Monument record 2598/12/0 - Hurst Lane Timber Yard

<1> Ordnance Survey, 1871-1882, Ordnance Survey County Series (Epoch 1) 25 inch to 1 mile - Cheshire, SJ9377 1873 (Maps and Plans). SCH2462.

Two timber yards, either side of a lane or track to the quarry (CHER 2598/13/0), are depicted on this map of 1873. It’s possible that this is one yard associated with the quarry. On the northern side of the lane are two larger buildings and a number of smaller ones. The eastern of the two large buildings id depicted as having a set of external stairs on one side. To the south are a number of smaller buildings.

<2> See map for surveyor, c.1837-51, Cheshire Tithe Maps and Awards, EDT 56/2 (Maps and Plans). SCH3266.

The tithe map for Bollington township shows one building in a smaller plot. The plot is records the owner and occupier as the Canal Company and the plot is named as Workshop and Timber Yard.

<3> Canal & Rivers Trust, 2013, Hurst Lane Timber Yard, Macclesfield Canal, Bollington - Heritage Assessment, R3587 (Client Report). SCH7407.

The 1891 Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway plan provides a comprehensive record of the site at this date. The site is clearly marked pale blue as being within the ownership of the railway company and is shown to have two component parts; the west side of the site adjacent to Hurst Lane is show as ‘Old Coal Yard’ with the eastern side of the site marked as ‘Viaduct Timber Yard’.

The area of the Old Coal Yard is shown to include the area of higher ground at the south most corner of the site and appears to have a perimeter running below the slope to the north-east, with a rectangular building orientated approximately north south with a walled area to the east of it, from the walled area the perimeter curves round to meet the access route onto the main site which forms the northern boundary of the Old Coal Yard. Access appears to be from the Timber Yard rather than Hurst Lane.

Viaduct Timber Yard occupies the main part of the site including the entire canal frontage and is shown to include a number of structures. The earliest structure against the northeast boundary of the site is labelled as ‘Mortar Mill’; it is rectangular in shape with a smaller rectangular extension to the north against the boundary and an almost square extension to the front of the building facing into the yard. A smaller rectangular building is shown located on the west side of the yard.

A number of buildings survive on site: Building A is a single storey structure; roughly square in shape with a lean-to on the northeast side, was probably constructed in the second half of the century.

Building B is a two-storey rectangular structure of more than one phase of construction. The earliest building, it appears to have been a single storey stone structure of simple vernacular design. The remaining stone sett floor with inset timbers suggests that this may have been a simple barn or stable, the timbers in the floor supporting partitions. The roofing material during this phase is unknown. The second story was probably added in the early twentieth century, reusing the pre-existing roof trusses, or trusses from an existing building.

Building C is a smaller two storey rectangular structure built of stone with a stone slate roof with two lean-to structures. The original door and a window in the northeast elevation to both floors appear to have been retained; the original method of access to the upper floor is unclear. The use of windows in the construction suggests that this structure was for human use rather than animals, possibly a small workshop space.

The dates the mortar mill was in operation, how it was constructed and when it went out of use are largely unknown. The tithe map of 1849 suggests that it was the earliest structure on the site and may have had another use at this time as the written entry calls it a workshop. It is only on the detailed railway map that the building is identified as a mortar mill. The site was leased at the time the map was made and therefore the use of the building may relate to the occupation of the tenant as a joiner and builder. It is shown as a building on the 1915 lease map but is only indicated by a dashed line on the 1961 map. It is unclear whether foundations still exist.