Community Archaeology in Howden, East Riding of Yorkshire Jayne Rimmer and Jon Kenny, York Archaeological Trust
On the last weekend of September 2014, Jayne Rimmer and Jon Kenny, along with an enthusiastic group of community volunteers, carried out a programme of targeted building recording and geophysical survey in the grounds of Howden Minster. The project was organised by York Archaeological Trust, The Victoria County History (VCH) and Howden Minster, and was funded by the Victoria County History Trust. It was designed in partnership with Professors David Crouch and John Marriott of the University of Hull, who are currently working on the new VCH Yorkshire East Riding volume on Howden and Howdenshire. The aim of the fieldwork was to involve the community in the research for the new volume, as well as to complement and extend David and John’s documentary-based investigations into the development of Howden Minster. The WEA course participants at The Courtyard, Goole
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northern archaeology today
The Team The community group largely comprised local residents from the Goole and Howden area who took part in a Workers’ Educational Association course taught by Jayne and Jon in the summer of 2014. This eight-week introduction to archaeology course was held in Goole and combined classroom-based lectures with practical activities in excavation, remote sensing, finds sorting and historic buildings. Intensive training workshops in geophysical survey, building analysis and recording were also held in Howden. The course participants were from a mixed background with varying degrees of experience. Many were interested in local history and archaeology; several members of the group were researching their family history and the history of their local area. A number were trained artists and some were