The Crane Park Shot Tower - a photo on Flickriver

            One of the delights of a walk in Crane Park in west London is coming across the unexpected… and this is it.

The Shot Tower was built in 1823, and its purpose lies in the name: this is where lead shot was made. 

To make shot (used as ammunition in early firearms), molten lead would be poured through a copper sieve from the top of the hollow tower. As it fell, the lead formed into small round pellets which cooled and hardened as they struck water in a huge tank at the base of the tower. Shot towers were built all over the world, one of the most famous being at Waterloo in London. It was demolished in the late 1950s to make way for the South Bank Centre (see first comment below).

The tower in Crane Park was once part of a complex where gunpowder was made. Here, in this now tranquil setting, the Hounslow Gunpowder Works were opened in 1766 and were in business until 1927.

But the question is… was this actually ever a shot tower? Some industrial historians now say it was more likely a windmill which recirculated the water used by the gunpowder works. Whatever it was, it’s still called the Shot Tower and it's certainly a Grade II listed building, these days acting as Crane Park's nature and visitor centre run by the London Wildlife Trust.

By the way, in the foreground (right) is one of the original millstones. It's dedicated to the memory of Jeremy Hywel Davies (1941-94), Warden of Crane Park Island Nature Reserve between 1989 and 1992.

Taken in: UK / England / Richmond upon Thames / Heathfield (show map)

Taken on: August 3, 2020

Tags:

crane park

lower crane valley

gunpowder

armaments

architecture

conical tower

windmill

powder mill

west london

hounslow

teddington

richmond

shot

ammunition

history

firearms

london wildlife trust

canon eos 77D

jeremy hywel davies « less

Sets appears in: • Architecture • Crane Park and the Lower Crane Valley

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Camera: Canon EOS 77D, f/5.6, 1/80 sec, 18mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 77D
Aperture:	f/5.6
Exposure Time:	0.013 sec (1/80)
Focal Length:	18mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
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