Burscough Roman Fort

Burscough Roman Fort was a c.1st century AD auxiliary fort near what is now Burscough, West Lancashire [1]. The site of the fort has an area of 30,000m² and was built in at least two phases [1]. Several internal structures have been identified through geophysical survey including an eastern gateway with two gate towers, and multiple sandstone buildings which have been identified as granaries or barracks [1]. Beam slots and hearths have also been identified, suggesting some industrial usage [1]. An initial auxiliary fort was built with a later fortlet built on its eastern side [1]. The site was inhabited at various intervals until at least the mid-4th century AD [1]. The site was identified in the Tithe map of 1846 as 'Castle Field', likely with reference to its history as a former Roman fort [1]. In 2018, the presence of a fort of at least two phases was confirmed by an electrical resistance survey, and in 2020 an assessment by Historic England using Google Maps and Lidar imagery showed that the fort was visible as crop marks [1].