Eyemouth, Brown's Bank, Eyemouth Boatbuilding Company, Offices

NT 94489 64009 Browns Bank initially began as a row of three dwellings built in the second half of the 19th century, the buildings first appear on the 2nd Edition OS map of 1899. In the first half of the 20th century, the building was changed from dwellings to offices and stores for the boatyard. At this point, the interiors were heavily altered and converted. A large section of the first floor had its original partition walls removed to create a large open plan space. This space became the boatyard lofting room; it contained the rare survival of a large, tiled floor with an incised grid pattern onto which the outlines of new boats would be drawn.

Prior to the groundworks for the extension a toilet block that

once occupied the area was demolished. This was recorded as part of a standing building survey. The earliest part of the construction of the toilet block was observed to be sandstone and mortar built with later brick additions. The toilet was considered to likely be reusing a surviving remnant of the former range of buildings that extended out in that direction, and the wall identified in this phase of work was probably part of that range of buildings too. The drain was probably external to the buildings but likely associated with drainage around them.

Following unmonitored construction works for an extension to the rear of the office and store buildings, an alternative programme of mitigation, including recording of the southeastern section of the excavation required for the extension and the excavation of a trench within the footprint of the extension, was agreed with Scottish Borders Council Archaeology Service.

The results of the work suggested that the area had previously been stripped to the natural subsoil and levelled prior to being built on. A wall stub and a rubble drain were identified during the excavation. Given these results, and the fact that the toilet block was likely part of the former range of buildings and was recorded in the building survey, it is considered that the lack of a watching brief probably did not result in the removal of any unrecorded elements of the structures of interest.

Archive: NRHE (intended) and report lodged with local HER Funder: Eyemouth Marine Ltd

Michael Cressey, Graeme Carruthers and Magnus Kirby – CFA Archaeology Ltd

(Source: DES Volume 23)