The Big Dig Project Exhibition

Unearthing Stories from the Past

This exhibition shares the discoveries made during The Big Dig—fragments of pottery, tools, and traces of buildings—that reveal how landscapes have been shaped by human hands across centuries. Each find adds a piece to the puzzle, connecting us with the people of the past and helping us understand how their lives influenced the world we live in today.

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Eastbourne: From Prehistory to the Seaside Town

Archaeology reveals that Eastbourne’s story stretches back thousands of years, long before it became known as a Victorian seaside resort. Excavations and projects such as the Big Dig have uncovered traces of farming, industry, and settlement that shaped the landscape and the communities who lived there.​

Eastbourne’s Historic Character areas and Big Dig Finds

The Eastbourne Big Dig explored sites across the town, uncovering layers of history that reveal how people lived, farmed, and built communities over thousands of years. Test pits were dug by Eastbourne residents in 12 of Eastbourne’s 16 Historic Character Areas, showing just how much of the past survives beneath today’s streets and gardens.​​

Some people of Eastbourne

In the Eastbourne records we come across many interesting descriptive names but we also find compelling stories such as that of Thomas the Weaver and John the Skinner, who in 1248, threw themselves on the mercy of the Church after being involved in a theft. We will never know the details, but we do know that John confessed to the crime and was exiled from the Kingdom…but did the punishment fit the crime?​

Pathways through time

Holloways, ancient sunken lanes worn deep into the earth by centuries of use are living connections to our past, telling stories of movement, trade and daily life. Holloways and droveways formed part of a wider network of trackways and paths in this area, connecting communities and the agricultural, economic and cultural resources available for 1000s of years.​​

The Downs as Home

These droveways and other paths journeying across the South Downs would have been used by people in Gypsy and Traveller communities for 100s of years. Janet Keet-Black, Gypsy historian and author of Gypsies of Britain who worked with Changing Chalk as a consultant, helping with the archival material and community mapping, has identified one stopping place on the downland path from East Dean Road, Eastbourne used around 1900. The Hilden Family was one of the families who stayed at this stopping place.​

Shared Paths, Shared Stories

We know of another family from the Gypsy and Traveller community who stayed at a stopping place in the Crumbles area of Eastbourne. Mary Ann Beeney was born in Biddenden, Kent in 1855 and her parents, Absalom and Priscilla later had four more children – Ruth, Celia, Samuel and George - whilst travelling around the Kent and Sussex area.

Archaeology in Peacehaven

Residents and schools in Peacehaven also excavated test pits in their gardens and as well as uncovering the archaeological stories of their gardens we were able to explore some of the archaeology previously uncovered in the area.