Page:Roman Manchester (1900) by Charles Roeder.djvu/69

 (78–85), who then completely cowed the Brigantes. It was probably in his time that Mancunium was made into the impregnable final stone-built stronghold. To guard himself securely against the piratical coast tribes of West Lancashire the Segantii, who nestled in and invested the densely wooded creeks and estuaries of the Ribble, Wyre, and Lune, harassing by land and sea, he threw another close line of forts up from Condate and Manchester to Wigan and Walton for the protection of the Ribble; continuing it viâ Kirkham and Poulton to Fleetwood—the Portus Segantiorum—and another one from Walton to Lancaster to the Lune. This is in all probability the next road in priority; the direct communication to Ribchester and Lancaster (disusing Walton) falls into another scheme, and was meant for a different purpose, when the conquest was carried further north to Scotland for the domination of the Picts and Scots. The other secondary road, such as the one to Buxton, is of later growth and lesser significance, and need not be considered in this place. To sum up, in order of time, we have: (1) The road from Chester, viâ Condate, to Manchester; (2) the double roads to Yorkshire, of which more hereafter; (3) the road to Wigan and the estuaries, probably built by Agricola; (4) the later direct road to Ribchester and the north.

The area of Alport Town proper, as far as Roman discoveries are concerned, has proved barren. The red rock comes pretty close to the surface, little of the original soil is left, and on the Deansgate side it is