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Limestone has been an important resource for several centuries since post-medieval times. Today, for example near Buxton, Hope, Stoney Middleton, Ballidon and Cauldon, it is still quarried in large quantities, mainly for aggregate and to produce cement.

Traditionally limestone quarrying has not only provided building stone for houses, outbuildings and walls, but more importantly for limeburning.

Lime has been burnt on an industrial scale and sold for a variety of purposes from the 17th century onwards. It was vital as one of the main constituents of lime mortar for building; huge quantities of which were used in the growing towns and cities. Similarly it found increasing uses in a variety of chemical processes and was sold for agricultural use, to reduce soil acidity.

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Early Industrial Limeburning

Early industrial limeburning concentrated to the north-west around Buxton, Dove Holes and Peak Forest. Other early production is known to have taken place at Bradwell, Stoney Middleton, Calver, Ashover and Cauldon. However, the north-western sites were pre-eminent, having the advantage of nearby coal sources essential for burning the limestone, and because the kilns here were the closest limestone source to a major consumer market centred on Manchester.

Some of the earliest lime kilns are at Dove Holes, which were operating from at least the mid-17th century.

An aerial view of Dove Holes, showing the extensive industrial limeburning remains, with overlapping quarries, kilns and waste heaps, which date to the 17th and 18th centuries

The largest early centre of limeburning was at Grin Low, south-west of Buxton, where the Dukes of Devonshire promoted large scale production on their land in the 18th century, using coal from the estate coal mines nearby at Goyt’s Moss and Axe Edge. They also owned a second large limeburning complex at Peak Forest.

One of the industrial-sized limekilns at Grin Low.

In all the pre-19th century limeburning complexes, the quarries are shallow and the limestone was burnt in kilns set in circular earthen mounds. The quarries are normally upslope of the kiln and there are large waste heaps of ash, slag and burnt coal on the downslope side. When production carried on over a long period there is a large number of kilns as it was better to build a new kiln rather than transport the limestone over greater distances.

A schematic plan of the early industrial limekilns and quarries between Peak Forest and Sparrowpit.

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Later Industrial Limeburning

In the late 18th century the Dove Holes area was linked to the lowland canal network via the Peak Forest Tramway, which ran up a long incline to the Buxworth Basin.

From this date onwards much limestone rather than lime was transported, to be burnt in large banks of vertical masonry kilns at various places along the canal side. However, this did not stop local lime production and in the early 19th century the kilns at Grin Low were linked to the lowland markets by the Cromford and High Peak Railway, while later rail lines serviced the Dove Holes quarries. Quarrying around Buxton and Dove Holes has thus flourished to the present day. In contrast, the Peak Forest kilns were abandoned in the early 19th century.

With the advent of railways and better road networks, limeburning on an industrial scale was also developed elsewhere in the Peak, as for example in the Wye Valley at Millers Dale, and at Cauldon Low to the south-west.

An impressive bank of 19th century limekilns just east of Millers Dale Station.

There are also banks of kilns at the Peak Forest Tramway terminal at Buxworth where there are impressive restored canal basins.

Once the exact place of quarrying was fixed by access to railway sidings and other high-cost infrastructure, deeper rather than widespread shallow quarries were established and more-permanent kilns built, usually as high banks of stone-faced structures that could be run continuously except when periodic relining was required.

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Farm Kilns

Lime was used agriculturally both as a defoliating-agent when land was first taken in from common and also in smaller quantities to reduce soil acidity.

On many farms small agricultural limekilns can still be seen within fields on the limestone plateau and occasionally beyond, although many others have gone with the filling of quarries and demolition of the kilns to create easily-managed fields. They mainly survive in the more obscure corners of farms or in inaccessible locations on steep slopes. Often they were set within small circular mounds, now with a central hollow at the site of the kiln pot, with a small quarry on the upslope side. Others are low oval structures that were filled with limestone and coal and then clamped with earth before firing.

The hollow in front of this small quarry is a typical field kiln, at Rose Farm, Priestcliffe, created by the local farmer to make his own lime to spread on the adjacent fields.

Sometimes, larger farm kilns are faced with drystone walls on the downslope side; these kilns are sometimes of the continuous-running type. While smaller and often earlier kilns were fired only once before being emptied, these 19th century kilns could be fed at the top once lit, with lime drawn from the base, and run until enough lime was produced.

A typical farm kiln on Perryfoot Farm near Peak Forest, with the low hillocks of Gautries Rake lead mining in the woodland behind. Limestone and coal were clamped in the central oval hollow, fired, and the lime then dug out.

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What you can do

Although many old limestone quarries and kilns have no public access, there are notable exceptions. While abandoned quarries sometimes can be easily inspected, it should be remembered that there are inherent dangers in exploring them and care must be taken. For more information on visiting archaeological sites in the Peak District

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