Description and History of Site:-
Storrs Quarry lies at the foot of Storrs Common, either side of the B6255, from which limestone had been quarried for centuries by local people who enjoyed rights to win and get stone on the common; and at least two lime kilns produced burnt lime on a relatively small scale. Extensive quarry workings are seen on three levels with an access road from Ingleton at the foot of the lowest quarry, where the remains of two large lime kilns are visible as stone buttressing. The crushing and screening plant hoppers are extant and concrete platforms indicate the position of the plant, the tar-coating plant, boiler house, blacksmiths' shop and other ancillary buildings.

When the site finally closed down workmen manhandled some of the skips from the lime works and pushed them down the high river bank into the river. One remains in the river, intact if rather battered; one other was rescued and reinstalled at the plant in the 1990s but was later pushed back down the slope by vandals. In 1861 Henry Robinson, a coal merchant and quarry operator of Skipton and Settle, took out a lease on Storrs (and for a time at Mealbank Quarry, too) to carry on winning stone and burning lime using the existing kilns. In 1863 he installed a steam-powered crushing mill at Storrs and two "immense" kilns of his own patented design of that year, having received permission from the landowners to take down the old kiln at the top of the quarried area. In 1870 he modified the two kilns according to a second patent of his, and then built a completely new kiln following his third patent. In 1871 he had an "Iron Tramway" laid on the "Roading leading to Robinson's kilns" (see NYCRO reference). He tried crushing stone to make road metal and pulverised limestone dust for agricultural use but was unsuccessful in both ventures. Correspondence (in this contributor's collection) from 1882 provides a breakdown of costs, income and profit at the Lime Works - on output of 70 tons per week and running only one kiln he made an average annual net profit of £401 6s 8d.He gave up the lease in 1883; the works continued under Richard Atkinson, which family sold out to the Craven Lime Co. Ltd in 1899. The lease later passed to Settle Rural District Council which wanted it for roadstone, then in 1925 to the West Riding County Council which installed a Marshall "Locomobile" engine in 1927 to run the crushing, screening and tar-coating plant. In 1938 the operation was significantly downsized as the council found it cheaper to import stone from Doncaster.

Further Reading and References:-
D. Johnson 2010. "Limestone Industries of the Yorkshire Dales". Stroud: Amberley, pp. 80-81, 104-05, 207-09, 241..

NYCRO (North Yorkshire County Record Office). Letter, dated 11 April 1871, from the Surveyor of the Highways to Settle Highway Board noting the installation at Storrs of a tramway from the main rail line to the lime works.

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Key Words :- storrs quarry limestone quarrying lime burning

Viewing the Site :- accessible from adjacent public rights of way and commons

Address :- B6255, Ingleton, North Yorkshire
Grid Ref :- SD 700 735
Co-ordinates :- Lat 54.156430 , Long -2.460877
Local Authority :- Craven District Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - West Riding
Site Status :- Site extant - Protected status unknown
Site Condition :- Site disused - but otherwise substantially intact
Site Dates :- unknown - finally abandoned la
Record Date :- 10 March 2016

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © David Johnson