Lion Salt Works
| Lion Salt Works | |
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 Lion Salt Works in 2006 |
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| Location: | Marston, near Northwich, England |
| Coordinates: | Coordinates: 53°16′31″N 2°29′43″W / 53.2753°N 2.4952°W |
| OS grid reference: | SJ 670 754 |
| Founded: | 1894 |
| Built for: | John Thompson Junior |
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Listed Building – Grade II
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| Designated: | 19 August 1986 |
| Reference #: | 57604, 57605, 57606, 57607 |
 Location in Cheshire
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The Lion Salt Works is the last remaining open pan saltworks in Cheshire, England. It closed as a works in 1986 and is now preserved as a museum. The works are situated in Marston, near Northwich, England.
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[edit] History
John Thompson Junior, a member of a family that had been making salt probably since the 18th century, started the Lion Salt Works when he built a salt pan in the coal yard of the Red Lion Hotel, Marston, in 1894. During the 20th century more efficient methods of extracting and refining salt were developed, and by 1960 the works was the only business continuing to use the open pan process in the country. The business closed down in 1986 when the West African markets, the major purchaser of natural salt, were lost because of the Nigerian Civil War.[1]
[edit] Preservation
The buildings were purchased by Vale Royal District Council to prevent their demolition. In 1993 the Lion Salt Works Trust was formed as a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. In 2000 a survey showed that the land around the works was stable and during the following years money was raised from DEFRA, English Heritage, Cheshire Rural Recovery and the Northwest Development Agency to enable surveys to be completed and a conservation plan to be written. In July 2005 an application was made to the Heritage Lottery Fund and a Stage 1 award was made the following March.[2] In March 2008 it was announced that the Heritage Lottery Fund had made an award of £4.96m towards the £7m total cost of the restoration project.[3]
In 2004 Lion Salt Works was a candidate on the BBC's Restoration programme.[4] The surviving buildings have been deisgnated by English Heritage as Grade II listed buildings. The specific buildings listed are the canal salt shed,[5] the engine shed and pump house,[6] the office in the works yard,[7] and the pan sheds and stoves and the store shed behind the works.[8] The buildings are registered as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[3][9] The site is recognised as an Anchor Point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.[10]
In 2009, the site came into the ownership of Cheshire West and Chester Council. The site is currently closed for major redevelopment and will open in summer 2014 as a new heritage visitor attraction.[11]
[edit] Gallery
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Site Layout
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Plan of the Site
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The Salt Barge (pub)
[edit] See also
- Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse, Northwich, formerly The Salt Museum
- List of Scheduled Monuments in Cheshire (post-1539)
[edit] References
- ^ "17th to 19th Century and the Lion Salt Works". The Lion Salt Works Trust. http://www.lionsaltworkstrust.co.uk/history_heritage_salt_making.asp. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
- ^ "Site Development Key dates.". The Lion Salt Works Trust. http://www.lionsaltworkstrust.co.uk/history_heritage_salt_making.asp. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
- ^ a b Drury, Simon (2008-03-21). "£5m lotto boost for Salt Works". Mid Cheshire Chronicle. http://iccheshireonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100regionalnews/tm_headline=pound-5m-lotto-boost-for-salt-works&method=full&objectid=20656288&siteid=50020-name_page.html
- ^ "Lion Salt Works, Cheshire". BBC Restoration 2004. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/restoration/2004/north_lion_salt_works_01.shtml. Retrieved 23 December 2006.
- ^ "Canal salt shed at Lion Salt Works", The National Heritage List for England (English Heritage), 2011, http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1329876, retrieved 6 May 2011
- ^ "Engine shed and pump house at Lion Salt Works", The National Heritage List for England (English Heritage), 2011, http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1160985, retrieved 6 May 2011
- ^ "Office in works yard, Lion Salt Works", The National Heritage List for England (English Heritage), 2011, http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1139103, retrieved 6 May 2011
- ^ "Pan sheds and stoves and store shed behind Lion Salt Works", The National Heritage List for England (English Heritage), 2011, http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1329875, retrieved 6 May 2011
- ^ "Lion Salt Works and remains of part of the Alliance Salt Works", The National Heritage List for England (English Heritage), 2011, http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1020841, retrieved 6 May 2011
- ^ "Anchor Points Great Britain". European Route of Industrial Heritage. http://www.erih.net/anchor-points/great-britain.html. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
- ^ "Our Facilities". The Lion Salt Works Trust. http://www.lionsaltworkstrust.co.uk/facilites.asp. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
[edit] External links
- European Route of Industrial Heritage Anchor Points
- Grade II listed buildings in Cheshire
- Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Cheshire
- Visitor attractions in Cheshire
- Industry museums in the United Kingdom
- Museums in Cheshire
- Proposed museums in the United Kingdom
- Salt museums
- Food museums in the United Kingdom
- Saltworks
