Raygill Barytes Mine

Overview

A barytes mine in the limestone quarry at Raygill, Lothersdale, opened in 1855 after quarrymen struck a strong vein; drained by a Cornish engine, it produced over 35,000 tons of barytes, and the quarry is now a flooded fishery.

History

An anticline brings Carboniferous limestone to the surface at Raygill, west of Lothersdale, where the rock was quarried and burned for lime for centuries; the quarry patented a new design of kiln in 1870. A strong vein of barytes was found during quarrying, and in 1855 a level was driven into it from the roadside, with an incline driven down the vein from the level. The workings were pumped by a Cornish engine. Well over 35,000 tons of barytes came out over about twenty years, between 1876 and 1895 by another account, and for a time Raygill was said to produce more barytes than anywhere else in the country.

Limestone quarrying went on well into the twentieth century and has since stopped. The site was the first studied by the Yorkshire Geological Society, in 1875, and in 1880 the bones and teeth of mammoth, rhinoceros, lions, bears, bison and hyenas were found in fissures there; they went to Leeds City Museum and were damaged by bombing in the Second World War. Quarrying and landscaping have removed all trace of the mine, and the flooded quarry is now a trout fishery, Raygill Lakes.

Geology

A barytes vein in Carboniferous limestone at the crest of the Lothersdale anticline, part of the Ribblesdale Fold Belt.

Workings

A level from the roadside with an incline down the vein, drained by a Cornish pumping engine, within a limestone quarry.

Closure

Barytes working ended after about twenty years of output; limestone quarrying continued into the twentieth century.

What remains

No trace of the mine survives; the quarry is flooded and used as a trout fishery.

None of the mine; the flooded quarry remains.

Redevelopment

Raygill Lakes trout fishery in the flooded quarry.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• Well over 35,000 tons of barytes were produced over the next twenty years. (disputed) ¹
• Between 1876 and 1895 over 35,000 tons of barytes were mined at Raygill. (disputed) ²
• The quarry burned limestone in ten or more kilns and patented a new kiln in 1870. (uncertain) ⁴

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• In 1855 a level was driven into the barytes vein from the roadside and an incline driven down the vein; the workings were pumped by a Cornish engine. ¹
• Well over 35,000 tons of barytes were produced over the next twenty years. (disputed) ¹
• Between 1876 and 1895 over 35,000 tons of barytes were mined at Raygill. (disputed) ²
• All traces of the mine have been obliterated by quarrying and landscaping. ¹
• The site of the former lime and baryte quarry is now Raygill Lakes. ^2,3
• In 1880 bones and teeth of Ice Age mammals were found in fissures at Raygill; they went to Leeds City Museum. ²
• The quarry burned limestone in ten or more kilns and patented a new kiln in 1870. (uncertain) ⁴
• A plan of the Raygill barytes mine at Lothersdale is held by the British Geological Survey. ⁵

Sources

1. (secondary) Raygill Barytes Mine — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (secondary) Around Lothersdale on the Pennine Way — RatedTrips
3. (secondary) Lothersdale — Wikipedia
4. (observational) Saunterings 73: The Raygill Foraminifers — Saunterings (drakkar.co.uk)
5. (primary) BGS mine plan: Raygill & Baryter Mine, Lothersdale — British Geological Survey

Record created: 17 October 2026 · Last researched: 17 October 2026