Archaeology Notes

Event ID 777539

Category Descriptive Accounts

Type Archaeology Notes

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/777539

NS72NE 4 7508 2949.

Glenbuck ironworks was founded about 1795 by English entrepreneurs who went bankrupt in 1813. Much of the furnace is buried in earth and rubbish; it is built into the hillside and is 17ft by 17ft by 30ft high. J Butt 1967

Glenbuck Ironworks is as described by Butt. The furnace is recognisable as is the adjacent retaining wall, but debris from the eroded hill slope ab ove has partially destroyed and overlaid it. There are considerable deposits of slag some 15.0m to 30.0m east of the furnace.

Visited by OS 29 June 1978.

An archaeological desk-based assessment and field inspection were undertaken in February 1996 to evaluate the archaeological remains within an area of landscape proposed for opencast coal mining. The results suggest that the area has significant archaeological potential even though the landscape has been heavily modified by modern coal extraction. A complex of sites relating to 18th-century iron and coal manufacture was located at Glenbuck. There are also substantial remains from lime production represented by quarries and limekilns.

The following site was recorded during the evaluation:

NS 7508 2949 Glenbuck Ironworks Furnace.

A report has been produced, and will be deposited with the NMRS at a time to be agreed with the sponsor.

Sponsor: Scottish Coal Ltd.

M Cressey and W L Finlayson 1997