More information : RR 741 Roman Road. Voreda - Troutbeck.
A road went south-west from Voreda Roma fort (NY 43 NE 2) and its course was described in detail in the 18th century (a) and recently by R L Bellhouse (b).
About a mile from Voreda the road passes the hamlet of Low Street, then just north of Kelbarrow and by a cart track through a large field. The agger is clear just south of the present road, which comes on to the alignment at The Laithes and then it crosses fields to Little Blencow. Beyond Blencow Hall the road follows it for a mile to Greystoke, where a slight turn west is made, and the course is next marked by a cart track along the edge of the plantation. It gradually closes with and then crosses the modern road on to open moorland; it was found to be 18 feet wide, well cambered and metalled, with kerbs of large stones, just before the crossing, but becomes buried upon entering the moor.
Near Whitbarrow it turns west and is almost parallel to the present Penrith - Keswick road, being quite clearly traceable as a well-defined green agger between Whitbarrow and Troutbeck station. It crosses to the south side of the road about half a mile west of the station turning and is then lost, but it seems reasonably certain that it was making for Keswick.
(1)
See Linear Archive File for further details.
(2)
Part of the Roman road in the vicinity of Troutbeck Roman fort (NY 32 NE 5) and temporary camps (NY 32 NE 2, 3 & 4) is visible as earthworks on air photographs. A field survey of the fort and camps also includes sections of the Roman road in the plan. The road survives mainly as an agger and is visible on air photographs for a continuous section 1150 metres in length. This runs from just south of camp 3 (NY 32 NE 2), where it aligned on the east gate of the fort, to approximately 400 metres east of camp 2. To the west of this section is another short section, just south of camp 1 (NY 32 NE 4). West (1a) had interpreted a trackway that traverses camp 1 as being a Roman road, and this interpretation is upheld by Welfare & Swan (6). However, examination of air photographs suggests the form of this single ditched trackway is unlike the rest of the Roman road in the vicinity, and is possibly a Medieval trackway (see NY 32 NE 13). Another possible section of road 470 metres in length (NY 3545 2623 to NY 3578 2655) is visible on photographs (see NY 32 NE 14). It is located near Wallthwaite, where the route of the Roman road had previously been documented (7).
(3-7) |