Beehive Lime Kiln is a Grade II listed building in the South Oxfordshire local planning authority area, England. First listed on 11 July 2000. Lime kiln. 1 related planning application.
Beehive Lime Kiln
- WRENN ID
- fallen-latch-spindle
- Grade
- II
- Local Planning Authority
- South Oxfordshire
- Constituency
- Henley and Thame MP: Freddie van Mierlo (LD)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 11 July 2000
- Type
- Lime kiln
- Address
- Beehive Lime Kiln, Rugby Cement Works, Chinnor, OX39 4AY
- OS grid reference
- SP 756 001
- Coordinates
- 51.69462, -0.90738
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Beehive Lime Kiln is a flare-kiln for lime burning, built in 1908. It is constructed of brick and stands about 6 metres tall, featuring a bottle or bee-hive shape. This kiln is the last remaining one of five similar kilns, as the others have been demolished. The dome of the kiln rises from a brick base and includes a large semi-circular arch on the northwest side, which contains a loading door. There are remains of another round arch on the southwest side, a blocked doorway on the northeast side, and three stoking holes on the southeast side.
Inside, the kiln has iron fire-grates and three internal flues in the floor. The kiln was part of Chinnor Lime Works, established by W.E. Benton in 1908 at the foot of the Chiltern escarpment for producing lump lime for agriculture and construction. In 1919, a small cement plant was developed nearby, alongside the five flare-kilns, which produced up to 240 tons of lime per week until production ceased in 1938.
Local climate
Beehive Lime Kiln sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 730 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 79% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 82% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 39 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 75% of listed buildings. Of these, 18 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- Related listed building consents — 1 application
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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