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Digley Quarries, HolmbridgeWest Yorkshire Local Geological Site |
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Geological Sites | Leeds | Bradford | Calderdale | Kirklees | Wakefield STATUS: Local Geological Site SITE DESCRIPTION: All three sites show Upper Carboniferous Namurian (Millstone Grit) rocks. Digley Road Turnaround is at the foot of Digley Dam and exposes about 4m of massive Upper Kinderscout Grit, which is very coarse. Bingley Quarry is on the north side of Digley Dam and is now a car park which gives good views of the faces. The Readycon Dean Flags, of Upper Carboniferous age, can be studied in some very large, stable blocks on one side of the quarry. The sandstone beds show excellent cross-bedding, with thin siltstones in places Alison Quarry is adjacent to Bingley Quarry and has similar sandstones, although they have very regular bedding which has allowed easy exploitation of the rock for building stone. Plugs and feathers were used and the drill holes for these can be seen. The quarry also shows how the stone was worked as the hole has been only partly backfilled. HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS: Bingley Quarry was operating at least from 1881 - 1894, with no records after 1894. Proprietors Frederick and Joseph Marsden probably provided wall stone and some building stone for the local area. Bingley and Alison Quarries are recorded in the 1933 Memoir (see reference below) as being actively worked for flagstones. Drill holes are obvious on many beds, especially in Alison Quarry, as the rock is well bedded and easy to work. The quarries were also used in the 1940s to exploit building stone for building Digley Dam and associated buildings and walls. EDUCATIONAL VALUE AND INTERPRETATION: These three localities are ideal to use as a geological trail, to study different types of sandstones and their structures and to interpret sedimentary environments. The general public would find the relationship of the geology to the landscape and the economic use of the building stone of interest. AESTHETIC VALUE: Digley Reservoir is part of the Peak District National Park. The footpaths in the area have excellent views of Holme Moss and the high Pennines. ACCESS AND SAFETY: Digley Turnaround is found at the foot of Digley Dam
and was created when the dam was built in the 1940s. Access is by Digley
Road opposite Holmbridge church by the cricket ground. There is parking
for 1/2 cars or a minibus. It is easy to study the rocks in detail and
the face is safe. Bingley Quarry is at the north side of Digley Dam, and
is now a Yorkshire Water car park, maintained by the Peak District National
Park. Access is from A6024 at Holmbridge. Follow signs to the picnic site
up Field End Lane by the Bridge Tavern, opposite Holmbridge Church. Go
straight on along Bank Top Lane when the road turns sharply to the right.
Parking is available for 20-30 cars. Because the lower part of the face
is overgrown by trees and shrubs it is only possible to approach the face
itself in one location. However, there are many fallen blocks which are
safe to approach to study the rocks in detail. Alison Quarry is next to
Bingley Quarry, linked to it by a quarry track. This quarry has been backfilled
but there is a steep drop of about 5m to the quarry floor, which is therefore
inaccessible. However, there is an excellent view of the structures in
the quarry from the footpath which runs across the backfill, although
this path is only accessible over a wall stile so cannot be reached by
wheelchairs. All three sites are close to Digley reservoir which has a
popular footpath running around its perimeter and is very well-used, especially
at weekends, when the car park can be full. |
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