Interior View of 'intake' end of north side tunnel kiln

Description Interior View of 'intake' end of north side tunnel kiln

Date 5/8/1981

Collection Records of the Scottish Industrial Archaeology Survey at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Sco

Catalogue Number B 9426

Category Photographs and Off-line Digital Images

Copies SC 738196

Scope and Content North tunnel kiln, Kiln House, Longpark Pottery, Hill Street, Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire J & M Craig established Longpark Sanitary Pottery c.1888 and specialised in producing toilet fitments made from fireclay. The pottery was taken over by Shanks in 1918 and in 1969 Armitage Ware Ltd became the owners and formed the Armitage Shanks Group. The works closed in 1981 and was subsequently demolished. This shows the north tunnel kiln, behind the open doors on the left, a winch and part of a kiln car which contained firebricks on the right. The trolley, at the kiln entrance, ran along the tracks in the sunken floor area to and from the kiln. The cars were loaded onto this trolley and pushed into the kiln where the sanitary ware was fired as the cars travelled along the heated tunnel. The sanitary reforms which swept many European and North American cities from the 1850s led to a huge demand for sanitary ware. The main advantage of sanitary ware made from fireclay was that it did not crack once moulded into large shapes and was strong once fired. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

External Reference Neg no. 37/81/35A

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/738172