Information for record number MWA3454:
King's Newnham Baths to W of Bath Cottage

Summary The site of King's Newnham baths which are of Post Medieval date. Documentary evidence suggests that they were restored during the Imperial period. The remains of the baths are now visible as an earthwork. They were situated 500m east of King' Newnham.
What Is It?  
Type: Baths
Period: Post-medieval - Industrial (1540 AD - 1900 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Kings Newnham
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 46 77
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 The mineral springs of Newnham Regis became of some eminence in the latter 16th century. Camden described them as three springs whose water, of a milky colour and taste, is accounted good against the stone. Dugdale does not refer to them so their vogue seems to have been short, but they are referred to as the 'Bathe Well' as late as 1699.
2 The baths are said to have been restored in 1857 but are now disused. There is no tangible pre-Elizabethan evidence despite the local claim that the site is that of a Roman villa.
3 There are two baths at Newnham Regis, they are of stone construction with steps, drains and water channels also of stone. The smaller of the two is open and is subdivided into two bathing areas. The larger is partly within the present house and partly open, and is also subdivided. The portion within the house is now used as a store and has a 19th century tiled floor. This bath is capable of total immersion. There is evidence of the 19th century restoration, but much of the work appears to be original and very much earlier. Local tradition tells of the 'Roman villa' here, but there is no evidence of any Roman work to be seen. The baths are now disused and dry, but according to the present owner they fill in times of heavy flood.
4 'The house' of reference
3 may Well be 'Bath Cottage'. This house has recently been altered and there are no traces of the remains of the bath. The site of the baths now exists as a series of hollows and banks and there is no masonry visible.
5 An archaeological watching brief on the erection of an extension to Bath Cottage recorded no archaeological features. A sherd of probably 12th/13th century pottery was recovered from the spoil heap.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Victoria County History, vol 6, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Salzman L F (ed)
Date: 1951
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: VI
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: King's Newnham
Author/originator: Rugby School
Date: 1954
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: Corr M S Notes
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: GTD
Date: 1983
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 3439
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Record Card/Form
Title: OS Card 25NE6
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1968
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Watching Brief Report
Title: Kings Newnham, Bath Cottage, Siloam, Rugby
Author/originator: Newman R
Date: 2001
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source OS Card Ordnance Survey Record Card. Before the 1970s the Ordnance Survey (OS) were responsible for recording archaeological monuments during mapping exercises. This helped the Ordnance Survey to decide which monuments to publish on maps. During these exercises the details of the monuments were written down on record cards. Copies of some of the cards are kept at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. The responsibility for recording archaeological monuments later passed to the Royal Commission on Ancient and Historic Monuments. back
source SMR Card Sites and Monuments Record Card. The Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record began to be developed during the 1970s. The details of individual archaeological sites and findspots were written on record cards. These record cards were used until the 1990s, when their details were entered on to a computerised system. The record cards are still kept at the office of the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique Documentary Evidence Documentary evidence is another name for written records. The first written records in Britain date back to the Roman period. Documentary evidence can take many different forms, including maps, charters, letters and written accounts. When archaeologists are researching a site, they often start by looking at documentary evidence to see if there are clues that will help them understand what they might find. Documentary evidence can help archaeologists understand sites that are discovered during an excavation, field survey or aerial survey. back
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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period Roman About 43 AD to 409 AD (the 1st century AD to the 5th century AD)

The Roman period comes after the Iron Age and before the Saxon period.

The Roman period in Britain began in 43 AD when a Roman commander called Aulus Plautius invaded the south coast, near Kent. There were a series of skirmishes with the native Britons, who were defeated. In the months that followed, more Roman troops arrived and slowly moved westwards and northwards.
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period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
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period Imperial 1751 AD to 1914 AD (end of the 18th century AD to the beginning of the 20th century AD)

This period comes after the Post Medieval period and before the modern period and starts with beginning of the Industrial Revolution in 1750. It includes the second part of the Hannoverian period (1714 – 1836) and the Victorian period (1837 – 1901). The Imperial period ends with the start of the First World War in 1914.
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monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument HOLLOW * A hollow, concave formation or place, which has sometimes been dug out. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURE * Use only for features assumed to be archaeological but which cannot be identified more precisely without further investigation .Use more specific term where known back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument FLOOR * A layer of stone, brick or boards, etc, on which people tread. Use broader site type where known. back
monument DRAIN * An artificial channel for draining water or carrying it off. back
monument INDUSTRIAL * This is the top term for the class. See INDUSTRIAL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument VILLA * A term for a type of house, with varying definitions according to period. Roman villas were high-status and usually associated with a rural estate, whereas Georgian and later period villas were often semi-detached, town houses. back
monument WELL * A shaft or pit dug in the ground over a supply of spring-water. back
monument BATHS * A building, usually open to the public, containing a number of areas for bathing. In the case of such a complex containing baths for swimming, also index with INDOOR or OUTDOOR SWIMMING POOL. back
monument SPOIL HEAP * A conical or flat-topped tip of waste discarded from a mine or similar site. back
monument WATER CHANNEL * An artificial watercourse for the conveyance of water. back
monument SPRING * A point where water issues naturally from the rock or soil onto the ground or into a body of surface water. back
monument STEPS * A series of flat-topped structures, usually made of stone or wood, used to facilitate a person's movement from one level to another. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record