| Summary : The Portesham Quarry was opened in the 19th century and produced stone from the Upper Jurassic strata for both building stone and limeburning. The larger part of the quarry is in the Lower Purbeck (Lulworth Formation), but some stone has been dug in three beds of the Portland Limestone. The latter has been used in the construction of Abbotsbury Abbey, Hardy's Monument, and Athelhampton Hall, and more generally throughout the Cerne, Piddle, and Frome valeys, for both domestic and ecclesiastical buildings. In 1887 the quarry was connected to the a siding of the Abbotsbury Railway near Portesham Station by an inclined tramway, the course of which is followed by a modern farm track. Quarrying continued on an intermittent small-scale basis from 1895-1928. Two lime kilns once stood at the site but only part of one remains. |