Scheduled Monument

Old Foundry Holm,ironworksSM5537

Status: Designated

Documents

Where documents include maps, the use of this data is subject to terms and conditions (https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/termsandconditions).

The legal document available for download below constitutes the formal designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The additional details provided on this page are provided for information purposes only and do not form part of the designation. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within this additional information.

Summary

Date Added
22/01/1993
Type
Industrial: bridge, viaduct, aqueduct; iron and steel; kiln, furnace, oven
Local Authority
East Ayrshire
Parish
Auchinleck
NGR
NS 64190 26919
Coordinates
264190, 626919

Description

The monument consists of the remains of a charcoal and peat-charcoal fired iron-smelting works of the 1730s. The visible remains include the collapsed blast furnace, the waterworks associated with a water-powered blowing apparatus, and a bridge and trackways providing internal access. The area to be scheduled is irregular in outline, maximum dimensions 380m by 140m, to include all these features and an area around and between them in which evidence associated with their construction and use may survive, as outlined in red on the accompanying map.

Statement of National Importance

The monument is of national importance as one of a handful of pre-coke blast furnace sites in Scotland, and the only one surviving in lowland Scotland. Its history is obscure, but it was probably founded by one of the Earls of Cathcart in about 1732, and had a relatively short life. It is a rare survival of an early, un-redeveloped, industrial plant from the early years of the Industrial Revolution.

References

Bibliography

RCAHMS records the monument as NS62NW 12.

About Scheduled Monuments

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Scheduling is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for monuments and archaeological sites of national importance as set out in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979.

We schedule sites and monuments that are found to be of national importance using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Scheduled monument records provide an indication of the national importance of the scheduled monument which has been identified by the description and map. The description and map (see ‘legal documents’ above) showing the scheduled area is the designation of the monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. The statement of national importance and additional information provided are supplementary and provided for general information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland accepts no liability for any loss or damages arising from reliance on any inaccuracies within the statement of national importance or additional information. These records are not definitive historical or archaeological accounts or a complete description of the monument(s).

The format of scheduled monument records has changed over time. Earlier records will usually be brief. Some information will not have been recorded and the map will not be to current standards. Even if what is described and what is mapped has changed, the monument is still scheduled.

Scheduled monument consent is required to carry out certain work, including repairs, to scheduled monuments. Applications for scheduled monument consent are made to us. We are happy to discuss your proposals with you before you apply and we do not charge for advice or consent. More information about consent and how to apply for it can be found on our website at www.historicenvironment.scot.

Find out more about scheduling and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

Images

There are no images available for this record, you may want to check trove.scot for images relating to Old Foundry Holm,ironworks

There are no images available for this record.

Search trove.scot

Printed: 10/12/2025 15:20