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The Historic Limekilns of Ceredigion.......
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Lime has been used for building since 7000
BC ( South Galilee, Israel). It was widely used by the Egyptians and
later by the Romans who
invented various mixes including a waterproof lime mortar for use in
aqueducts by including volcanic dust in the mix. In Ceredigion, lime
was not always available and some early builders used earth and clay
between the stones. However, with the advent of a busy coastal shipping
industry
in West Wales, Limestone, and culm - the fuel needed to convert
Limestone into quicklime became two of the more important
imports to the area.
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The restored Lime Kiln at
Cwmtydu beach. |
The soil of much of inland
and upland Ceredigion tends to be thin and acidic -not at all conducive to arable
farming. As a result lime was needed for application to the soil to reduce acidity
and thereby increase fertility. Lime was also very much in demand as
lime mortar for building - lime mortar was used in Ceredigion before
Portland cement was available. It was also needed for Lime wash - the original
whitewash used to paint stone cottages white.
Before the coming of the railways, the
only way to get lime to the west coast of Wales was by ship. The limestone
was brought from Gower and Pembrokeshire by boat. Often, it was
offloaded into the water at high tide and then collected from the
beach when the tide went down.
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or calcium carbonate must be heated to 800 - 900 degrees to drive off
carbon dioxide and leave calcium oxide or quicklime. This process was
achieved in huge masonry kilns with a tapering internal furnace or
'crucible' where alternate layers of limestone and culm were
introduced through the opening at the top. It is said that during the
day they burned with a transparent blue waving flame while
giving off thick acrid yellow smoke. At night they glowed and may have
been useful landmarks for travelers both on sea and land. Some of the
kilns are round (Llangrannog, Cwmtydu
and Mwnt) while others are square (Llanrhystud and Wallog north of
Aberystwyth). I have found no record of the shape of the Cei Bach
kilns. The shapes drawn on the 1840 Tithe map (below) are
indeterminate.
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This
part of the 1840 Tithe map clearly shows a group of 4 Lime kilns where
the present beach path enters the beach (top left) and a group of 2
near Troedyrhiew Farm (right) to the east. Click on the map for a
larger version. |
This is
the remains of a wall or possibly part of one of the lime kilns at the
eastern end of Cei Bach Beach. It was certainly an internal part of a
massive structure |
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At the base of the kiln is
one or more triangular or arch shaped openings leading to a small
aperture or draw hole where the fire could be lit and the finished
lime drawn off. The well preserved lime kiln complex between Llanon
and Llanrhystud was one of the major lime producer in the area with
four kilns, each of which has three draw holes. There were also
several kilns at Cei Bach close to New Quay - the 1840 Tithe map
clearly shows at least six kilns. Unfortunately, coastal
erosion has destroyed the kilns at Cei Bach. All that remains is
the central portion of a single wall - which may or may not be part of
one of the eastern group of lime kilns, stripped of its protective stone
(see photo above).
Examination of the Llanrhystud kilns
shows that both interior and exterior walls were of dressed stone,
while the cavity between was filled with rubble - all that is
remaining at Cei Bach.
Quicklime drawn from the
kilns was sold to farmers who would leave it in small heaps on the
fields to be 'slaked' - to take in water and to be converted to
calcium hydroxide before it could be applied to the land. Without
slaking, the quick lime would have killed anything growing! The slaked
lime was spread at some four tons to the acre.
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The remains of the
circular limekiln at Mwnt near Cardigan |
One of the square kilns
at Llanrhystud |
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At Llanrhystud below the
lime kilns there are the remains of piers constructed in the same manner
as the original pier 'Penpolion' at New Quay with stakes driven into the
beach with stones between them. The stones have long gone though but the
stakes remain. |
Draw hole at Llanrhystud.
The four kilns here are built into the hill so that only three sides
needed to be built. As the top of the kiln is level with the field
above, it was then an easy matter to drop lime and culm into the top
opening. |
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The lime industry in
Ceredigion started in the eighteenth century. However it died out
towards the end of the nineteenth century as the railways proved to be
more cost effective than the coastal shipping trade and as other
fertilizers such as guano became more widely used. By 1900 almost all
the coastal kilns had stopped work.
Storms and erosion have removed all
traces of many kilns including most of those at Cei Bach. Others such
as those at Cwmtydu, Llangrannog and Mwnt
are built well away from the edge of the sea and remain more or less
intact. However, the best un-restored examples remain between Llanon
and Llanrhystud. Presently the kilns are well away from the edge of
the soft clay/rubble cliff. However these cliffs are very vulnerable
to storms and without coastal protection the Llanrhystud kilns could
well be lost within just a few generations. See them while you can.
© Rod Attrill 2003
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