Skinners Lane

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Chester Castle by Francis Nicholson. Hemingway (1831) describes this as a "portion of the walls may be taken as the least pleasant, or rather as the most disagreeable in the whole circuit, not only because of the narrowness and darkness of walking path, but on account of the offensive stench arising from some pyroligneous acid works betwixt the river and the workshops of skinners; who from immemorial have carried on their trade on this spot." The factory was closed shortly afterwards and replaced by an extension of the jail.

Skinners Lane was, as the name suggests, the ancient home of the skinning industry in Chester and associated with the Tanning industry. It is mentioned as such in 1545. It last appears on the 1825 Map of Chester. Shortly afterwards (see the John Webb Map of 1833) the prison yard at Chester Castle was extended to a new boundary along the banks of the River Dee and Skinners Lane almost completely vanished. To some extent the lane re-appeared as Castle Drive. Skinners Lane contained industrial buildings known in the late 14th century as the Mustard Houses, by the mid 16th as the Glovers Houses, and c. 1700 as the Skinners Houses. At some point there was also a sugar house here as shown on the Hunter Map of 1789.

Finds

In 1831 the New Monthly Magazine and Literary Journal reported:

  • "The labourers who are engaged in making a road from the Castle Gate and under the walls to Skinner's Lane Chester found the skeleton of a man embedded in clay about five feet below the surface of the earth. Near to the bones were also discovered a small sword and a dagger which were so much corroded that they fell to pieces on being removed. A variety of human bones were afterwards found near the same spot the whole of which are probably the remains of individuals who fell when the city was besieged by the Parliamentarians in the time of Oliver Cromwell. Only a few yards from the same place two coins were picked up one a silver groat of the reign Edward I the other a Roman coin with following legend on the obverse "Imp Aurelianus Augustus". This Emperor commenced reign in the 270th year of the Christian era was killed in the year 275. We understand another skeleton has been since found."

Aurelian (Latin: Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September c. 214 – c. November 275) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 270 to 275 during the Crisis of the Third Century. Postumus had declared himself emperor while defending the western empire from incursions by 'barbarian' tribes. He was recognised in Britain, Gaul and Spain - the so-called Gallic Empire - while the 'true' emperor Gallienus retained power in the remaining provinces Postumus was murdered by his soldiers in 268 but the Gallic Empire lasted until 274. Presumably Legio XX supported it.

As emperor, Aurelian won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited the Roman Empire after it had nearly disintegrated under the pressure of barbarian invasions and internal revolts. He was murdered while waiting in Thrace to cross into Asia Minor. As an administrator, he had been strict and had handed out severe punishments to corrupt officials or soldiers. A secretary of his (called Eros by Zosimus) had told a lie on a minor issue. In fear of what the emperor might do, he forged a document listing the names of high officials marked by the emperor for execution and showed it to collaborators. The notarius Mucapor and other high-ranking officers of the Praetorian Guard, fearing punishment from the emperor, murdered him shortly after October 275. He is not known to have ever visited Britain, but did overcome the "Gallic Emperor" Tetricus, who was willing to abandon his throne and allow Gaul and Britain to return to the Empire, but could not openly submit to Aurelian. Instead, the two seem to have conspired so that when the armies met at the Battle of Châlons at Durocatalaunum that autumn, Tetricus simply deserted to the Roman camp and Aurelian easily defeated the Gallic army facing him.

The Skinners Houses on the Lavaux Map.

Hemingway on Skinners

Hemingway (1831) writes:

  • "From the earliest era of which we have any records it is clear that one of our principal local manufactures was that of dressing the skins and hides of animals. Thus in the translation of a transcript I have given out of the greater Doomsday book vide vol ip 125 marten's skins were known as an article of consequence in the time of Edward the Confessor. A great portion of our early imports consisted of large quantities of kid and lamb skins from Leghorn and other parts of Italy which were dressed here and then manufactured into gloves. The dressing of sheep and calf skins also formed a large branch of manufacture. Such indeed may be considered the staple of the place and gave rise to that immense pile of warehouses and work shops on the borders of the river known by the name of Skinner's street. In this description however must also be included the tanning trade which was carried on here to a great extent and which seems to have had its seat principally on the north side of Foregate sreet. Horn lane now called Steammill street is said with great probability to derive its name from the number of the horms of beasts which were there piled together and formed a kind of fence or boundary on each side of the road. It may also be noticed that in digging foundations for houses on the opening of Seller street a great number of tan pits were discovered. Both these branches of manufacture have greatly declined particularly the former there is now no direct importation of the Italian leather and the dressing of it as well as the glove trade have chiefly migrated to Worcestershire. The remains of the skinning trade are now in the hands of Messrs W and T Topham and Messrs Rogers and Pover and the whole of the workshops and warehouses principally occupied in the branch have been pulled down the site of which is to be encircled by the city walls in order to enlarge the precincts of the castle. The tanning trade though much reduced is still carried on to a considerable extent."
Detail from the 1825 Map of Chester showing Skinners Lane as "Skinner Street". The "Chemical Works" is marked.

A footnote in Hemingway adds:

  • "While the preceding sheet was passing through the press the author ascertained the fact that the county magistrates were on the point of completing contracts for the purchase of those numerous piles of buildings consisting of warehouses workshops &c which lie between the walls and the river and from the pyroligneous works opposite the castle ditch to the Dee mills. It is intended that all these ponderous buildings shall be levelled with the ground and comprehended within the boundary wall of the castle the space to be appropriated for erecting workshops for prisoners sentenced to hard labour and for the more perfect classification of other culprits. This arrangement will render a diversion of the walls necessary and from what I have been able to collect from good authority their new direction will commence near the pyroligneous works take a south eastern line near to the Dee which they will skirt for forty or fifty yards and then turn to the north east joining the present line of the walls a few paces before reaching the Bridgegate. They will thus form a half circle the castle boundary all along being immediately on the left Of the aggregate amount of expence in the purchase of those extensive premises mentioned and the sums necessary for carrying into effect the immense improvements contemplated I am not apprized but neither this nor any other county would be able to sustain the numerous expences incurred about our castle and precincts without such a powerful adjunct to the county rates as our productive river Weaver."

The Chemical Works

Pyroligneous acid, also called wood vinegar or wood acid, is a dark liquid produced by the destructive distillation of wood and other plant materials. The principal components of pyroligneous acid are acetic acid, acetone and methanol. It was once used as a commercial source for acetic acid. In addition, the vinegar often contains 80-90% water along with some 200 other organic compounds.

Skinners Lane appears in this illustration of the Shipgate (taken down on April 12th 1831.) Each stone was numbered and the Shipgate moved to the garden of Mr John Finchett-Maddock, the Town Clerk (1817-57), at 12, Abbey Square. In May 1893 another Finchett-Maddock gave it to the Chester Archaeological Society and it was for a while hoped that it could be moved back to its original location. This proved impractical and the Shipgate was re-errected by the Corporation in August 1897 in the Groves, and finally, moved in 1923 to the southwestern corner of Grosvenor Park where it still stands today.

On 13th August 1812 the North Wales Gazette reported:

  • "Mr. Andrew Patten, of Manchester, has obtained a patent for a discovery in Tanning Leather, by the use of Pyroligneous, or Wood-acid. The process is as follows. The hides to be tanned are to be first limed, haired, fleshed, aud beamed, in the manner in general used by tanners after which they are to be well washed, and cleared of the lime and masterings, and then immersed into a pit of weak liquor made from oak bark, in which they must remain for five or six weeks, and he handled well till they begin to bloom then they are to be taken out and immersed into a pit of pyroligueous acid for about a fortnight, more or less, according to the substances of the hides. Before the pyroligueous acid is put into the pit it must be well filtered, or cleared from the oily or tarry matter — In order to bring the hides as nearly as possible to the colour which is generally given to leather, they should be removed into a pit of strong ooze, or bark liquor, and be suffered to remain there for three or four weeks or they may be put into two such leys three or four weeks, then they may be taken up and dried for sale — if the hides are very heavy they must lie longer in the acid and in the hark liquor."

Further information on this process is given in The Medical and Physical Journal, Volume 28. Andrew Patten's co-inventor was Charles Hankinson of Chester - who gives the occupation of Tanner in the patent.

Pigot's Directory of Chester lists three pyroligneous acid manufacturers: Gaman & Palin of Stone Bridge, Thomas Jones of Tarvin Lane and George Topham of "Botany Bay" (on the Canalside between Cow Lane bridge and Queen Street). The second of these is the same Jones as named at Chemistry Lock. McGahey, who lived quite near "Botany Bay" shows a factory of some kind near the end of a short canal branch, with thick, black smoke belching from its tall chimney-stack. The only other place in McGahey's view which produce such copious amounts of smoke is the gasworks in Cuppin Street. The factory is possibly Topham's pyroligneous acid factory. The Gaman and Palin partners appeared in court during a vote-rigging case relating to the 1826 election, and from this we learn that the factory at Stone Bridge was originally run by the Jones family - possibly the same Jones' thst moved to Tarvin Road (see: A narrative of the proceedings at the memorable contest for the representation of Chester, in 1826.). The factory near Chester Castle was demolished in (c.1830) when the castle was enlarged.

Simpson on Skinners

Skinners Lane appears in this 1896 proposal (reported in the March 6th edition of "The Engineer") to rebuild the weir at Chester, put the Salmon Steps on the north bank and build s sluice to prevent sewage being washed upstream.

Frank Simpson wrote:

  • About a century ago, there was a local incorporation called the Corporation of Juan. It had existed from time immemorial, but no data exist by which to trace its origin. Hanshall says: “A very respected member of this Company, in 1817, informed me he had been told by those who had preceded him, that the name had its origin from Spain, from skins being brought from the plains of Juan, in that country, to be dressed at Chester, from which circumstances the skinners eveutually were called the Company and Corporation of Juan.” The writer goes on to say : “An election takes place for the office of Mayor of Juan annually; the senior apprentice is generally the person made choice of. It was customary a few years ago, for the newly elected Mayor of Juan, attended by his officers, preceded by a fiddler, and drum and fife, to proceed to the Exchange to pay his compliments to the Mayor of the City, where his Worship of Juan, and Brethren, were generally treated with half-a-pint of wine each. This formality still exists.”

Simpson adds:

  • Chester the skinners were located by the river side, near the Bridge-Gate. Formerly, they had their sheds and drying grounds extending from near the Ship-gate along part of what is now known as the “ Little Roodee.” The industry still throve there as late as 1760, and it was not until 1828 that the sheds were swept away, when the County Authorities determined to purchase the property, and enclose it within the boundary of the Castle. The Walls, at this part, were then diverted from their original course, to the river edge, and a massive wall was erected which formed the boundary of the County Gaol. This was com pleted about 1832, at the time the Grosvenor Bridge was erected. This wall was taken down 1900-1, and a new road called “ Castle Drive” or “ Skinners Lane” made through the site. That the old name still remains is a matter of congratulation.

Hanshall also notes that the Skinners Houses were destroyed during the Civil War so that they could provide no shelter for the besiegers.

Skinners Lane on the 1874 OS map. The Skinners houses and the chemical works have gone and the gaol walls have been extended down to the river-bank.

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