EDO4166 - Eldridge Pope Brewery Site, Weymouth Avenue, Dorchester, Evaluation Trench 2.

Wessex Archaeology undertook an archaeological evaluation on land within the area of the former Eldridge Pope Brewery on the south side of Dorchester. Five machine-dug test pits and two trenches, one 6m and the other 20 m in length, were excavated at various points, according to access, to provide an assessment of deposits across the site and any likely levels of truncation. Trench 2, a machine dug test pit measuring 2m x 2m, was located towards the SW corner of the site. 1.6m of made ground, principally chalk rubble, overlay the undisturbed natural soil profile. This probably arose from a need to raise the general ground level during the construction of the railway. The soil below was a dark grey/brown silty clay loam ploughsoil, 0.3m thick, overlying red/brown silty loam subsoil with occasional flints. The natural chalk surface was reached at approximately 68.4m OD.