In 1929 many old buildings were demolished to make way for the Wire Street Arcade. Demolitions also occurred at Smith's Yard and Albion Court. Besides the trenches cut for foundations of the arcade there was an extensive lowering of the surface over much of the area. These operations were observed by Mr E.J. Rudsdale for the Museum.<1> The main discovery was the Roman Street, south of which lay the remains of Roman houses at a depth of 4ft. A plan of Rudsdale's observations is reproduced in Hull's 'Roman Colchester'.<2>

Metalling from this street was also exposed during excavations at 7-15 Long Wire Street in 1979. The street seems to have been re-aligned at some stage, this event was thought to have happened no earlier than the late 3rd century and was presumably to allow the enlargement of the Public Building to the north. However the succession of buildings in the south-east angle of the cross-roads seems to point to a re-alignment of the adjacent east-west street by the time of the construction of CAT building 145 (MCC1122). This would place the realignment around 150AD, substantially earlier than previously thought.<3>

The evidence for the eastern stretch of this kinked road is inconclusive. However, Wire's diary records, 'Visited the sewerage works, Queen Street and purchased some Samian ware bottoms...the workmen told me a paved way had been come upon about three feet below the surface near no.27 (Hull says this would be approximately in line with the late Roman street to the west) and that higher up a floor of Roman bricks each 18" wide 8" long and 1.5" thick, which was broken up'. <4><5>