The Green Man Public House, Arlesey Road, Ickleford, Hertfordshire. Field evaluation (OASIS ID: heritage1-246596)

In response to a planning condition on the redevelopment of land at the former Green Man Public House, Ickleford, Hertfordshire, the Heritage Network was commissioned by the developers to undertake a programme of archaeological investigation. A desk-based assessment of the site revealed that the earliest known reference to the Green Man was in 1788. A smithy was attached to the pub by the mid 19th century. The original building was demolished and rebuilt slightly closer to the road in 1970-71. Cartographic evidence has demonstrated that the car park remained undeveloped from at least the mid 18th century until the later 20th century. Two trial trenches, each measuring 15m long by 1.8m wide, were excavated across the footprints of the proposed new dwellings in the area of the former pub car park. Their sections demonstrated a substantial amount of modern made-ground sitting directly over the natural. It appears that the topsoil was completely removed and the entire site infilled with a modern levelling deposit, as a bedding layer for the car park. A modern land drain was exposed in Trench 1, but no significant archaeological features, deposits or finds were encountered during the course of the investigation.