It's funny how some places are right on your doorstop, and you tend to overlook them!
Beer Quarry is the younger brother of the Beer Quarry caves, (now a tourist attraction http://www.beerquarrycaves.fsnet.co.uk/BEERQU~1/Beer_Quarry_Cx.html), which were originally first cut by the Romans, and still used up until the 1920’s.
The ‘newer’ quarry started life around 1885, producing crushed rock, agricultural Lime, and top quality stone which was easy to mine, and that can be sawn or squared in any direction due to the uniform structure of the rock.
Freshly quarried it is easy to carve but hardens on exposure to the air, turning a beautiful creamy white colour. The stone from Beer has been used in Church construction as well as halls and castles. The stone has been found in Saxon and Norman churches, and buildings like Westminster Hall and Abbey, the Tower of London, Winchester Cathedral and Exeter Cathedral.
ARC used the mine, and then Hanson, however, I cannot find how long it has been abandoned.
The site itself comprises of a very large opencast mine area, which was used for general building Limestone, and the underground section, which produced the higher quality stuff.
Buildings on the site comprised of a portacabin office/weighbridge building, two storage sheds, and a workshop.
Originally explored with Urbanity, and followed up on my own!
A few photo’s:
The main opencast mine area, now overgrown
Open storage sheds
One complete with conveyor in the roof space
Office and Weighbridge
Entrance to the underground mine
Some kind of loading chute, covered with Limestone Stalactites
Large brickwork columns have been added, to help stop the roof collapses;
The workshops provided a few things of interest
Used shotgun pellets for keeping the wildlife at bay!
In the middle of the main workshop was this random boat...only about a mile from the water!
Thanks for looking,
C.
Beer Quarry is the younger brother of the Beer Quarry caves, (now a tourist attraction http://www.beerquarrycaves.fsnet.co.uk/BEERQU~1/Beer_Quarry_Cx.html), which were originally first cut by the Romans, and still used up until the 1920’s.
The ‘newer’ quarry started life around 1885, producing crushed rock, agricultural Lime, and top quality stone which was easy to mine, and that can be sawn or squared in any direction due to the uniform structure of the rock.
Freshly quarried it is easy to carve but hardens on exposure to the air, turning a beautiful creamy white colour. The stone from Beer has been used in Church construction as well as halls and castles. The stone has been found in Saxon and Norman churches, and buildings like Westminster Hall and Abbey, the Tower of London, Winchester Cathedral and Exeter Cathedral.
ARC used the mine, and then Hanson, however, I cannot find how long it has been abandoned.
The site itself comprises of a very large opencast mine area, which was used for general building Limestone, and the underground section, which produced the higher quality stuff.
Buildings on the site comprised of a portacabin office/weighbridge building, two storage sheds, and a workshop.
Originally explored with Urbanity, and followed up on my own!
A few photo’s:
The main opencast mine area, now overgrown
Open storage sheds
One complete with conveyor in the roof space
Office and Weighbridge
Entrance to the underground mine
Some kind of loading chute, covered with Limestone Stalactites
Large brickwork columns have been added, to help stop the roof collapses;
The workshops provided a few things of interest
Used shotgun pellets for keeping the wildlife at bay!
In the middle of the main workshop was this random boat...only about a mile from the water!
Thanks for looking,
C.
