LEGEOLIVM. Castleford.
Here the Hermen-street passes the river Aire, remarkable for its smooth face and gentle current: it is broad and deep withall; navigable hither: thus the river Arar, synonymous in Gaul. The place where the Roman ford was, is a little above the cascade: the stones are in great part left, but the mill-dam lays it too deep under water. Hence the paved road goes up the bank to the east side of the church, and forward through the fields, where innumerable coins are ploughed up: one part is called Stone-acre. A man told us he had formerly ploughed up a dozen Roman coins in a day: urns are often found: there are stone pavements, foundations, &c. South of the church is a pasture, called Castle garth: here were buildings of the city; but the Roman castrum was where the church now stands, built probably out of its ruins: it is very high ground, and included the parsonage-house, gardens, &c. the low ground of the ditch that incompassed it is manifest. The country people have a notion of its being an old city, and of the Roman road crossing the meadows by this ford; and of great seats and palaces having been here formerly. Here is a sweet meadow, north of the river, of great extent. There is a ditch a little west of the old castle, which I take to be some later work. Great coal-works here. The Romans ran the Hermen-street through this country as much to the west as they reasonably could, to obtain fords over the numerous rivers; because they avoided ferries and bridges, as troublesome, and wanting frequent reparation. Much dane-weed, or wild elder, grows here.