Quicklime on trains?

"Duncan" wrote in message news:crn7md$9n1$ snipped-for-privacy@sparta.btinternet.com...

The majority of limekilns served only their local area, so that only the coal would come in by rail, whilst the product was generally distributed by cart in the immediate area. The product in most cases would be used either for soil-treatment (therefore slaked) or for lime-mortar. Some of the bigger quarries, however, might supply lime by rail to large-scale users such as the glass and iron and steel industries, or to builders in towns and cities. In the former cases, the lime would either be as crude limestone or slaked, whilst builders etc would use quicklime (mortar pits were a feature of builder's yards until the post-war period). The limestone could obviously be carried in ordinary open wagons, whilst the 'burnt' forms would be carried either in sacks or barrels in sheeted open wagons, or in specially modified wagons fitted with an apex roof. I've just looked at one of the Oakwood Press books on the Gwendraeth Valley Railway (other end of the country, I know, but similar in many respects to the North-East-I've lived in both areas..)- the traffic figures quoted there for some pretty massive kilns (about the same size as the ones I remember around Stanhope) were only in the region of 50 or so wagons out per month, including kibbled limestone for the steel industry, but a much larger number of inbound coal wagons. I remember surveying the GVR route about 30 years ago, when studying for A-levels, and noticing that there was very little in the way of facilities (covered areas, hoppers, storage sheds) at the discharge side of the kilns, which would suggest that outward flows were relatively unimportant. A trawl of the Oakwood Press books for other areas might produce some useful material, as they often include old photos, as might a visit to the Local History Unit near to you (either the local library or archive might host it, dependant on the area.) Brian

Brian

In message , BH Williams writes

Don't forget that limestone burning predated the railways by a good two thousand years, and the transport infrastructure - sea and road - was well established by the 19th century. As Brian (no relation) says, the long distance traffic was almost all IN rather then OUT. There were a lot of small kiln operators too, as not every area has limestone on its doorstep.

For a reference, try Limekilns and limeburning by Richard Williams (again no relation) Shire Album no. 236 ISBN 0 7478 0037 5

You can get these from almost any industrial heritage visitor centre. My copy cost £1.75, but that was a few years ago. Loads of info and pics.

I do wonder, however, if the Richard Williams quoted is the person with whom I studied the Gwendraeth Valley kilns over 30 years ago... Brian ( who only has two relations called Williams, neither of whom is referred to in the text...)