Covent Garden Village, Stockport, Greater Manchester: Archaeological Desk-Based Assessment

Prior to the submission of a planning application for a proposed residential development to be known as ‘Covent Garden Village’, Greenlane Archaeology was commissioned to carry out a desk-based assessment. The assessment was carried out in August and September 2015 and included a site visit.

The site is situated south-west of the junction of Lower Hillgate and Wellington Street, in an area that perhaps saw development from the medieval period but which grew substantially during the 18th and 19th century. There are other, earlier finds of both late prehistoric and Roman date from the wider area; Stockport is considered to have been located on an important crossing of the River Mersey, but the bulk of the early activity seems to have been north of the study area. The map regression revealed that the site saw at least some development by 1680, but it was during the early 19th century that the bulk of the area was infilled, primarily with housing and industrial structures, but also with a very large Sunday school and a Methodist chapel with associated grave yard. Some substantial alterations to the site were evident during the late 20th century, primarily comprising the demolition of 19th century buildings. The site visit revealed that the central part of the site had been redeveloped in the late 20th with the construction of new housing, but that the rest of the area was relatively undeveloped, comprising a series of car parks and open spaces.

The full report will be made available on the Archaeology Data Service website.