History: Rediscovering Welbeck Hill Anglo Saxon Cemetery

North Lincolnshire Museums has recently acquired the archive from an Early Anglo-Saxon Cemetery at Welbeck Hill in Irby on Humber. The cemetery was excavated by the late Gordon Taylor, an amateur archaeologist between 1962 and 1979. The excavation identified 72 inhumations and 5 cremations, dating to the Early Anglo-Saxon period, c. AD 425-650.

The cemetery was discovered in 1962 when ploughing on agricultural land disturbed the burials, attracting the attention of Mr. Taylor. With the agreement of the landowner, Mr. Taylor started to excavate, and over subsequent seasons worked with archaeologists from the then Scunthorpe Museum (now North Lincolnshire Museum), as well as others including students, to excavate the cemetery. The excavations identified three burial areas, all dating from the mid-5th century to the 6th century: north-south along the hill crest, east-west on the hill’s western slope and a deposit of cremations on the eastern slope. The cemetery went out of use in the late 6th or early 7th centuries.

The resulting archive was kept together by Mr. Taylor, who had plans to publish the excavation, which unfortunately did not come to fruition before he died in 2017. Staff at North Lincolnshire Museum are now planning the completion of the research and publication of this important cemetery archive.