Monument MPM1875 - Premier Inn site, Queen Street

Evidence of 18th/19th century occupation, and the remains of 18th, 19th and 20th century structures revealed during a watching brief prior to the construction of a new Premier Inn in Queen Street in 2017.

A watching brief in December 2017 revealed evidence of 18th/19th century occupation, and the remains of 18th, 19th and 20th century structures. The latter included a brick cellar to The Camden public house and material recovered from the site of Norreys (Fine Foods) Ltd.

An occupation layer thought to relate to 18th-19th century townhouses which previously occupied the site contained fragments of animal bone, clay pipe and glazed pottery sherds. This layer sealed a possible buried soil deposit which overlay the natural substrate.

Several sections of brick structural features below the modern ground level, including a brick floor, probably related to the construction of Georgian dock worker's houses during the 18th century.

The remains of brick cellar walls relating to 19th century buildings were revealed. These included an almost complete cellar belonging to The Camden public house (originally the Hat in Hand) in the north-eastern part of the site. The cellar walls to The Camden had been lined with dressed limestone blocks which had been whitewashed and decorated with black and white chequered motorsport flags. During the post-war period the cellars had been filled with rubble and material from buildings on the site which had been destroyed by Second World War bombing. The rubble had also been used to level empty spaces left by these buildings.

Material relating to Norreys & Sons Farm Produce Merchants (later Norreys Fine Foods) was uncovered on the site of their former premises in the south-western part of the site. The business operated during the mid-late 20th century, originally occupying post-medieval buildings damaged by Second World War bombing. These structures were replaced by a new building in c1959, which was demolished prior to redevelopment work in 2017. Red granite flooring stamped with 'N & S', canvas signage, and a ledger (ending in 1941) were recovered during the watching brief. The post-war building was represented by a series of perpendicular, intersecting brick walls, which appeared to interact with, and cut, earlier wall sections.

Accession No: 2017/79

Brown, Tony, 2017, Premier Inn Queen Street Portsmouth Hampshire: Archaeological Watching Brief (Unpublished document). SPM508.