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Stone Edge Cupola

This chimney is the oldest free standing industrial chimney in Britain.

Chesterfield, England

Added By
Alan Newman
Stone Edge Cupola Chimney   Jonathan Clitheroe
Stone Edge Cupola Chimney   Andrew Hill
Air photo of the site.   Richard Bird
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About

Constructed in 1770 to serve a lead-smelting cupola furnace, this is the oldest free-standing industrial chimney in Britain.

Lead was not mined on site, but was imported from the nearby mining areas around Matlock to take advantage of the draught generated on the hilltop site.

The remains of the other buildings at the site are buried under vegetation but there is evidence of various types of lead-smelting slag. This slag was often re-smelted in a slag mill. This required an air blast provided by water-powered bellows. The storage ponds for the water are still visible.

The chimney was associated with an underground flue, which can also be identified on-site. The chimney was restored by the Peak District Mines Historical Society in 1979.

 

Related Tags

History & Culture Ruins Industrial Mining

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Added By

Dr Alan P Newman

Published

July 10, 2021

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