Norman Dunn's 'Hebburn and our Neighbours Forum'

Norman Dunn's 'Hebburn and our Neighbours Forum'
[ Norman Dunn's 'Hebburn and our Neighbours Forum' ]

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Mill lane quarry

Posted by Colin Thompson on 19/8/2024, 22:49:18

The quarry on the right as you get to the end of mill Lane is getting very large but there is not the great number heavy goods vehicles going to and fro from it - - so are they still extracting materials or is now landfill and if so what is going in!! It is now much bigger than the last Google earth picture.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Norman Dunn on 20/8/2024, 9:03:58, in reply to "Mill lane quarry "
Edited by board administrator 20/8/2024, 11:07:25

Hi Colin,
I'm sure I'd heard they still extract clay there but now transport it to a Brickyard elsewhere in the region.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Stan Wears on 20/8/2024, 11:03:04, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

In 1895 there was a brick maker who extracted the clay and the company was called Jones and Maxwell and 1911 Jones took over the site known as Pelaw brickworks. I studied the bricks when I did some research on a Hebburn Church.The clay is called Etruria Marl which is the best clay so I gather that could well be what is going on. You may well find blue/black bricks made by Jones around Hebburn but they are so hard you can't drill them. They are fired at 2000 degrees.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Joseph on 20/8/2024, 13:15:57, in reply to "Mill lane quarry "

All fenced off, very secretive place, the clay they were extracting was supposed to be very valuable, don't know if they still are.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Tom Stafford on 20/8/2024, 16:22:01, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

The clay may well be used to make bricks for Mr Starmer's 1.5 million houses.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Stan Wears on 20/8/2024, 16:37:28, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

Joseph, the clay being Etruria marl is getting rare and there are places in Hebburn where it can be excavated but now built on. When Hebburn Quay was being built 5 brickworks turned out 2000 bricks per day. St. Aloysius Church was built with 5 different sizes of brick which can be seen at the back of the church in the yard. The courses are wavey for about 4-5 levels. However,the Irish Labour sorted that out!

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Colin Thompson on 20/8/2024, 17:00:53, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

When I lived in Hartleyburn Ave I decided to dig a soakaway at the end of my garden but my neighbour called and said he was the borough surveyor for our area and there was 30 ft of pure clay under the house

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Stan Wears on 20/8/2024, 18:36:07, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

That's interesting Colin. Jones was the biggest supplier in the UK in their day.
A lot of Hebburn is also built on this clay as test bores have found it all over which is why we once had 5 brickworks.

Re: Mill lane quarry

Posted by Ian Turnbull on 21/8/2024, 19:57:53, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

Ibstock have a Thirty odd year lease on the site still extracting material that goes to Throckley brick works. They are attempting to help transform Red barns pond next to site into a nature reserve which is what the Quarry is going to be eventually so I'm told.

Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)

Posted by Ray Forster on 21/8/2024, 21:21:04, in reply to "Re: Mill lane quarry "

Stan,
Do you know the history of this cottage?

Try the link I found:
https://www.sunderlandecho.com/business/consumer/the-story-behind-whitburns-ps1million-red-cottage-as-it-looks-for-a-new-owner-3254722

Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)

Posted by Stan Wears on 22/8/2024, 12:30:16, in reply to "Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)"

It was built in 1842 by a man called Barnes. I know it's up for sale at £1m and is Grade 2 listed. The reason I studied the bricks on St.Aloysius Church was because I was asked to study the entire construction as someone was paid to do it but guessed it and drank the money. I often go off at a tangent and go too deep in research such as the pews, the timber and the shellac manufacture. Hence the bricks on the church!

Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)

Posted by Stan Wears on 22/8/2024, 12:39:55, in reply to "Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)"

Ray, I also found out that it inspired Lewis Carol to write Alice In Wonderland. The architect was Benjamin Green who designed a lot of Newcastle including the Theatre Royal in 1837 and also Grey's monument!

Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)

Posted by Colliery Lad on 22/8/2024, 13:03:33, in reply to "Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)"

Stan,Benjamin Green only designed part of Greys Monument which was the Doric Column not the statue on top

Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)

Posted by Stan Wears on 22/8/2024, 13:55:25, in reply to "Re: Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)"

Sometimes history gets distorted Like John Dobson. If he designed all that people claim he was responsible for he'd be churning out two designs per day all his life.! You are right about Green and the monument though!

Fantastic building Ray

Posted by Allan Campbell on 22/8/2024, 13:03:56, in reply to "Red Cottage Whitburn for Stan Wears, the BrickMeister :)"

I was trying to determine if it was a manse, gate house or ?

Would never have thought as an advertisement for a brick maker !

The hours of work that would have gone into that. The skill to lay those bricks! Not an ordinary brickie!

Allan C.

Re: Fantastic building Ray

Posted by Stan Wears on 22/8/2024, 13:59:55, in reply to "Fantastic building Ray"

Allan, Barnes owned a brickworks and a quarry but he wanted a posh abode and that's it !

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