Page:Roman Manchester (1900) by Charles Roeder.djvu/82

 Noricians was also placed. The principal buildings, comprising the prætorium, and probably the granary, were about the centre of the station, still indicated by the remnant of a piece of wall, 20 feet long, which has been permanently preserved. The cemeteries followed the margin of the road to Buxton and the stem of the road to Slack and Chester immediately on their issue from the station. Sepulchral monuments on the south side of the Medlock line also the side of the road to Chester. The hypocaust was built on the southern side of the station close to the banks of the river, into which steps were made for access to the water.

The area of the castrum was paved and drained; the south-eastern part, which stood on the rock and was much higher than the north-western part, was levelled with clay and earth. A number of roads issued from the gates—on the eastern side we find the road to Slack (York) and Buxton and to Chester; on the western gate, leading to Woden's Ford or Hulme Bridge, we have the road to Wigan and the estuaries.

From the northern gate, near Collier Street, we can yet trace in part the road to Ribchester, which at Hunt's Bank sends off a branch to Blackstone Edge. Outside the station we have on the east side, between the wall and the ditch, some important and large buildings that were connected by a paved road with the hypocaust. On the north side of the castrum, rectangular to the Ribchester road, a number of parallel streets were built, reaching up to Camp Street and probably even to Quay Street, the occupied area being defined to the west by Lower Byrom Street. This part of the suburbs was most likely used by the soldiers and traders.