Cement Kilns: Crown and Quarry

Post-1900 Crown Brand.

Location:

Grid reference: TQ74956897
x=574950
y=168970
51°23'34"N; 0°30'53"E
Civil Parish: Frindsbury Extra, Kent

Clinker manufacture operational: 11/1907-1932, 1936-1939, 1946-1963

Approximate total clinker production: 3.0 million tonnes. Prior to the formation of Crown & Quarry in 1907, the seven Frindsbury plants had made about 2.8 million tonnes.

Raw materials:

Upper Chalk (Seaford Chalk Formation: 85-88 Ma) from around 574600,169700: the quarry reached the south-east side of the churchyard by 1939, and after the war, first the south-west side then the north-east side of the churchyard were quarried away.
Medway Alluvial Clay until 1939. 1946-1963 London Clay (London Clay Formation: 48-55 Ma) from Shorne Wood 568220,169070 (Shorne) brought by road.

Ownership: APCM (Blue Circle)

The plant was the successor of the Frindsbury group of seven adjacent plants (from north to south, Phoenix, Globe, Bridge, Crown, Quarry, Beehive and Beaver). See also a general history of the Frindsbury cement plants. Their combined capacity (t/year) was as follows:

The site was cramped and short of raw materials as the chalk of the Frindsbury peninsula was rapidly removed, leaving existing settlements, and the parish church, precariously perched on chalk pinnacles. APCM having acquired the entire group therefore cut back and rationalized the operations of the site as “Crown and Quarry”, although it is symptomatic of the management paralysis of the combine at this time that the rationalization was delayed until 1907.

Of the seven plants, Phoenix and the already-closed Bridge and Globe plants were left derelict until the leases were sold in the late 1930s. By the amalgamation of the remaining Crown, Quarry, Beehive and Beaver plants, it had initially 88 chamber kilns with a capacity of 2555 t/week. The Crown kilns were removed around 1912, leaving 59 kilns with a capacity of 1714 t/week. This was for a projected rotary kiln which was shelved due to WWI. From this time on, the chamber kilns were used intermittently as make-up capacity. They were last used in 1925 when, to make room for the installation of the first rotary kiln, the Quarry chamber kilns were removed, leaving only the 34 kilns of Beehive and Beaver; these also were shut down and progressively removed. The pre-rotary plant was described in detail in the APCM 1924 schedule. The rebuilt plant was provided with extra clinker grinding capacity (transferred from Burham) that could be fed directly by crane from barges, allowing the plant to grind clinker from the plants above the bridge - mainly Burham, and later Martin Earles.

From 1940 to 1946, the plant was requisitioned by the Ministry of Supply for fertiliser manufacture. A fluoroapatite rock was interground with 5% sand and 20% soda ash and nodulised, then burned to a clinker containing rhenanite. Although designed as a pilot for purpose-built plants, the project was a failure and was not progressed.

The early plants’ site had no rail link, although the quarries were connected with standard gauge rail. In 1929, the quarry track was connected to the main line at Strood dock, but water transport remained predominant throughout the later life of the plant. The whole Frindsbury plants site has been completely redeveloped, the more recent plant area being occupied by the incongruously-named Laser Quay trading estate. The quarries have also mostly been built over, but the more northerly ones around the parish church are still waste land.

Power supply

The plant inherited the multiple engines and direct drives of the old plant, with gas engines driving the old Quarry rawmills, and steam engines driving the Beaver and Crown finish mills and the cooperage. With the 1926 re-build, the plant was electrified, using purchased power from Barking, and ultimately from the grid.

Rawmills

A washmill and screener mill located on the quay were used, milling chalk and clay together.

Two rotary kilns were installed:

Kiln A1

Supplier: Vickers
Operated: 26/03/1926-1932, 1938-1939, 1947-08/03/1963
Process: Wet
Location: hot end 574937,168995: cold end 574958,168938: hot end enclosed.
Dimensions: 198’6”× 9’0”B / 7’0”CD (metric 60.50 × 2.743 / 2.134)
Rotation (viewed from firing end): anticlockwise
Slope: ?°
Speed: ?
Drive: ?
Kiln profile: 0×1791: 914×1791: 3962×2743: 11582×2743: 14021×2134: 60503×2134: Tyres at 1753, 15164, 28880, 42596, 56312
Cooler: rotary 59’0”× 5’5” (metric 17.98 × 1.651) beneath kiln
Cooler profile: 0×2261: 4572×1651: 17983×1651: Tyres at 3353, 14326
Fuel: Coal
Coal Mill: ?
Exhaust: via drop-out box to stack.
Typical Output: 142 t/d
Typical Heat Consumption: 7.55 MJ/kg

Kiln A2

Supplier: ex Magheramorne A2 (FLS) reassembled by Head Wrightson with a Vickers Armstrong Desiccator added
Operated: 18/07/1936-1939, 1946-06/03/1963
Process: Wet
Location: hot end 574943,169000: cold end 574965,168941: hot end enclosed.
Dimensions: 205’6”× 9’1¼”B / 7’10⅝”C / 12’0”D (metric 62.64 × 2.775 / 2.405 / 3.658)
Rotation (viewed from firing end): anticlockwise
Slope: ?°
Speed: ?
Drive: ?
Kiln profile: 0×1905: 1524×2403: 2743×2403: 3708×2775: 10846×2775: 13056×2403: 49327×2403: 52299×3658: 58395×3658: 61684×1600: 62636×1600: Tyres at 2235, 14478, 28905, 45822, 60401
Cooler: rotary 63’8½”× 6’3½” (metric 19.42 × 1.918) beneath kiln (ex Wouldham (Essex) B-series kiln)
Cooler profile: 0×1918: 19418×1918: Tyres at 4420, 17221
Fuel: Coal
Coal Mill: ?
Exhaust: via drop-out box and ID fan to stack.
Typical Output: 215 t/d
Typical Heat Consumption: 7.20 MJ/kg

Sources::

Primary Sources:
- Greenhithe Archive
- Rochester Bridge Archive
- APCM 1924 schedule
- Ordnance Survey 1:2500 mapping
- BGS mapping and monographs
Confirmatory Sources:
- Jackson, pp 222, 277
- Preston, pp 169, 174, 200
- Cook, p 69
- Pugh, p 263

Frindsbury 1907 cement plants layout map

The Frindsbury plants in 1907, at their maximum development, and before Blue Circle began to dismantle them, showing locations of washmills (where known) and chamber kilns. The grid squares are 100 m. The land-lot boundaries are approximate.

Development of the Frindsbury cement plants

The bank of the river on Limehouse Reach was the site of the first Portland cement plant in the Medway Valley in 1851. At this point the river cuts through the uppermost levels of the Upper Chalk in an incised meander. A ridge of chalk runs NW-SE, and the river, in rounding the Frindsbury peninsula, runs hard against the chalk slope on the upstream (west) side, and forms an alluvial flood plain on the downstream (east) side. Thus, when I. C. Johnson decided to set up in business on his own, the location had a number of advantages:

it had (by the standards of the time) good sea-going communications
there was chalk available within 100 m of the waterfront
the Medway Alluvium - at that time the most favoured clay for Portland cement, was close at hand.

Furthermore, a disused steam-powered oil mill already existed on the site, and Johnson took over the lease on this. In order to facilitate construction of the cement plant to his specifications, Johnson went into partnership with the prominent engineering contractor George Burge. The company was called Burge, Johnson & Co, and the plant was named the Crown Works. George Burge put his son (George junior) in charge of the cement operations, and when Johnson left in 1853, Burge junior was left in sole charge. George Burge Jr (1832-1911) concentrated on cement manufacture and on the development of new kilns, and became the key figure in the subsequent development of the site, constructing all seven cement plants. He also constructed the Falcon and Gillingham plants and rebuilt the Wouldham Court plant.

Operation of the Frindsbury plants was complicated by land ownership considerations. The southern part of the peninsula was (and still is) owned by the Rochester Bridge Trust, and the northern part was (and still is) owned by the Dean and Chapter of Rochester Cathedral. Both were inalienable feudal lands, and the landlords were due both ground rents and mineral extraction royalties. Johnson's original plant straddled the boundary of the two land lots. Rather than deal with multiple quarry operators, a single mineral extraction company was nominated, and all users were required to source their chalk from this. George Burge Jr went into partnership with wheeler-dealer William Tingey (1821-1907) to obtain the lease on most of the peninsula chalk land, and they formed the Rochester Chalk Company to work it. The chalk at Frindsbury was of limited extent and difficult to develop, and the company opened up more reliable chalk lands up-river at Wouldham. For the rest of the 19^th century the operation of the cement plants was affected by strained relations with the chalk company.

George Burge Jr sold his Crown plant to William Tingey in 1868 and set up the Phoenix Portland Cement Co Ltd (in partnership with John McGowan) to operate the Phoenix plant on the site of a previous lime plant at the north end of the site. The Crown plant was from then on owned by William Tingey & Son until 1900, although Burge continued to design and construct its expanding manufacturing equipment. Both the Crown and Phoenix plants initially had wet process bottle kilns with slurry backs and separately-heated drying flats. In the 1870s, probably in co-operation with his mentor I. C. Johnson, Burge developed a chamber kiln design, and subsequently obtained a patent 1872. He formed a partnership with William Morgan and C. R. Cheffins to set up the Gillingham plant (trading as the Gillingham Portland Cement Co Ltd) and probably installed his first chamber kilns there. The partnership was subsequently joined by Frank Chapman – William Tingey’s son in law.

Burge probably installed his first Frindsbury chamber kilns at Crown in 1876. After this, the proven compactness and labour economy of chamber kilns prompted Burge to construct more plants. In 1880 he set up the Globe plant for J. C. Gostling & Co Ltd, who had previously set up and operated the London Portland plant at Northfleet. He also set up the Beehive plant which he operated himself as an experiment in his first use of a double-deck chamber kiln design similar to the Batchelor kiln. After the success of the latter, most of the kilns he installed were of this type, allowing many kilns to be crammed in to the restricted footprint of the Medway bank. The Phoenix plant was converted to chamber kiln operation in 1883, in which year he also built the Falcon plant at Otterham Quay for F. C. Barron.

The subsequent timeline of the Frindsbury site was as follows:

1884 Burge built the Beaver plant at the south end of the peninsula for a partnership of William Slark and Charles Jones, trading (from 9/1885) as the Beaver Cement Co Ltd.
1885 Burge built the Bridge plant for T. C. Hooman & Co Ltd.
1887 the Beaver plant was acquired by McLean & Co Ltd - a Newark-based company apparently primarily concerned with gypsum-based products.
1888 Burge built the Quarry plant as an expansion of the Gillingham Portland Cement Co Ltd.
1890 the Bridge plant was acquired by Gillingham Portland Cement Co Ltd, as the first of a series of rationalisations of the site.
1892 Burge sold the Beehive plant to William Levett & Co Ltd, who already operated the Elmley plant.
1893 the Gillingham company, including the Bridge and Quarry plants, was acquired by Britain’s largest cement company - J. B. White & Brothers Ltd.
1895 White’s acquired the Globe plant (so operating Globe, Bridge and Quarry), and McLean’s and Levett’s merged to form McLean, Levett & Co Ltd (operating Beehive and Beaver).
1900 White’s, McLean Levett, William Tingey & Son, the Phoenix Portland Cement Co Ltd and the Rochester Chalk Co, along with twenty other cement firms, merged to form the APCM. Thus all seven plants were brought under common management. William Tingey Jr became one of 25 directors of the new company, which was mainly dominated by White’s.
November 1907 Independent operation of the plants ceased. The plant was progressively dismantled and the remaining functioning parts became Crown & Quarry Works, which finally ceased clinker manufacture on 8/3/1963.

There follows a list of all the chamber kilns installed at the Frindsbury site, based upon the best available information. This provides a large database of chamber kiln characteristics, but it should be borne in mind that, given that all the kilns were constructed by George Burge Jr, they are not necessarily representative of chamber kilns in general.

Plant	#	started	grid x	grid y	kiln dia ft	chamber length ft	decks	drying area m²	clinker capacity tonne
Phoenix	1	1883	4723	9328	17.25	57	2	188	28.4
Phoenix	2	1883	4727	9324	17.25	57	2	188	28.4
Phoenix	3	1887	4731	9319	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	4	1887	4735	9315	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	5	1887	4739	9310	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	6	1887	4743	9306	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	7	1887	4747	9301	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	8	1887	4751	9297	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	9	1887	4755	9292	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	10	1887	4759	9288	18.75	56	2	199	31.1
Phoenix	11	1890	4764	9283	19.75	55	2	205	32.0
Globe	1	1880	4773	9268	13.00	67	1	68	16.9
Globe	2	1880	4776	9265	13.00	67	1	84	16.9
Globe	3	1880	4779	9262	13.00	67	1	84	16.9
Globe	4	1880	4782	9258	13.00	67	1	84	16.9
Globe	5	1880	4785	9255	13.00	67	1	84	16.9
Globe	6	1880	4788	9252	13.00	67	1	84	16.9
Globe	7	1888	4791	9249	15.00	65	2	172	22.2
Globe	8	1888	4794	9245	15.00	65	2	172	22.2
Globe	9	1888	4798	9241	15.00	65	2	172	22.2
Globe	10	1888	4801	9238	15.00	65	2	172	22.2
Globe	11	1888	4804	9234	15.00	65	2	154	22.2
Globe	12	1897	4813	9306	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Globe	13	1897	4817	9302	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Globe	14	1897	4821	9298	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Globe	15	1897	4825	9294	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Globe	16	1897	4829	9290	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Globe	17	1897	4833	9285	17.50	99	1	165	29.0
Bridge	1	1885	4864	9213	17.50	102	1	155	29.0
Bridge	2	1885	4866	9208	17.50	100	1	161	29.0
Bridge	3	1885	4869	9203	17.50	78	1	129	29.0
Bridge	4	1885	4871	9198	17.50	96	1	165	29.0
Bridge	5	1888	4873	9192	19.50	97	1	173	31.8
Bridge	6	1888	4875	9186	19.50	94	1	168	31.8
Bridge	7	1889	4869	9229	20.00	65	1	126	32.1
Bridge	8	1889	4866	9235	20.00	67	1	129	32.1
Bridge	9	1889	4864	9241	20.00	69	1	133	32.1
Bridge	10	1889	4861	9247	20.00	70	1	136	32.1
Bridge	11	1889	4858	9253	20.00	72	1	139	32.1
Bridge	12	1892	4853	9267	20.00	43	2	163	32.1
Bridge	13	1892	4851	9271	20.00	43	2	162	32.1
Bridge	14	1892	4848	9276	20.00	43	2	163	32.1
Bridge	15	1892	4846	9280	20.00	43	2	163	32.1
Bridge	16	1892	4844	9284	20.00	43	2	163	32.1
Crown	1	1876	4917	9093	16.00	56	2	171	25.0
Crown	2	1876	4919	9088	16.00	55	2	168	25.0
Crown	3	1876	4921	9083	16.00	54	2	166	25.0
Crown	4	1877	4923	9078	16.00	53	2	164	25.0
Crown	5	1877	4925	9073	16.00	53	2	161	25.0
Crown	6	1877	4927	9069	16.00	52	2	159	25.0
Crown	7	1877	4929	9064	16.00	51	2	156	25.0
Crown	8	1877	4931	9059	16.00	50	2	154	25.0
Crown	9	1877	4934	9054	16.00	50	2	152	25.0
Crown	10	1877	4936	9049	16.00	49	2	149	25.0
Crown	11	1881	4939	9043	19.50	48	2	177	31.8
Crown	12	1881	4941	9037	19.50	48	2	177	31.8
Crown	13	1881	4943	9031	19.50	48	2	177	31.8
Crown	14	1881	4945	9025	19.50	48	2	177	31.8
Crown	15	1889	4947	9019	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	16	1889	4949	9013	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	17	1889	4951	9007	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	18	1889	4953	9001	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	19	1889	4955	8995	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	20	1889	4957	8989	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	21	1889	4959	8983	19.75	40	2	149	32.0
Crown	22	1899	4915	9099	18.00	58	2	200	30.0
Crown	23	1899	4913	9105	18.00	58	2	200	30.0
Crown	24	1903	4961	8977	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Crown	25	1903	4963	8971	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Crown	26	1903	4965	8965	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Crown	27	1903	4967	8960	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Crown	28	1903	4969	8954	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Crown	29	1903	4971	8949	18.00	41	2	142	30.0
Quarry	1	1889	4957	8915	19.50	91	1	168	31.8
Quarry	2	1889	4957	8908	19.50	91	1	168	31.8
Quarry	3	1889	4958	8902	19.50	91	1	168	31.8
Quarry	4	1889	4958	8896	19.50	91	1	168	31.8
Quarry	5	1889	4958	8889	19.50	91	1	168	31.8
Quarry	6	1890	4961	8882	18.25	99	1	170	30.4
Quarry	7	1890	4963	8877	18.25	99	1	171	30.4
Quarry	8	1890	4966	8871	18.25	100	1	172	30.4
Quarry	9	1892	4970	8861	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	10	1892	4973	8856	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	11	1892	4976	8850	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	12	1892	4978	8845	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	13	1892	4981	8839	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	14	1892	4983	8834	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	15	1892	4986	8828	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	16	1892	4988	8823	18.50	56	2	199	30.8
Quarry	17	1894	4993	8813	18.00	52	2	178	30.0
Quarry	18	1894	4996	8807	18.00	52	2	178	30.0
Quarry	19	1894	4998	8802	18.00	52	2	178	30.0
Quarry	20	1894	5001	8797	18.00	52	2	178	30.0
Quarry	21	1894	5003	8791	18.00	52	2	178	30.0
Quarry	22	1896	5010	8787	19.00	45	2	162	31.4
Quarry	23	1896	5013	8781	19.00	45	2	162	31.4
Quarry	24	1896	5015	8776	19.00	45	2	162	31.4
Quarry	25	1896	5018	8770	19.00	45	2	162	31.4
Beehive	1	1880	5048	8700	17.50	53	2	177	29.0
Beehive	2	1880	5046	8705	17.50	53	2	177	29.0
Beehive	3	1880	5044	8711	17.50	53	2	177	29.0
Beehive	4	1880	5041	8716	17.50	53	2	177	29.0
Beehive	5	1892	5045	8727	17.50	51	2	169	29.0
Beehive	6	1892	5043	8732	17.50	51	2	171	29.0
Beehive	7	1892	5041	8737	17.50	51	2	171	29.0
Beehive	8	1892	5038	8742	17.50	51	2	166	29.0
Beehive	9	1895	5077	8713	16.25	55	2	171	25.7
Beehive	10	1895	5075	8718	16.25	55	2	171	25.7
Beehive	11	1895	5073	8723	16.25	55	2	171	25.7
Beehive	12	1895	5071	8728	16.25	55	2	171	25.7
Beehive	13	1900	5074	8736	19.00	52	2	187	31.4
Beehive	14	1900	5071	8742	19.00	52	2	187	31.4
Beehive	15	1900	5069	8748	19.00	52	2	187	31.4
Beehive	16	1900	5067	8753	19.00	52	2	187	31.4
Beaver	1	1884	5053	8669	14.50	60	1	83	20.8
Beaver	2	1884	5055	8665	14.50	60	1	83	20.8
Beaver	3	1884	5057	8660	14.50	60	1	83	20.8
Beaver	4	1884	5059	8656	14.50	60	1	83	20.8
Beaver	5	1884	5061	8652	14.50	60	1	83	20.8
Beaver	6	1888	5063	8647	16.50	58	2	182	26.4
Beaver	7	1888	5065	8642	16.50	58	2	182	26.4
Beaver	8	1888	5068	8637	16.50	58	2	182	26.4
Beaver	9	1888	5070	8632	16.50	58	2	182	26.4
Beaver	10	1891	5072	8627	17.00	59	2	193	27.7
Beaver	11	1891	5075	8622	17.00	59	2	193	27.7
Beaver	12	1891	5077	8617	17.00	59	2	193	27.7
Beaver	13	1891	5079	8612	17.00	59	2	193	27.7
Beaver	14	1891	5082	8607	17.00	59	2	193	27.7
Beaver	15	1893	5084	8601	18.00	51	2	176	30.0
Beaver	16	1893	5087	8596	18.00	51	2	176	30.0
Beaver	17	1893	5089	8591	18.00	51	2	176	30.0
Beaver	18	1893	5092	8585	18.00	51	2	176	30.0

Crown & Quarry No.1 Rotary Kiln

I have a problem with this. The kiln exemplifies a typical conflict of historical information that occurs all the time.

The kiln is unusual among pre-1930 kilns in that its start-up date is a matter of unambiguous record. In P. M. Stewart's address to the APCM AGM on 29/3/1926, there was a paragraph on Bevans Works - the main up-rate project of the time, in which he announced that the first kiln had been lit up. He added, as practically an afterthought:

We have also reconstructed the Crown works on the Medway, installing a modern rotary kiln, which has just been started up.

The minutes of the Management Conference of that year give the start date as 26/3/1926, three days before the AGM, and implies that this was a new departure for the plant. Production data show that the plant was producing chamber kiln clinker up to 1925. On the face of it, this would appear to be a clear-cut account of a change from static kiln to rotary process. The narrative seems reasonable enough. The 1950s Blue Circle kiln schedules show the kiln as starting in 1926, saying the supplier was Vickers, and giving the detailed dimensions of kiln and cooler.

However, there are other accounts. For example, C. G. Down (online, 1968) says that in 1915:

Crown, which had recently been modernised, provided ample manufacturing capacity (due to the new rotary kiln installed in 1913). . . .

I had always been aware of this, but the article is about railways rather than cement, so I disregarded it. I have no evidence to resolve this. The Ordnance Survey maps, as so often, were revised in 1907 and 1932, so the state between 1913 and 1926 is not shown. However, on reviewing the design of Kiln 1, doubts are aroused, in that the kiln appears to be atypical of Vickers kilns of the time.

Vickers supplied twelve 200 ft kilns in the 1920s (in addition to a few longer ones), of which the Crown & Quarry kiln was one. But all the others were 9 ft in diameter - and this was external diameter. The standard kiln section was 9 ft long and 8'10½" internal diameter. The sections in the rear of the Crown & Quarry kiln were 7'6" long and 7'0" internal diameter. The only other sections of this size were installed at Barnstone, Barton and Stockton, by Edgar Allen during 1911-1914. But all Blue Circle's new kilns of the 1912-1914 period were sourced from Ernest Newell.

So there are a number of possibilities:

The kiln was brand new, made by Vickers to an odd and inexplicable specification.
The kiln was made up by Vickers, using an earlier kiln installed per-war by Allen.
The kiln was made up by Vickers, using a second-hand kiln section obtained from elsewhere.

I don't recall any material in the Blue Circle archive contradicting option 1, but, in common with other APCM material, this may have been destroyed in the early 1920s. Possible hidden sources are photographs - the kiln area was easily visible from the opposite side of the river - and dated pictures would settle the question unambiguously. Possible sources of circumstantial evidence are newspapers - a spate of dust complaints might make headlines - and the Rochester Bridge Archives, which will contain information on permissions if option 2 applies.

If option 3 applies, where did the 142'6" × 7'0" section come from?