Description and History of Site:-
Precipitated by a local building boom, in the 1930s over 2000 tons a week of high quality sand and gravel were being transported to Hull from a quarry at Haverfield Farm near Welwick, following the discovery of a ridge almost a mile in length, 80yds wide and approx 20ft in depth. Geologists were at first unsure of its origin, but the emergence of a wooden ship buried 10ft down gave rise to the theory that the ridge was part of a sand dune system created when sea levels were higher.

South Holderness Countryside Society began clearing the abandoned site of scrub in the 1990s and eventually if was designated a Local Wildlife Site, then a SSSI.

When extraction began, the intention was to export the sand and gravel by water transport to Hull, making use of the nearby tidal section of the Winestead Drain, but this proposal was rejected since the drain would need to be "buoyed” where it flows into the River Humber. Hence motor lorries were originally used to access the pits from the Welwick-Patrington road. This however involved heavy vehicles travelling across a difficult clay area, so rather than creating a substantial metalled road, by 1938 a narrow gauge railway was built. Filling the 4-wheeled side-tipping wagons was carried out by manual labour, but about 10ft down the water level was reached, at which point a fresh area had to be dug out. A local news item of 1938 stated that the proprietors were intending to bring in dredging machinery capable of excavating below the water table, for greater efficiency. Filled wagons were horse-drawn to the screening area; material was conveyed by rubber belt to the washing plant, then it was dropped through a revolving riddle for grading, before being transported to the sidings at the roadside by railway. Trains of around 120 tons were hauled by a diesel locomotive, a journey that was recorded to take about 10minutes.

Further Reading and References:-
Article in The Hull & Lincolnshire Times of 1st October 1938.

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Key Words :- Welwick Patrington Haverfield sand gravel railway

Viewing the Site :- No public access

Address :- Welwick, Hull, East Yorkshire, HU12 0RU
Grid Ref :- TA 32415 19938
Co-ordinates :- Lat 53.659172 , Long 0.00233
Local Authority :- East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - East Riding
Site Status :- Site of Special Scientific Interest SSSI
Site Condition :- Site conserved but not normally open to the public
Site Dates :- 1930s - Not known
Contributor :- Jane Ellis - 16 March 2021

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Jane Ellis