📌 Great Tosson, Northumberland
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There used to be over 400 limekilns across Northumberland, built to convert limestone and coal into quicklime for use in agriculture (to reduce soil acidity) and building construction (for mortar). This calcination process has now ceased, at least in small scale kilns, and very few of the original buildings remain; this survivor at Great Tosson is probably the finest left in Northumberland National Park. It was built in 1888 for Lord Armstrong of Cragside, Rothbury; unusually, he appointed a qualified architect to build it: George Reavell. Keen sightseers might also be interested in visiting the very ruinous Tosson Tower, found half a mile uphill on the same road just beyond Great Tosson. This pele tower was built sometime in the 14th or 15th century to ward off pesky Border Reivers.
🌍 Location
📌 By minor road 0.5 mi north of Great Tosson
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NU 027010
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 55.303150,-1.958418
🚌 Bus to Thropton (1 mi via public footpath)
🚗 Car park
📝 Key info
⌚ Always viewable
🎫 Free
