Irchester

History[edit]

Irchester was spelt Yranceaster in 973 and Irencestre in the 1086 Domesday Book. A. D. Mills wrote that name was formed from the Old English personal name Ira or *Yra with the suffix ceaster denoting a Roman station,^[2]but another theory is that Iren Ceastre was an Anglo-Saxon name meaning "iron fortress".^[3] In the 11th century, it was spelt Erncestre or Archester and had evolved to Erchester by the 12th century.^[4]

Chester Farm[edit]

Chester Farm is one mile (1.6 km) north of the village of Irchester, with the A45 road to its south and the River Nene to the north. The area "represents a unique piece of historic landscape of high importance... preserving in a small area a wide range of historic features spanning several thousand years"^[5] and is a scheduled monument protected by law.^[6] Mesolithic flints have been found, with signs of later prehistoric settlement and a "nationally important" walled Roman town.

The Roman name of the settlement has been lost, but evidence has been found of many buildings, a cemetery, occupation outside the town walls, and a causeway across the Nene floodplain.^[5] A Romano-Celtic templewas recorded inside the town boundary. Square-shaped, it faced south-east; its outer portico measured 38 feet (11.5 metres) square and the inner cella about 17 feet (5 metres) square. The walls were around two feet (0.6 m) thick. The tombstone of a Strator Consularis - 'a transportation officer of the consular governor' - was also found at the town,^[7] and an inscription found at Irchester suggests evidence of an organised horse breeding operation.^[8]

A road through the middle of the site (running north-south) and three rectangular buildings to the west of the road have been identified. As only one Roman road has been found leading away from the site, to the south, it is "highly likely" that the river was used as a means of transport and communication with other Roman settlements at Duston, to the south-west, and Thrapston, to the north-east.^[7]

Next to the Roman walled town, there are remains of the medieval hamlet of Chester by the Water (which may have existed since Anglo-Saxon times) and the later Chester House and Farm which had gardens and parkland. In the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, ironstone quarrying took place to the south-west of Chester, but most of the site avoided serious damage. The tramways and other industrial artifacts have since become "historically important" in their own right.^[5]

In 2004, Northamptonshire County Council received a grant of £1.2 million^[9] from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (now the Department for Communities and Local Government) and purchased Chester Farm, including the walled Roman town and the deserted medieval village of Chester on the Water. Wellingborough's Local Plan states that "planning permission will be granted for a heritage park in association with the archaeological remains of the Chester camp ancient monument"^[10] as part of the planned River Nene Regional Park. The aims of the development of the park are to make Chester Farm accessible to the public and provide opportunities for education, leisure and recreation. However, the park plan stalled, due to the lack of "a viable business plan and subsequent pressure on resources."^[5] A county council report of November 2007 stated that "In order to safeguard the heritage asset, Cabinet is asked to... declare Chester Farm surplus to the operational requirements of the Council and to approve its sale."^[11] Subsequently, in 2010, the farmhouse was gutted by fire.^[12]

In 2013, the Chester Farm site received £4m from Heritage Lottery Fund to open it to the public. The site is owned by Northamptonshire County Council. The project will include an archaeological resource centre. The 17th century farmhouse on the site was badly damaged by a fire in 2010. The council received a £1.9m insurance payout for repairs. The lottery money will be used to build a classroom, a conference space and an archaeological resource centre. The site is partially open to the public with car parking to the West of the site. ^[13][14]