The west kiln is a “draw kiln,” which means it has a permanent grate over the hearth with two main openings: a stoke hole for feeding the fire and a draw hole for retrieving the lime (also known as quicklime). Both these holes can still be seen on the Prestow Wood kilns. Kilns in this area were often built into hillsides, making it easier to load materials from the top. Fuels like wood, coal (called culm), and coke were used to start and maintain the burn.
The kiln would be loaded using a wheelbarrow that traveled up a ramp, which is still slightly visible today. The materials were dumped into the round furnace, which was lined with clay bricks. Layers of fuel (culm) and limestone were added alternately, with the limestone being converted into lime. The fire was started at the base using wood, and a skilled limeburner would manage the process, stoking the fire and carefully raking out the finished lime through the hole at the bottom. Limeburners had to be good at preventing blockages.
The diagram shows what the kiln might have looked like when fully loaded, with the limeburner and an assistant working to keep it running. Unlike other kilns, the west Prestow Wood kiln had a narrower fill point or chimney (about 1 meter wide), instead of the wider openings some other kilns had. Tending to the kiln was likely hot, exhausting, and dangerous work.
You can still see the stone wall outline and floor of the shelter or building that once stood in front of the kiln. In 2024, YCCCART conducted an archaeological excavation here, though the findings were inconclusive. This building likely served as a dry storage area for the lime and provided some protection for the limeburner, who often stayed on site throughout the burn. People also believe that since it was the warmest spot in the village, it became a social hub where people gathered to drink, gamble, and engage in other activities!
Kilns were usually operated by a skilled limeburner and their assistant. They worked in tough conditions, often in 12-hour shifts around the clock. The 1861 Census lists John Collet Moger, a 56-year-old limeburner from Wrington, with his 10-year-old son William assisting him. William was still working as a limeburner in Wrington in 1891.
If you look closely at the right flank wall of the kiln, you’ll spot some brick infill in a small panel. This might have been where a cupboard was built into the kiln for the limeburner to store kindling or keep his lunch warm and dry.