Holy Island Waggonway

The Holy Island Waggonway (sometimes referred to as the Holy Island Tramway) was a network of waggonways across the island of Lindisfarne, Northumberland, England. The earliest two lines connected limestone quarries at the northern end of the island with lime kilns and a tidal jetty in waters known as The Basin, northwest of Lindisfarne Priory. A third line down the eastern side of the island eventually replaced the earlier routes. It was built to connect the remaining quarry with new kilns and a pair of new jetties near Lindisfarne Castle. The waggonways had all fallen into disuse by the middle of the 1880s.

Early works Lime burning on Lindisfarne was first recorded in 1344, though the process itself has been used for over four thousand years. The scale of the operation before the industrial revolution was small, with the product used locally. Geography and unenclosed land ownership inhibited ambition and opportunity, Lindisfarne was then and remains a semi-island remote from centres of population and industry. Limestone deposits extended to the neighbouring mainland, so the island had no natural advantage to exploit. The island in the 18th century was characterised by "grinding poverty, emigration, lawlessness and a decline in population."

Industrialisation In the process of enclosure on Lindisfarne in the 1790s "…the agricultural potential of the land was increased, and its value was estimated to have increased eightfold." This, the climate of the times and the presence on the island of industrialisation's key drivers – coal and iron – brought about radical change. There are thin seams of poor quality coal to the north of the island which have been used over the years. Attempts were made to mine this on a significant scale in the early 19th century. Costs, quality and quantity meant this ultimately came to nothing as cheap, accessible coal became readily available elsewhere. Some coal used in the nineteenth century was brought in by ship from Scotland, but the majority was shipped in from further south in Northumberland. Though dating before the island's waggonways, iron ore was mined on the island and shipped to Falkirk in the early 19th century. Like coal, this petered out as better ore became much more readily and cheaply available elsewhere. These industrial activities acted as spurs to pursue the island's lime workings. The fact that Lindisfarne is an island had inhibited lime production when markets were small and local, but, conversely, with industrial scale processes and industrial scale markets in view, the island's natural south side harbour gave it the same advantage afforded by rivers and canals – a means of getting the product to customers on an industrial scale.

St Cuthbert's Limeworks waggonway The Lord of the Manor, John Selby, wrote to the Crown Commissioners on 21 December 1839 seeking their support to install steam-powered quarrying machinery, erect modern kilns, a sea jetty and a railway to connect them, with the intention of supplying local needs and pursuing "sea sale". Correspondence, inspections and reports passed back and forth until 31 May 1842, when the Commissioners recommended to the Treasury that the Crown pay for the pier and Mr Selby pay for the rest. An enthusiastic report in the Berwick and Kelso Warder newspaper on 25 July 1846 said that construction work had begun in 1845 and production had started at "St Cuthbert's Lime Works" earlier in the year, with several shiploads of lime already sent to Dundee and other Scottish destinations. The report also states that island coal was used. The scale of the operation was modest; the 1851 Census shows just eight men involved in lime works.

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