Sandon Limekiln

SANDON LIMEKILN

A late 18th-century draw limekiln and flint calcining kiln located on Trent Lane near Sandon.

The structure consists of a red brick pot lined by a packed earth mound, partly encased in coursed sandstone walls. The kiln forms an irregular square on plan, with relatively straight-sided walls to the south and east, though some parts have spread outwards. The walls are approximately five metres tall and lean gently inwards in a pyramidal shape, following the contour of the mound they support.

The entrance, positioned left of centre in the south wall, features a pediment and cornice, with the draw arch opening standing under a brick head. Parts of the west and north walls have been removed, resulting in partial collapse of the earth mound to the west. The bank to the north slopes, reflecting the original ramp used to transport raw materials to the kiln pot opening. The east wall is attached to a red brick outbuilding, probably part of a 19th-century smithy complex. On top of the mound sits the brick opening to the kiln pot, a circular aperture with a recessed ledge.

The kiln is constructed in the traditional manner with a vertical, brick-lined pot for layers of limestone and coal. The pot narrows at the neck for preheating limestone and heat retention, then widens into a shouldered section and a wider central combustion chamber, with a narrower base for deposited quicklime. An inspection or poking hole is located towards the top of the base. Below, a draw hole with a support bar sits above a stone and brick-lined vaulted working area with rounded brick corners. Both the draw hole and poking hole are served by this vaulted space. The intense heat has vitrified many bricks in and around the pot. A raised step leads from the working area into a wider storage space and a south-facing passageway to the entrance. The storage area and passageway form an L-plan, vaulted in brick with stone walls. At the entrance are a threshold stone and a stone pig trough. Interior working spaces have brick floors.

The limekiln was likely constructed in the later 18th century to provide lime for spreading on the agricultural estate land and for building purposes on the Sandon Estate, which had been sold to the 1st Baron Harrowby in 1776. Its canalside location, close to the Trent and Mersey Canal (which runs a short distance north), indicates a post-1776 date and proximity to limestone and coal deliveries. Estate accounts record lime deliveries from 1797 onwards. The kiln probably ceased burning lime around 1850, though it is thought to have continued burning flint until the 1860s. By 1881, it was marked on the Ordnance Survey Map as Old Lime Kiln. Following the closure of the adjacent mill, the kiln was used for pig housing, with the brick floor raised and a stone trough inserted. During the 20th century, the well became infilled and vegetation overgrew the mound. Parts of the north and west rubble stone walls were removed in the mid-20th century. A lean-to shed attached to the south-east corner has since been removed. The vegetation has largely been cleared and the well emptied, with detailed surveys completed and ongoing restoration plans in place.