The former Acme Marls site in Burslem, which opened in 1932, produced kiln furniture for the industry such as shelves and saggars. Marls was bought out in 2000 by J&J Dyson and production was moved away from the Bourne Bank site. The factory was largely demolished years ago but there are a few bits left to see and is well worth a visit if you're interested in the pottery industry.
The site around the time of closure in 2000;
The site around the time of closure in 2000;
The main attraction here are the 3 last surviving 'down-draught' bottle kilns which are Grade II listed - interesting to see a planning application for residential use taped to a nearby lamp post. Unsure how the kilns would fit in to such an area?
There was evidence of squatting inside the kilns, but he looks to have been recently ousted after a tidy up by the council.
A smaller kiln inside
Over the road from the kilns sit a few remaining buildings used by Acme Marls, although the date stone on the outside read 1880 so I imagine it's part of an even older works
There wasn't much to see inside, but it was quite photogenic in a crumbling Victorian pottery kind of way
One thing of interest was spotted after taking a quick look into the very flooded basement - huge piles of unglazed spoils poking out of the water, since Acme Marls didn't produce this I can only assume another company used some of the buildings for a time after..?
There was evidence of squatting inside the kilns, but he looks to have been recently ousted after a tidy up by the council.
A smaller kiln inside
Over the road from the kilns sit a few remaining buildings used by Acme Marls, although the date stone on the outside read 1880 so I imagine it's part of an even older works
There wasn't much to see inside, but it was quite photogenic in a crumbling Victorian pottery kind of way
One thing of interest was spotted after taking a quick look into the very flooded basement - huge piles of unglazed spoils poking out of the water, since Acme Marls didn't produce this I can only assume another company used some of the buildings for a time after..?
good stuff
