Vol 55

24 Eileen M Bowlt.^^.Fig 6. Moorhall, Harefield, photographed in 1911. These buildings were owned by the Knights Hospitallers of St John ofJerusalem until the Reformation. The 13th-century flint hall on the left became a bam and the hall house on the right, datingin part from the early 14th century, became a farmhouse. The house was burnt down in 1922 and the bam was demolishedby order of the local authority in 1961.and the Treaty House featured on the Uxbridgetrip. The Panorama and the 17th-centurytrade tokens were displayed in the library, butthere was no time to visit Denham, Moorhall,Harefield, Ruislip, and Swakeleys as well.One reason for this change is that ourpredecessors concentrated their studies upon'important' buildings and 'notable' inhabitantsof the various neighbourhoods and had lessinterest in early economies and ways of hfe thanwe have. Although there was a great desire tosee artefacts, little attempt was made to placethem in context. With recent developmentsin both archaeology and local history, there isnow much more to appreciate about the markettown of Uxbridge than was then realised. Muchhas been lost there in the way of timber-framedbuildings, but much has been discovered byarchaeologists. 'Digs' between the River Colneand the Canal and behind the High Street inrecent years have revealed important prehistoricsites, including the nationally important ThreeWays Wharf Upper Palaeolithic site, and themedieval layout of the burgage holdings. Manyof the timber-framed buildings in Cross Streetand in the alleys off the High Street were notin good condition in Victorian times, had neverbeen of high status, and were little more thanslums in 1861 and therefore did not catch theattention of antiquarians.Similiarly with Ruislip the historically importantbuildings at Manor Farm, such as the GreatBarn (dendrochronological date 1293), andthe earthworks now scheduled as an ancient