Salt in Cheshire
Encyclopedia
Cheshire is a county in North West England
. Rock salt was laid down in this region some 220 million years ago, during the Triassic
period. Seawater moved inland from an open sea, creating a chain of shallow salt marshes across what is today the Cheshire
basin
. As the marshes evaporated, deep deposits of rock salt were formed.
. It is believed that the Romans built this settlement due to the strategic river crossing of the Weaver
and the presence of the brine springs. The Romans used lead salt pans to extract the salt from the brine. Salt pans and 1st century brine kilns have all been found around the Roman fort.
The salt beds beneath Northwich were re-discovered in the 1670 by employees of the local Smith-Barry family. The family were actually looking for coal
when they accidentally discovered rock salt in the grounds of their house, Marbury Hall
, Marbury
, north of Northwich with salt extraction starting shortly afterwards.
In the 19th century it became uneconomical to mine salt, and so solvent extraction using water as a solvent was used. Hot water was pumped through the mines that dissolved the salt and the resultant brine was pumped out and the salt extracted from the brine. This technique was known as wild brine pumping or natural brine pumping but weakened mines and led to land subsidence as mines collapsed. The collapse of a number of mines led to salt mining to move to Winsford
.
Northwich has had a salt museum
for more than 120 years.
invasion, Middlewich was named Salinae on account of the salt deposits around it, as it was one of their major sites of salt production. During this time the Romans built a fort at Harbutts Field (SJ70216696), to the north of the town and recent excavations to the south of the fort have found evidence of further Roman activity
including a well and part of a preserved Roman road
.
Salt manufacture has remained one of the principal employers in Middlewich
for most of the past 2,000 years. Salt making is mentioned in the Domesday Book
, and by the 13th century there were approximately 100 "wich houses" packed around the towns two brine pits. By 1908 there were nine industrial scale salt manufacturers in the town, with a number of open pan salt works close to the Trent and Mersey Canal
.
date to Roman
times when salt from Nantwich was used by the Roman garrisons at Chester and Stoke-on-Trent
as both a preservative and a condiment. Salt has been used in the production of Cheshire cheese
and in the tanning industry, both industries being products of the dairy industry based on the Cheshire Plain
around Nantwich.
In the Domesday Book
, Nantwich is recorded as having eight salt houses. The salt industry peaked in the late 16th century when there were 216 salt houses, but the industry ended in 1856 with the closure of the last salt house. Similarly the last tannery closed in 1974, but the clothing industry remains important to the area.
, partly because the salt mines under Northwich
had begun to collapse and another source of salt near the River Weaver
was needed. A new source was discovered in Winsford, leading to the
development of a salt industry along the course of the River Weaver
, where many factories were established. By 1897, Winsford had become the largest producer of salt in Britain. As a result, a new town developed within a mile of the old Borough of Over which had been focused on Delamere Street. Most of the early development took place on the other side of the river, with new housing, shops, pubs, chapels and a new church being built in the former hamlet of Wharton
. As the wind usually blew the smoke away from Over, it became the place for the wealthier inhabitants to live. However, people who worked on the barges and other people working in Winsford started to develop along the old Over Lane (now High Street). The old borough tried to remain separate but had been connected by the 1860s.
, who sell under the name Saxa
, and also through third parties e.g. supermarket own brands. Salt produced by British Salt in Middlewich has 57% of the UK market for salt used in cooking.
The UK's largest rock salt (halite
) mine is at Winsford
. It is one of only three places where rock salt is commercially mined in the UK, the others being at Boulby Mine
, North Yorkshire
and Kilroot
near Carrickfergus
, Northern Ireland
.
Rock salt extraction began at Winsford in the 17th century. Initially it was used only as salt lick
s for animals, and to strengthen weak brine
. In 1844 Winsford Rock Salt Mine was opened, and is claimed by its operator, Salt Union Ltd., to be "Britain's oldest working mine".
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
. Rock salt was laid down in this region some 220 million years ago, during the Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
period. Seawater moved inland from an open sea, creating a chain of shallow salt marshes across what is today the Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
basin
Basin
Basin may refer to:* Basin , a poem about Charlemagne's childhood* basin , the area of a drydock which can be flooded and drained* basin of attraction , an area of a nonlinear system with an attractor...
. As the marshes evaporated, deep deposits of rock salt were formed.
Northwich
A settlement, Condate, was built during Roman times at the current location of NorthwichNorthwich
Northwich is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane...
. It is believed that the Romans built this settlement due to the strategic river crossing of the Weaver
River Weaver
The River Weaver is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire, northern England. Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1720 and the work, which included eleven locks, was completed in 1732...
and the presence of the brine springs. The Romans used lead salt pans to extract the salt from the brine. Salt pans and 1st century brine kilns have all been found around the Roman fort.
The salt beds beneath Northwich were re-discovered in the 1670 by employees of the local Smith-Barry family. The family were actually looking for 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...
when they accidentally discovered rock salt in the grounds of their house, Marbury Hall
Marbury Hall, Anderton with Marbury
Marbury Hall was a country house in Marbury, near Northwich, Cheshire, England. Several houses existed on the site from the 13th century, which formed the seat successively of the Marbury, Barry and Smith-Barry families, until 1932. An extensive collection of artwork and sculpture was housed at the...
, Marbury
Anderton with Marbury
right|thumb|Map of civil parish of Anderton with Marbury within the former borough of Vale RoyalAnderton with Marbury is a civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It had a population of 582 according to the 2001 census, and...
, north of Northwich with salt extraction starting shortly afterwards.
In the 19th century it became uneconomical to mine salt, and so solvent extraction using water as a solvent was used. Hot water was pumped through the mines that dissolved the salt and the resultant brine was pumped out and the salt extracted from the brine. This technique was known as wild brine pumping or natural brine pumping but weakened mines and led to land subsidence as mines collapsed. The collapse of a number of mines led to salt mining to move to Winsford
Winsford
Winsford is a town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies on the River Weaver south of Northwich and west of Middlewich, and grew around the salt mining industry after the river was canalised in the...
.
Northwich has had a salt museum
Salt Museum, Northwich
The Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse, Northwich, Cheshire, records the social, cultural and industrial history of west Cheshire. It was formerly known as the Salt Museum, reflecting its earlier focus on the history of salt extraction, a local industry dating back to Roman times...
for more than 120 years.
Middlewich
Following the RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
invasion, Middlewich was named Salinae on account of the salt deposits around it, as it was one of their major sites of salt production. During this time the Romans built a fort at Harbutts Field (SJ70216696), to the north of the town and recent excavations to the south of the fort have found evidence of further Roman activity
including a well and part of a preserved Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
.
Salt manufacture has remained one of the principal employers in Middlewich
Middlewich
Middlewich is a market town in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is east of the city of Chester, east of Winsford, southeast of Northwich and northwest of Sandbach....
for most of the past 2,000 years. Salt making is mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, and by the 13th century there were approximately 100 "wich houses" packed around the towns two brine pits. By 1908 there were nine industrial scale salt manufacturers in the town, with a number of open pan salt works close to the Trent and Mersey Canal
Trent and Mersey Canal
The Trent and Mersey Canal is a in the East Midlands, West Midlands, and North West of England. It is a "narrow canal" for the vast majority of its length, but at the extremities—east of Burton upon Trent and west of Middlewich—it is a wide canal....
.
Nantwich
The origins of the settlement at NantwichNantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
date to 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....
times when salt from Nantwich was used by the Roman garrisons at Chester and Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
as both a preservative and a condiment. Salt has been used in the production of Cheshire cheese
Cheshire cheese
Cheshire cheese is a dense and crumbly cheese produced in the English county of Cheshire, and four neighbouring counties, two in Wales and two in England .-History:...
and in the tanning industry, both industries being products of the dairy industry based on the Cheshire Plain
Cheshire Plain
The Cheshire Plain is a relatively flat expanse of lowland situated almost entirely within the county of Cheshire in northwest England. It is bounded by the hills of North Wales to the west, and the Peak District of Derbyshire and North Staffordshire to the east and southeast...
around Nantwich.
In the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, Nantwich is recorded as having eight salt houses. The salt industry peaked in the late 16th century when there were 216 salt houses, but the industry ended in 1856 with the closure of the last salt house. Similarly the last tannery closed in 1974, but the clothing industry remains important to the area.
Winsford
From the 1830s, salt became important to WinsfordWinsford
Winsford is a town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies on the River Weaver south of Northwich and west of Middlewich, and grew around the salt mining industry after the river was canalised in the...
, partly because the salt mines under Northwich
Northwich
Northwich is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane...
had begun to collapse and another source of salt near the River Weaver
River Weaver
The River Weaver is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire, northern England. Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1720 and the work, which included eleven locks, was completed in 1732...
was needed. A new source was discovered in Winsford, leading to the
development of a salt industry along the course of the River Weaver
River Weaver
The River Weaver is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire, northern England. Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1720 and the work, which included eleven locks, was completed in 1732...
, where many factories were established. By 1897, Winsford had become the largest producer of salt in Britain. As a result, a new town developed within a mile of the old Borough of Over which had been focused on Delamere Street. Most of the early development took place on the other side of the river, with new housing, shops, pubs, chapels and a new church being built in the former hamlet of Wharton
Wharton
-Academic institutions:*Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania*Wharton Center for Performing Arts, at Michigan State University-Places:*Wharton, Cheshire, England*Wharton, Cumbria, England*Wharton, New Jersey*Wharton, Ohio*Wharton, Texas...
. As the wind usually blew the smoke away from Over, it became the place for the wealthier inhabitants to live. However, people who worked on the barges and other people working in Winsford started to develop along the old Over Lane (now High Street). The old borough tried to remain separate but had been connected by the 1860s.
Current salt manufacturing in Cheshire
The manufacture of white salt for food and allied industries is now concentrated in Middlewich, in the manufacturer, British SaltBritish Salt
British Salt Limited is a United Kingdom-based chemical company that produces pure white salt. The company is owned by the management and private equity company LDC...
, who sell under the name Saxa
Saxa (food product)
Saxa is a brand of salt and pepper in the United Kingdom and Australia. It is currently owned by Premier Foods....
, and also through third parties e.g. supermarket own brands. Salt produced by British Salt in Middlewich has 57% of the UK market for salt used in cooking.
The UK's largest rock salt (halite
Halite
Halite , commonly known as rock salt, is the mineral form of sodium chloride . Halite forms isometric crystals. The mineral is typically colorless or white, but may also be light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, red, orange, yellow or gray depending on the amount and type of impurities...
) mine is at Winsford
Winsford
Winsford is a town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It lies on the River Weaver south of Northwich and west of Middlewich, and grew around the salt mining industry after the river was canalised in the...
. It is one of only three places where rock salt is commercially mined in the UK, the others being at Boulby Mine
Boulby Mine
Boulby Mine is a site run by Cleveland Potash, located just southeast of the village of Boulby, on the northeast coast of the North Yorkshire Moors in Redcar and Cleveland, England. It is Europe's second deepest mine at —Pyhäsalmi Mine in Finland is even deeper, being 1,448 metres deep—producing...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
and Kilroot
Kilroot
Kilroot is a townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies to the east of Eden, on the outskirts of Carrickfergus on the northern shore of Belfast Lough. It is within the Carrickfergus Borough Council area.-History:...
near Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus , known locally and colloquially as "Carrick", is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,201 at the 2001 Census and takes its name from Fergus Mór mac Eirc, the 6th century king...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Rock salt extraction began at Winsford in the 17th century. Initially it was used only as salt lick
Salt lick
A mineral lick is a natural mineral deposit where animals in nutrient-poor ecosystems can obtain essential mineral nutrients...
s for animals, and to strengthen weak brine
Brine
Brine is water, saturated or nearly saturated with salt .Brine is used to preserve vegetables, fruit, fish, and meat, in a process known as brining . Brine is also commonly used to age Halloumi and Feta cheeses, or for pickling foodstuffs, as a means of preserving them...
. In 1844 Winsford Rock Salt Mine was opened, and is claimed by its operator, Salt Union Ltd., to be "Britain's oldest working mine".
See also
- History of saltHistory of saltSalt's ability to preserve food was a foundation of civilization. It eliminated the dependence on the seasonal availability of food and it allowed travel over long distances. However, salt was difficult to obtain, and so it was a highly valued trade item...
- History of salt in MiddlewichHistory of salt in MiddlewichMiddlewich, a town in northwest England, lies on the confluence of three rivers – the Dane, the Croco and the Wheelock. Most importantly for the history of salt making, it also lies on the site of a prehistoric brine spring....
- Lion Salt WorksLion Salt WorksThe Lion Salt Works is the last remaining open pan saltworks in Cheshire, England. It closed as a works in 1986 and is now preserved as a museum...
- Weaver Hall Museum and WorkhouseSalt Museum, NorthwichThe Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse, Northwich, Cheshire, records the social, cultural and industrial history of west Cheshire. It was formerly known as the Salt Museum, reflecting its earlier focus on the history of salt extraction, a local industry dating back to Roman times...
, Northwich - Open pan salt makingOpen pan salt makingIn Europe virtually all domestic salt is obtained by solution mining of underground salt formations although some is still obtained by the solar evaporation of sea water. Salt is extracted from the Brine using vacuum pans, where brine is heated in a partial vacuum in order to lower the boiling...
Further reading
- Tom Lightfoot (2000), Open Pan Salt Making in Cheshire: An Illustrated Description, Lion Salt Works Trust Research Report
External links
- Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse, Northwich
- Romans Salt Manufacturers' Association
- Anglo Saxons Salt Manufacturers' Association
- Normans Salt Manufacturers' Association
- Winsford Rock Salt Mine