Haltwhistle Burn
Encyclopedia
The Haltwhistle Burn is a river which lies to the east of the Northumbrian town of Haltwhistle
. Rising in the peaty uplands below the ridge of the Whin Sill
, the burn passes through the Roman
Military Zone south of Hadrian's Wall
and through a dramatic sandstone gorge before descending between wooded banks to the South Tyne Valley
.
Today the Burn is a haven for wildlife and a popular walk for residents and tourists but from Roman times until the 1930s the combination of valuable minerals and water power attracted a succession of industries which provided goods and employment to the town.
were laid down during the Carboniferous
Period when variations in sea level resulted in successive deposits of limestone
, shale
, sandstone
, and coal
, known in the UK as Yoredale cycles and in the US as cyclothems
. The water of the Haltwhistle Burn has cut through these deposits giving access to building stone, clay and coal, leading to the development of the associated industries of quarrying, lime burning, brick, tile and pipe manufacture, coal mining and coke (fuel)
and coal-gas
production. Ironstone
, found in association with the coal seams was also smelted on the banks of the burn.
, with the first records on the site dating to 1612. Later, with advances in technology, the carding
and spinning
of wool was also carried out in watermill
s. The advent of steam-driven mills led to the abandonment of woollen processing along the burn. Two mills were demolished in the 1930s and the remaining fulling mill
is now a dwelling.
).
Haltwhistle
Haltwhistle is a small town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, situated east of Brampton, near Hadrian's Wall, and the villages of Plenmeller, Rowfoot and Melkridge...
. Rising in the peaty uplands below the ridge of the Whin Sill
Whin Sill
The Whin Sill or Great Whin Sill is a tabular layer of the igneous rock dolerite in County Durham and Northumberland in the northeast of England. It lies partly in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and partly in Northumberland National Park and stretches from Teesdale northwards...
, the burn passes through the Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
Military Zone south of Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...
and through a dramatic sandstone gorge before descending between wooded banks to the South Tyne Valley
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
.
Today the Burn is a haven for wildlife and a popular walk for residents and tourists but from Roman times until the 1930s the combination of valuable minerals and water power attracted a succession of industries which provided goods and employment to the town.
Geology and associated industries
The rocks underlying this part of NorthumberlandNorthumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
were laid down during the Carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
Period when variations in sea level resulted in successive deposits of limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
, sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, and coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, known in the UK as Yoredale cycles and in the US as cyclothems
Cyclothems
In geology, cyclothems are alternating stratigraphic sequences of marine and non-marine sediments, sometimes interbedded with coal seams. Historically, the term was defined by the European coal geologists that worked in coal basins formed during the Carboniferous and earliest Permian periods...
. The water of the Haltwhistle Burn has cut through these deposits giving access to building stone, clay and coal, leading to the development of the associated industries of quarrying, lime burning, brick, tile and pipe manufacture, coal mining and coke (fuel)
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
and coal-gas
Coal gas
Coal gas is a flammable gaseous fuel made by the destructive distillation of coal containing a variety of calorific gases including hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane and volatile hydrocarbons together with small quantities of non-calorific gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen...
production. Ironstone
Ironstone
Ironstone is a sedimentary rock, either deposited directly as a ferruginous sediment or created by chemical repacement, that contains a substantial proportion of an iron compound from which iron either can be or once was smelted commercially. This term is customarily restricted to hard coarsely...
, found in association with the coal seams was also smelted on the banks of the burn.
Water power
The bed of the burn descends into the valley at a gentle angle of approximately 1 degree but the fall is sufficient to have run a corn mill and three woollen manufactories during the 18th and 19th centuries. The earliest of these processes to be mechanised was fullingFulling
Fulling or tucking or walking is a step in woolen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of cloth to eliminate oils, dirt, and other impurities, and making it thicker. The worker who does the job is a fuller, tucker, or walker...
, with the first records on the site dating to 1612. Later, with advances in technology, the carding
Carding
Carding is a mechanical process that breaks up locks and unorganised clumps of fibre and then aligns the individual fibres so that they are more or less parallel with each other. The word is derived from the Latin carduus meaning teasel, as dried vegetable teasels were first used to comb the raw wool...
and spinning
Spinning (textiles)
Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
of wool was also carried out in watermill
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
s. The advent of steam-driven mills led to the abandonment of woollen processing along the burn. Two mills were demolished in the 1930s and the remaining fulling mill
Fulling
Fulling or tucking or walking is a step in woolen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of cloth to eliminate oils, dirt, and other impurities, and making it thicker. The worker who does the job is a fuller, tucker, or walker...
is now a dwelling.
Roman fort
The remains of Haltwhistle Burn Roman Fort are situated on the eastern bank of Haltwhistle Burn, just north of the point where it is crossed by the B6318 (on the course of the StanegateStanegate
The Stanegate, or "stone road" , was an important Roman road built in what is now northern England. It linked two forts that guarded important river crossings; Corstopitum in the east, situated on Dere Street, and Luguvalium in the west...
).