Proof House Approximately 10 Metres South South West Of Gate House, Marsh Works is a Grade II listed building in the Swale local planning authority area, England. First listed on 14 December 2001. Laboratory.
Proof House Approximately 10 Metres South South West Of Gate House, Marsh Works
- WRENN ID
- spare-cornice-birch
- Grade
- II
- Local Planning Authority
- Swale
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 14 December 2001
- Type
- Laboratory
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Proof House, located approximately 10 meters south-southwest of Gate House at Marsh Works in Faversham, is a disused building from between 1800 and 1810, originally part of the Royal Gunpowder Factory established in 1786. Constructed of brick, it features a pyramidal slate roof.
The building has a square single-cell plan, with a segmental-arched doorway and flanking sash windows. A lantern is situated on the roof to allow light in and fumes out.
The Marsh Works played a significant role in improving British gunpowder production during the Napoleonic Wars under William Congreve, who established a saltpetre refinery in 1789 to enhance the quality of gunpowder ingredients. The proof house, a laboratory for testing gunpowder, was added during the early 19th-century refurbishment of the refinery, making it likely the oldest example of its kind. The refinery was privatized after World War I and closed in the 1920s. The Proof House is associated with the late 18th to early 19th-century saltpetre refinery at Marsh Works, which is noted as the best preserved of its type in the country and comparable to similar facilities in France and Sweden.
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- No related consent applications matched
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
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