Website launched to showcase treasures of Irchester's historical Chester Farm site

The site has been set up by Northamptonshire County Council to tell the stories of the £12.7m Chester Farm project, which has been part-funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Chester Farm has more than 10,000 years of Northamptonshire’s heritage surviving in the landscape, under the ground and in the buildings – not just a Roman walled town but also evidence of settlement from the Mesolithic, Iron Age and Medieval periods together with a complex of 16th to 20th century buildings.

The restoration will take at least two years and Team Chester Farm want to share all the behind-the-scenes stories as they happen.

County council deputy leader Cllr Heather Smith said: “I am delighted that we are able to launch this wonderful website.

“We want to share the stories of this fascinating heritage site and tell people about the journey we are on to open it up for everyone’s benefit and enjoyment.

“Chester Farm is a very rich historical monument and what’s exciting about this particular site is the many layers of history that we have in just one place.

“This is a very important stage of the project and the launch of the website is perfect timing as we uncover more and more detail from the past.”

The launch of the website coincides with the discussion of a report on the future of Chester Farm at a meeting of the county council’s cabinet.

While work is taking place a quarterly newsletter will be issued, with the first edition scheduled for release on April 1.

To visit the website, click here.

Areas covered include Roman history, 18th century gardens, results of research into the historic orchard, aerial photography showing the Roman walled town, a geophysical map, field names from 1756 and the restoration of a wildflower meadow.