Maltings To West Of Railway Station

TM 12 SE 1874/5/10003

THORPE LE SOKEN STATION ROAD (West side, off) Maltings to west of Railway Station

II

Maltings. Built after 1874 but before 1878 by Robert Free, the maltings innovator, and originally comprising two halves, the western half for the production of crystal malt and the eastern half for pale malt, which are now joined. It is a linear plan maltings with kilns towards the centre of the range. Constructed of yellow brick with red brick dressings and slate roof. Three storeys, the bottom of which is semi-basement, and loft storey; 30 bays. Cambered openings with wooden ventilator windows. Each bay is separated from the next by brick piers with bosses of tie bars. Stringcourse and dogtooth cornice. The main south front has two weatherboarded lucams at attic level, doors (a right hand one with external wooden staircase), and an iron walkway at the east end. Two kilns are in the middle of the range with a steep pyramidal roof surmounted by wooden ventilating towers; a third kiln lies to the rear. Internally it is thought that the steeping pits survive, also the quarry tile malting drying floors, the kilns are reported to have wedge wire floors and the kiln ironwork is said to be by J R M Fitch of Lawford/Manningtree. Each half of the building would have originally operated independedntly. The steeping pits stood at the east and west ends with the material moving towards the kilns, the eastern block a malting in the traditional sense and the western block a crystallised malt plant. Crystal malt is not dried in a kiln but finished in a roasting cylinder, which explains the lack of a traditional kiln in the western part of the building. Malt was steeped over a period of three days in the eastern block and was then laid on the drying floors for a further four days. The kilns were all fired by anthracite and had wedge wire floors. Robert Free was a leading innovator within the industry and later developed the major works at Mistley. No other maltings showing the double use of crystal and pale malt so distinctively are known to survive.

Listing NGR: TM1777921351