c.1830 - 1968
The site was developed in the early Victorian era to quarry chalk, which was converted in kilns to produce lime, a key building material for mortar and cement. The quarries are known to have developed prior to 1840, making good use of their proximity to the River Arun and Amberley Station. The building now known as Humphrey's Barn was built around 10 years earlier, when the site was still a farm.
The oldest kilns at Amberley are to be found in the South Pit, which now back on to the Museum car park. These "flare" kilns are of a simple but (for their time) effective design, and work by burning the fuel beneath the chalk, as opposed to being mixed with it.
These were augmented by a new series of kilns built in the 1870s. These were built to a revised and improved design, but still working on the flare kiln principle, and were supported by a grinding mill and readily available access to the rail network. These kilns can be found next to the Museum Ticket Office and the Smithy.
A third & final set of kilns were built at Amberley around 1905, to a Belgian design by Hippolyte De Witt. Built in a block of 18 firing chambers (two rows of nine, back to back), the intention was for the kilns to provide a continuous operation. The design was unsuccessful, however, and by 1910 the kilns were significantly modified and converted to conventional updraught kilns.
The site flourished during the first half of the 20th century, making good use of a 1937 government subsidy for the use of lime on agricultural land, and a modernisation scheme was undertaken in the 1950s. Originally quarried by hand and with explosives, and moved by horse & cart, mechanical excavation took over during the mid 20th century until the quarry closed. The quarry was originally home to several lime producers, but by 1876 John & Thomas Cunningham Pepper had bought out all the other producers on site. Developing their business to include the manufacture & distribution of building materials (and using a number of depots scattered across Sussex towns), the business continued until 1968, with the last lime burnt in 1964.
Infromation Panels are situated around the site. For further infromation please click on the relevent panel guide below.
Panels 1 2 3
Panels 4 5 6
Panels 7 8 9
Panels 10 11
