Portland Stone - Quarries and Mines

Quarries and Mines

Jordans is part of the Inmosthay Quarry in the centre of the Island, which also includes Fancy Beach. The quarry has been worked since the late 19th century. Albion Stone leases the southern section from The Crown Estate and purchased the northern part of the site in 2006. The majority of the southern reserves lie under the grounds of the local cricket club. To avoid disturbing the site at surface level, the company has applied and received permission to extract the stone using mining rather than quarrying techniques. The reserves to the north will be quarried using the diamond bladed cutting machines, hydro bags and wire saws to shape the blocks. This process avoids the use of potentially damaging, dusty and noisy blasting as the primary extraction method, thereby protecting the surrounding environment, which has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

The quarry at Bowers has been operational since the late 18th century. It has been leased from The Crown Estate since 1979 and in 2002 it became the site of the first Portland Stone mine. Extraction from this site is now completely underground with the original Bowers Mine in the extreme southern end of the quarry and the High Wall Extraction on the eastern and south east boundaries. High Wall Extraction is a series of small mines that extract otherwise wasted stone that sits between the final faces of the quarry and the actual boundary of the site.

Once quarries have been worked they are then restored. The Portland Sculpture and Quarry Trust was formed in 1983 and is dedicated to preserving a knowledge and understanding of stone and the landscape from which it comes. The main non-working quarry remains Tout Quarry which the Trust is based in, where a workshop is used every year.