Monument record MWX4045 - Tilly Whim quarries, Durlston, Swanage

An old quarry marked as Tilly Whim (Old Quarry), marked on the first edition OS map. The quarrying is visible on aerial photographs of the 1950s and 2005. Extensive cliff-side galleries situated to the south-west of Durlston Head which formerly worked the Portland Freestone. Its earliest working date is unkown, although it is reputed to be the source of stone for Corfe Castle. It was certainly extensively quarried during the Napoleonic Wars for fortification building. Demand slumped after the Wars, and in 1887 George Burt opened the galleries as a tourist attraction on his Durlston Estate, and they stayed open until rock falls led to their permanent closure in 1976. The earliest quarrying is probably now representd by the ledge on the seaward side of the quarry, with subsequent workings being conducted underground. The ledge also facilitated loading of stone onto boats below using whims

An old quarry marked as Tilly Whim (Old Quarry), marked on the first edition OS map, also marked on the second edition map (1-2) The quarrying is visible on aerial photographs of the 1950s and 2005 to the east of Anvil Point Lighthouse. The quarrying is visible over an area measuring approximately 135 m by 26 m. <4-5> This site was digitally plotted during the South west Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey (Dorset).

Record last edited

Jan 1 2024 2:25PM