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| Author | I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from? |
AndyC Joined: 24/10/2007 View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 20:51:40 Reply | Quote I live in Bournemouth, a long way from the slate quarries of North Wales. Probably the best connection is my house is about 100 years old, and has a slate roof. My really stupid question is this: is there any way I can identify which area (or which quarry/mine?) the slate for my roof came from? -- The nurses are stealing my underwear IP: 87.114.33.181 |
simonrl Joined: 27/11/2005 Location: North Wales View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 20:54:05 Reply | Quote What colour is it? Points will be deducted for saying gray  Size of the slates may also yeild a clue, although I don't claim to be able to answer this, but it might help somebody. -- No sir, this here will do just fine IP: 83.148.135.213 |
rhychydwr1 Joined: 09/06/2007 Location: Cwmparc, Rhondda, South Wales, UK. View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 20:55:41 Reply | Quote Not really. There are slate quarries / mines in Pembrokeshire. There are probably slate quarries in Devon and Cornwall, but as I do not have a passport I have been unable to confirm this. -- Cutting coal in my spare time. IP: 89.243.80.203 |
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DougCornwall Joined: 05/08/2009 Location: Helston View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 21:14:03 Reply | Quote There is indeed a magnificient slate quarry in Cornwall but only the National Trust can afford the slates, every one else has to buy theirs from Brazil, how sad is that!!!!! -- IP: 92.10.182.39 |
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Rossony Joined: 14/07/2009 View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 21:25:50 Reply | Quote It is very likely that you could identify the general locality but it would be more expensive than it is worth. The slate would hace to be analysed for chemical properties, impurities, grain size, etc., etc.  -- I dig mines. They are the signposts of our civilization. IP: 24.64.223.205 |
carnkie Joined: 07/09/2007 Location: camborne, cornwall View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 16/09/2009 22:32:29 Reply | Quote DougCornwall wrote: There is indeed a magnificient slate quarry in Cornwall but only the National Trust can afford the slates, every one else has to buy theirs from Brazil, how sad is that!!!!! Still 100 years ago. Bound to be from Delabole.  -- The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there. IP: 80.47.253.198 |
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AndyC Joined: 24/10/2007 View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 08:11:38 Reply | Quote Thanks for the replies chaps. I thought that would be the case. But now will no longer need to waste time contemplating this. -- The nurses are stealing my underwear IP: 87.114.33.181 |
JohnnearCfon Joined: 22/12/2005 Location: Sir Caernarfon View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 12:57:20 Reply | Quote carnkie wrote: DougCornwall wrote: There is indeed a magnificient slate quarry in Cornwall but only the National Trust can afford the slates, every one else has to buy theirs from Brazil, how sad is that!!!!! Still 100 years ago. Bound to be from Delabole. Thre are sevral other slate quarries in the SW area, around Delabole and also around Liskeard. -- Cadwch Cymru'n daclus-Taflwch eich ysbwriel yn LLoeger IP: 78.144.127.29 |
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DougCornwall Joined: 05/08/2009 Location: Helston View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 13:15:52 Reply | Quote Little bit below is pasted from delabole quarry website. (www.delaboleslate.co.uk) They currently produce about 110 tonnes slate per day and have been doing that amount for at least the last 100+ years so there is a chance your roof may be Cornish. But their slate ain't 'alf pricey compared to the inferior (imported slate much more brittle and has high wastage rate when laying) but much cheaper Brazilian stuff. But your roof might also might be Welsh cos rumour has it that they produced a slate or two over the years!!! Are there any Welsh slate quarries still producing? ' Delabole Slate has been used as a building material for well over 600 years, and has been quarried continuously since the early 17th century, when Carew in his survey of Cornwall wrote "in substance thin, in colour fair, in lasting long and generally carrieth good regard". The quarry is 425 feet deep and more than a mile and a half in circumference, and provides a quality of slate that is exceptional. During the reign of Elizabeth I, the five quarries that existed within the vicinity of the present pit assumed considerable importance, delivering slate "throughout the realm, and even exporting it by sea to Brittany and the Netherlands". In 1859, in Murrays Handbook of Devon and Cornwall, the author wrote "the quarries present one of the most astonishing and animated scenes imaginable". About 1,000 men were employed at this time, raising an average of 120 tonnes of slate per day. Long before the coming of the railway, the slate was cut and hauled six miles to Port Gaverne where it would be loaded onto vessels moored in the harbour area. It would take thirty wagons, pulled by over a hundred horses to load a sixty ton ship and as late as 1890, women still assisted with the stowing of slates. In 1841, the five quarries formed themselves into a single controlled unit, and the Old Delabole Slate Company was formed, becoming the present Limited liability company in 1898. Today, by applying modern mining techniques and utilising only five skilled quarrymen, an average of 120 tonnes of slate block is still quarried each day. Using the latest diamond wire saws, 600 tonne blocks are sawn from the quarry face, eliminating the age-old method of blasting. Wire sawing improves recovery, thus preserving for future years valuable reserves of slate, and finally laying to rest the historic building of waste mountains. Alongside these technological developments there remains no substitute for the skill and experience of the traditional Cornish craftsman. ' -- IP: 92.10.182.39 |
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JohnnearCfon Joined: 22/12/2005 Location: Sir Caernarfon View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 13:20:40 Reply | Quote Yes, there are still Welsh slates being produced. Penrhyn at Bethesda, Oakeley and Manod (now called Cwt-y-Bugail) at Blaenau Ffestiniog. -- Cadwch Cymru'n daclus-Taflwch eich ysbwriel yn LLoeger IP: 78.144.127.29 |
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Peter Burgess Joined: 01/07/2008 Location: Cretaceous Homeland View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 16:41:46 Reply | Quote I think they say that even in today's age of movement and change, you can still find geographical concentrations of surnames that have been around for centuries. So, if that is so, I wonder whether there is a higher occurence of people called Slater in areas where slate was commonly used, and likewise Tylers in places where tiles were commonly used, and Thatchers (sorry to mention the name) etc etc etc? Any thoughts? -- Hey, who turned out the lights! IP: 81.144.191.248 |
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rikj Joined: 27/12/2008 View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 16:55:41 Reply | Quote Peter Burgess wrote: I think they say that even in today's age of movement and change, you can still find geographical concentrations of surnames that have been around for centuries. So, if that is so, I wonder whether there is a higher occurence of people called Slater in areas where slate was commonly used, and likewise Tylers in places where tiles were commonly used, and Thatchers (sorry to mention the name) etc etc etc? Any thoughts? I think you're right that surnames are often clustered in areas. For a fiver on the rootsmap website you can get a UK distribution map for the name Slater. Tiler hasn't been done yet. Surname distribution mapping looks to be big business in the family history world. -- http://www.flickr.com/photos/rikj/ |
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Cat_Bones Joined: 07/06/2007 Location: Shropshire View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 17:23:52 Reply | Quote Surname distribution is really interesting... [link] You can look at the ditribution in 1881 or 1998... I was fascinated to see how my surname in 1881 was limited to a very small geographical range, and although it has spread substantially, the majority still remain in the same area. Tweak: Link fixed, needs to start [url ] and finish [/url ] (without the space) IP: 83.148.135.213 Edited: 17/09/2009 19:50:54 by (moderator) |
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carnkie Joined: 07/09/2007 Location: camborne, cornwall View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 17/09/2009 18:20:55 Reply | Quote Peter Burgess wrote: I think they say that even in today's age of movement and change, you can still find geographical concentrations of surnames that have been around for centuries. You can use surname analysis to try and compare the patterns of C19th migration. Not exactly this but Kevin Kenny used it in his fine book making sense of the Molly Maguires. He traced most of them back to an area in NW Ireland and it was quite an important part of his analysis. -- The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there. IP: 80.47.210.121 Edited: 17/09/2009 18:22:05 by carnkie |
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simonrl Joined: 27/11/2005 Location: North Wales View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 18/09/2009 10:08:36 Reply | Quote Cat_Bones wrote: Surname distribution is really interesting... [link] You can look at the ditribution in 1881 or 1998... I was fascinated to see how my surname in 1881 was limited to a very small geographical range, and although it has spread substantially, the majority still remain in the same area. Fascinating link. I'd always understood my surname to have come from one of two specific areas and this confirmed it. -- No sir, this here will do just fine IP: 83.148.135.213 |
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Cat_Bones Joined: 07/06/2007 Location: Shropshire View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 18/09/2009 10:22:36 Reply | Quote It's brilliant... shame it doesn't go back further! 1086 maybe? Thanks for fixing the link... I edited it about 3 times with no luck... you wouldn't guess I worked in IT would you?! IP: 204.104.55.244 |
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simonrl Joined: 27/11/2005 Location: North Wales View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
I am sure this is a really stupid question - where does my roof come from?
Posted: 18/09/2009 10:29:52 Reply | Quote Cat_Bones wrote: It's brilliant... shame it doesn't go back further! 1086 maybe? Thanks for fixing the link... I edited it about 3 times with no luck... you wouldn't guess I worked in IT would you?! Agreed. Apparently at some point in the dim and distant past I had some ancestors who owned textile mills. And the map shows the area perfectly. Apparently they had pots of money... If they did something has gone horribly wrong in the intervening century Forum links, if youre using Firefox the tag matching (inserting of the closing tag) doesn't work correctly. At some point I'll add code to the forum to automatically make links where www. is entered -- No sir, this here will do just fine IP: 83.148.135.213 |
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