Stone
The ready availability of limestone in the Cotswolds had made it a convenient building material since at least Roman times. Corsham sits on the Greater Oolitic Seam which, since it extends in about a 20 mile radius of Bath, has been termed 'Bath Stone'. This stone differs from the Cotswold seams further north by having a lower ironstone content and therefore being lighter in colour. It is also less friable and so suitable for producing the dressed blocks of stone so common in the buildings of towns like Corsham and Bath.
Until the 19th century, the Corsham area had been quarried chiefly for local use. The construction of the Box Hill railway tunnel by the great engineer Brunel, however, brought the means of transporting stone easily further afield at the same time, coincidentally, as uncovering huge new deposits. So much stone was shipped from Corsham now that Bath Stone was sometimes also known as 'Corsham Stone'.
After the First World War, the expense of extracting stone and the development of cheaper building materials almost brought quarrying for Bath Stone to an end. With the renewed interest in conservation and building design sympathetic to its context, high quality limestone is again much in demand and quarries are being worked again, not only in the Corsham area, but also at Limpley Stoke near Bath. It is understood that stone is currently being extracted regularly from up to three different quarries in Corsham.
During the First and Second World Wars, abandoned underground stone quarries under Box Hill were used to store ammunition. In the 1950's part of the 35-acre Spring Quarry was developed as a Central Government War Headquarters site to which the government could retreat in the event of a nuclear strike. Code-named 'Burlington', the radiation-proof bunker 100 feet underground consists of a street with Whitehall ministries on each side and even included a pub called 'the Rose and Crown'. Until recently the facility was maintained by a small staff.
Until the 19th century, the Corsham area had been quarried chiefly for local use. The construction of the Box Hill railway tunnel by the great engineer Brunel, however, brought the means of transporting stone easily further afield at the same time, coincidentally, as uncovering huge new deposits. So much stone was shipped from Corsham now that Bath Stone was sometimes also known as 'Corsham Stone'.
After the First World War, the expense of extracting stone and the development of cheaper building materials almost brought quarrying for Bath Stone to an end. With the renewed interest in conservation and building design sympathetic to its context, high quality limestone is again much in demand and quarries are being worked again, not only in the Corsham area, but also at Limpley Stoke near Bath. It is understood that stone is currently being extracted regularly from up to three different quarries in Corsham.
During the First and Second World Wars, abandoned underground stone quarries under Box Hill were used to store ammunition. In the 1950's part of the 35-acre Spring Quarry was developed as a Central Government War Headquarters site to which the government could retreat in the event of a nuclear strike. Code-named 'Burlington', the radiation-proof bunker 100 feet underground consists of a street with Whitehall ministries on each side and even included a pub called 'the Rose and Crown'. Until recently the facility was maintained by a small staff.
Burlington Bunker
The following link provides details of a fascinating study of the quarries, their 20th century defence uses and related above-ground infrastructure.
