Cottage foundations 240m west of Quarterwall Cottages, Lundy

Reasons for Designation

Lundy is a small, steep sided island in the Bristol Channel, 16m north of Hartland Point, north Devon. Aligned north-south, it is 6km long by 1km wide and supports a predominately moorland vegetation. The 100m high cliffs and tabular form give it a striking appearance, visible in clear weather from parts of south west England and south Wales. Lundy's remoteness and (until the 19th century construction of the Beach Road) its inaccessibility, combined with a lack of shelter and cultivable soils, has meant that it has escaped more recent occupation or development. It therefore preserves a remarkable variety of archaeological sites from early prehistory (c.8000 BC) onwards, representing evidence for habitation, fortification, farming and industry. There are also archaeological remains in the waters surrounding the island - over 150 shipwrecks are already recorded. Most of the island's archaeology is well documented from detailed survey in the 1980s and 1990s.

The extraction of stone for various purposes has been practised in England during most periods from the Neolithic onwards. The exploitation of granite is comparatively recent, with its resistence to impact and weathering being its main virtue. Used for buildings and, in the 20th century, roads, the granite quarries of the south west are of particular note. These cottages, although never finished, were reduced to foundations by the removal of standing fabric in 1896. However, the remains will provide insight into the planned welfare of workers in the quarry industry on Lundy as well as giving information about construction methods and their proposed use. Together with the quarry, they provide sufficient detail to enable precise reconstruction of the workings of a stone quarrying operation during the late 19th century.

Details

The monument includes the foundations of two blocks of cottages built for the workers at the Lundy Granite Company's quarry 250m to the east. The cottages bear a datestone, now detached, showing that they were started in 1868. In that year the company went into receivership and the cottages were never finished. The cottages are in two blocks of four beside the track which runs the length of the island. Each block measures 45m by 10m. Immediately to the west, behind the southern block, is the foundation of an outside privy measuring 12m by 5m. The walls of the cottages were demolished and the stone used in the construction of the church in 1896. The associated infirmary, a block of cottages to the north and the quarry are the subject of separate schedulings.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract. It includes a 2 metre boundary around the archaeological features, considered to be essential for the monument's support and preservation.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

30355

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Langham, A, The Lundy Island Chronical in The Lundy Island Chronical, (1986), 8

Other
Thackray, C, The National Trust Archaeological Survey, (1989)

End of official list entry

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