Information for record number MWA8917:
Earthwork remains of quarry activity at Burton Dassett Hills

Summary The site of ironstone workings and a mineral railway at Burton Dassett Hills. Extraction was for both the stone and the iron ore. Extraction began around 1868 and continued intermittently until the 1920s.
What Is It?  
Type: Ironstone Workings, Mineral Railway, Quarry, Steam Engine, Aerial Ropeway
Period: Modern - Modern (1868 AD - 1921 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Burton Dassett
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 39 52
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Picture(s) attached

 
Description

 
Source Number  

1
2 The ironstone quarry at Burton Dassett is shown on the first and second edition Ordnance Survey maps of 1886.
3 At Burton Dassett the hills were quarried for ironstone. The extraction was both for the stone and the iron ore by the Burton Hill Iron Ore Co; the Burton Dassett Iron stone Co from 1895; Willington Iron Co from 1907; T. & I. Bradley & Sons from 1918. 1868 is probably when the quarry operations first started, when the output would probably have been conveyed by horse and cart to the nearest station at Fenny Compton. Around 1873 a light ropeway was constructed to transport the material to the Burton Dassett goods yard (actually located at Northend). A series of short pylons supported the ropeway which carried small round buckets, haulage being supplied by a portable steam engine at the lower end. By 1885 the ropeway had been dismantled. In c. 1895 a railway was constructed to link the quarry with the East and West Midlands Junction railway. The operating period for the quarry throughout it's history has been intermittent. The final reopening of the quarry was during World War I when there was increased demand for iron ore, the reopening occurred in 1918 and had ceased operating by c. 1921.
4 -
10The earthwork remains of the railway that was constructed in the late 19th - early 20th century are still visible on the ground and in aerial photographs.
11 The only workable ironstone in Warwickshire is the Marlstone Rock Formation in the south of the county. It was dug briefly for iron ore on the Burton Dassett Hills in the 19th century but has been mainly used as a source of building stone, ornamental stone and aggregate (Dr Jon Radley, pers. comm.).
12 A brief review of the history of the ironstone workings. Eric Tonks suggests that the quarries were working by the early 1870s. Thereafter, a reopening took place in November 1898. for which Wm. Glover & Sons Ltd of Warwick installed a steam powered aerial ropeway to Burton Dassett Platform on the Stanford and Midland Junction railway (Northend). Tonks states the tramway quarries were operated by pony and gravity but also gives anecdotal evidence of a steam locomotive being used for a short while.
13 Further assorted notes on the ironstone workings at Burton Dassett.
14 An extensive area of probably Post Medieval limestone quarries, hollow ways and tramways are visible as earthworks on aerial photographs. The site is known as Burton Hills, and is the site of Burton Dassett Hills Country Park. The site comprises a number of quarried scarps, pits and areas of uneven ground, together with hollow ways, tramways and spoil heaps. These quarries are likely to have been dug to extract the Middle Lias marlstone and limestone which is shown on the geological map at this location. A probable lime quarry (NMR monument number 1548429) is located on the southern edge of the site. This site has been mapped from aerial photographs as part of the South East Warwickshire and Cotswolds HLS Target Areas National Mapping Programme.
 
Sources

Source No: 4
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3952
Author/originator: CUC
Date: Unknown
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3952 A
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3952
Author/originator: NCC
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP 3952 J
   
Source No: 6
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP 3952
Author/originator: NCC
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3952 K
   
Source No: 7
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3952
Author/originator: NCC
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3952 L
   
Source No: 8
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3952
Author/originator: NCC
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3952 M
   
Source No: 9
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3952
Author/originator: NCC
Date: 1986
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3952 N
   
Source No: 10
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3951
Author/originator: JstJ
Date: Unknown
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: SP3951 AK
   
Source No: 12
Source Type: Article in serial
Title: Warwickshire Industrial Archaeology Society Newsletter No.5
Author/originator: Abbot M W
Date: 2001
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 13
Source Type: Desk Top Study
Title: The Ironstone Quarries of South Warwickshire
Author/originator: Brace J
Date: 2014
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 14
Source Type: Desk Top Study
Title: SE Warwickshire and Cotswolds NMP Project
Author/originator: Russell Priest
Date: 2010-2012
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Map
Title: 46SW 1:10560 1886
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1886
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 46SW
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Map
Title: 46SW 1:10560 1906
Author/originator: Ordnance Survey
Date: 1906
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 46SW
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Monograph
Title: The Ironstone Quarries in the Midlands
Author/originator: Tonks E
Date: 1988
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 11
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: Archaeological Resource Assessment of the Aggregates Producing Areas of Warwickshire
Author/originator: Magnus Alexander with S Palmer and L Chadd
Date: 2007
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
Ironstone Workings on Burton Dassett Hills
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Click here for larger image  
 
Ironstone Workings on Burton Dassett Hills
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Click here for larger image  
 
Evidence of ironstone quarrying visible as earthworks at Burton Dassett
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Date: 1986
Click here for larger image  
 
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source WM Warwickshire Museum Aerial Photograph Collection. A collection of oblique and vertical aerial photographs and taken by various organisations and individuals, including the Royal Airforce, The Potato Board, Warwickshire Museum. The collection is held at the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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technique Aerial Photograph Aerial photographs are taken during an aerial survey, which involves looking at the ground from above. It is usually easier to see cropmarks and earthworks when they are viewed from above. Aerial photographs help archaeologists to record what they see and to identify new sites. There are two kinds of aerial photographs; oblique and vertical. back
period Modern The Modern Period, about 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
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period modern About 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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monument TRANSPORT * This is the top term for the class. See TRANSPORT Class List for narrow terms. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument STEAM ENGINE * An engine in which the mechanical force of steam is made available as a motive power for driving machinery. back
monument GOODS YARD * A site where merchandise and goods are temporarily stored before or after transportation by rail. back
monument INDUSTRIAL * This is the top term for the class. See INDUSTRIAL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument PIT * A hole or cavity in the ground, either natural or the result of excavation. Use more specific type where known. back
monument MINERAL RAILWAY * A railway used for the conveyance of coal and other minerals. back
monument IRONSTONE WORKINGS * A site where iron ore is extracted. back
monument TRAMWAY * A track inlaid into a surface, on which tram cars run for the conveyance of passengers and/or goods or raw materials. back
monument PLATFORM * Unspecified. Use specific type where known. back
monument SPOIL HEAP * A conical or flat-topped tip of waste discarded from a mine or similar site. back
monument COUNTRY PARK * An area of managed countryside designated for visitors to enjoy recreations, such as walking specified parks and trails, in a rural environment. Often provides public facilities such as parking, toilets, cafes and visitor information. back
monument ROUND * A small, Iron Age/Romano-British enclosed settlement found in South West England. back
monument AERIAL ROPEWAY * A system of overhead cables from which cars or containers are suspended (usually driven electrically). back
monument QUARRY * An excavation from which stone for building and other functions, is obtained by cutting, blasting, etc. back
monument RAILWAY * A line or track consisting of iron or steel rails, on which passenger carriages or goods wagons are moved, usually by a locomotive engine. back
monument TARGET * Any structure or object, used for the purpose of practice shooting by aerial, seaborne or land mounted weapons. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back
monument SCARP * A steep bank or slope. In fortifications, the bank or wall immediately in front of and below the rampart. back
monument HOLLOW WAY * A way, path or road through a cutting. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record