Twenty-five volunteers uncovered the rare, enclosed Deepdale Bridge Settlement in England’s Lake District, revealing a community that lived there from the late Iron Age into the Roman period, about 2,000 years ago. Finds include roundhouse remains.
Charcoal dating places one roundhouse’s occupation between A.D. 76 and 216; the enclosure bank was built sometime between 40 B.C. and A.D. 118. Excavators also found a timber doorway, internal dividers and a cobbled yard probably used for animals, plus evidence of spelt wheat and barley. Changes to the roundhouse suggest residents adapted and reused it over generations.
The wider survey began in 2024 and has examined 150 sites across the valley. The National Park Authority said few enclosed Lake District settlements have been archaeologically investigated, and fewer still have confirmed dates. Volunteers’ 2026 work includes an excavation at Lanthwaite Green near Crummock Water.
