Monument record WSF 056 - Henry Watsons Potteries, Pottery Hill

A program of archaeological evaluation, excavation and monitoring was carried out on land that was formerly a part of the family run business Henry Watson's Potteries at Pottery Hill, Wattisfield, in advance of housing development. The bulk of the site did not contain any archaeological deposits and had evidently been open land until being covered by a modern clay dump. The remainder of the site had formerly been occupied by a 19th century yard and bottle kiln bordered by three ranges of buildings. Subsequent changes saw a still extant kiln built in 1940/41 and then a modern factory after a devastating fire in 1963. Fieldwork identified traces of the 19th century buildings but showed the bottle kiln had been wholly removed. Two previously unknown structures were located, the first being the possible base for a 19th century kiln. This has been preserved in situ. The second structure, a quadrant of a circular brick pad, was of unknown date and function. The main area of excavation identified the flues of a drying floor connected to the still standing down-draught kiln and chimney constructed in 1940/41. Following the fire in 1963 these flues were infilled and covered by the new factory concrete floor. These have also now been preserved in situ. Post-excavation work relied heavily upon material provided by Mr Jeremy Watson and this has demonstrated the potential for a full study of the history of pottery manufacture on the site using the private archive of the Watson family (S1).