a pit, dateable to the late first or early 2nd century AD. The gully and the ditch appeared to run parallel to the line of the Roman road between York (Eboracum) and Tadcaster (Calcaria), and may indicate initial division and settlement of the land to the west of it. The gully and the pit were rapidly backfilled and were then covered by a shallow ploughsoil of mid 2nd century date. The agricultural use of the area probably continued until the early 3rd century when a cobbled path was constructed across the site. Flanking its northern edge, a second large Roman ditch was excavated, and to the south two shallow gullies also ran parallel to the path. This routeway may have been laid for access to animal enclosures, out-buildings or a refuse disposal area close by. The track soon went out of use; the evidence for this is a large pit truncating the gullies to the south of the track, and a thick sandy occupation deposit overlying the track itself and deposits at the north-east end of the site. The occupation deposit was cut by a mid/late 3rd century inhumation burial containing an almost complete black burnished ware jar and a copper alloy ring. The burial, although not of high status, is thought to have been of a young adult male, of moderate standing within the community. Stratigraphically later than the burial was a dump of metal working slag, possibly indicating the manufacture of metal objects close by. A ploughsoil of late 3rd or early fourth century date then overlay all deposits within the trenches and the large ditch to the north of the track finally silted up. The ploughsoil was probably reworked in the Anglo-Scandinavian and medieval periods. This was truncated by a large post-medieval pit containing the semi-articulated remains of a cow. Finally a number of modern service trenches, and other modern features relating to the modern use of the site as a public house and a farm and stables truncated earlier deposits. NMR info: RCHME Microfilm Index PRN: 6494. Britannia : a journal of Romano-British and kindred studies Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies 341 30/1999