West Hall, Parvis Road, West Byfleet

Evaluation and watching brief by I Howell and historic building survey by H Robertson of MOLA. The evaluation revealed the northern and southern edges of a water feature shown on maps of 1768, 1801 and 1841, and several red brick footings which appear to have belonged to two phases of greenhouse construction. Groundworks within the area of the water feature were subject to the watching brief, but the majority of these were not deep enough to expose the cut of the feature, and it was not possible to ascertain its function. It was also not possible to determine the date of its origin, but it appeared to have been infilled in the 19th century as a deeper drainage cut within the feature did not reveal any finds earlier than this date. Documentary sources indicate that a house existed on the site by the mid 18th century, and odd alignments in layout and differences of construction materials and technique suggest that several successive additions had been made to form the present house, the earliest of which may have respected an even earlier building that was no longer there. However, the historic building recording found nothing to indicate that the present building appeared to be older than the early 19th century.
Year: 
2011-12
ID: 
2178
NGR: 
TQ055605
Periods: 
Borough: