Willaston Lime Kilns
| Place type: | Locality |
|---|---|
| Town or Locality: | Willaston |
Lime burning was one of the first industries established in Willaston. There was a large demand for lime by the building industry and limestone was abundant in the Willaston area. Lime was also a household commodity, being used in ‘deep drop’ and toilets in general. This changed with the development of the septic system.
Packed in kilns, the limestone took an average of twenty hours to burn, with a similar period before it was cooled off, sufficient to bag. There were a number of lime kilns operating in Willaston, some of them quite large enterprises.
Gawler and Willaston Lime and Brick Company Limited
It is interesting to read the extract “Jottings in and around Gawler” published in The Bunyip on Friday 30th May 1879 - “...After glancing at all worth seeing in the place I accompanied a guide to the LIME AND BRICK COMPANY’S WORK. The grounds at present occupied by the Company extends along the railway line, and has a frontage thereto of about 22 chains. From one end to the other limestone is visible, the surface in some parts being literally covered with it; there is little doubt therefore, with the facilities afforded for transit, the immense amount of material easily available for manufacture into lime, the excellent markets not only in the vicinity but in Adelaide and elsewhere, that the Lime and Brick Company will, when in full swing, speedily show an excellent dividend to shareholders, and also increase their capital.”
The article went on to talk about the easy availability of large amounts of quality timber nearby. Over 3500 shares had been taken up at £1 per share and the Directors had secured offices in the Gawler Town Hall. By October of 1879, The Bunyip reported that the equivalent of 42 tons, 1,365 bushels of lime was being transported each week. Lime from the Willaston kilns were in demand in Adelaide, Port Adelaide, Burra, Hallett and Morgan. In May 1892 the Gawler & Willaston Lime & Brick Company was in liquidation.
Lime Kiln, Redbanks Road
Mr. George Crossing built the lime kiln in 1876. It was built to his own design and regarded as unique in the colony. He purchased the land from William Ayling in October 1876 for £7-5-0
Quoting from “The Gawler Handbook” by George Loyau , written in 1880 – “The kilns are very substantial buildings of brick, the walls being four feet thick and ninety feet long.....They are divided into three compartments and can turn out immense quantities of lime. Being built on the side of a hill they put the wood and limestone in from the back, and the lime is taken out at the bottom or lower side. This saves a great deal of labour, as the kiln discharges itself. The permanent kiln is a huge affair capable of burning 1,000 bushels of lime at a time”.
Mr. Crossing sold the kiln in May 1895 to Elizabeth Lenert for £200 “for the land with four lime kilns and all other improvements thereon”. Elizabeth Lenert was the wife of Charles Lenert of Willaston Limeburners. It was later sold to Messrs. Ayling and Dwyer.
Ayling & Dwyer Lime Kiln, Redbanks Road
They operated the kiln until the 1930s when it was closed down. They then moved to Davies Street Willaston using the kiln built by Mr. E. Addis. They operated it until 1945 when Mr. H. Ward took it over. It was closed down in the 1950s.
In 1946 Messrs. Ayling & Dwyer presented the original kiln site in the centre of Redbanks Road to Gawler Council for a children’s playground. As The Bunyip reported on 12th July – “About thirty Willaston ratepayers attended a meeting in the Memorial Hall on Tuesday night to discuss a suitable site for a children’s playground at Willaston. The meeting had three sites to consider – the block of land on which the Memorial Hall stands, a block of land next to the Willaston Hotel, and a three-cornered piece of land presented free of cost by Messrs. Ayling and Dwyer.”
The vote was 15 to 5 to accept the offer by Ayling & Dwyer. The playground was opened in late 1947 or early 1948. The Rotary Club at some stage took over the responsibility of the playground equipment and called it Lime Kiln Playground. In March 1993 it was renamed Ayling & Dwyer Lime Kiln Playground as requested by a relative.
Eyres Lime Kiln, High Street
The first lime kilns in Willaston were built in High Street by Mr. James Davies in approximately 1864.The kilns turned out about 12,000 bushels a week. The stone used for burning was dug from the property.He employed 5 horses and 10 hands. Mr. Geo Eyres was the foreman, and on the death of Davies, took over the business in 1883. After his death in 1904, his son continued the business, employing 17 men.
Turner’s Lime Kiln, High Street
This lime kiln was originally built by Mr. Hunnerup. Later it was taken over by Mr. Dick Turner and then by his son, Bill. In 1953, two new kilns were constructed at Turner’s lime burning yards. They were to replace kilns over 40 years old, but still in regular use.
“The 2 new kilns will be on ground level, whereas the old ones were approximately 5-ft underground....Lime stone, once available in ample quantities within a mile or two of Willaston, now has to be sought much farther afield and at present is coming from the other side of Wasleys.” (The Bunyip 10th April 1953) By 1953 the only other lime burning kiln in operation in Willaston was owned by Mr. R Pope.
These lime kilns closed permanently in the late 1950s or early 1960s.
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