Who built the miles & miles of dry stone walls? How do they stay up without mortar? Why are there so many? There's a special craft to creating a sturdy, durable dry stone wall.
Dry stone walls are among some of the oldest man-made landscape features. It's believed there are over 5000 miles (8000 km) of dry stone walls in the Yorkshire Dales alone. Some of the walls around Langcliffe are believed to date back to the 13th century, built to deter wolves!
The very first dry stone walls were probably created centuries ago when early farmers were clearing the land for cultivation. Some walls are really thicker than might seem necessary, just because they were built in very stony areas. Most walls are built to mark field boundaries or mark land ownership, and limit movement by sheep and cows.
When on a tour of his farm at The Wensleydale Experience, Adrian Thornton-Berry showed me some very straight walls rising up the hill near Swinithwaite and said they were built around 200 years ago by French prisoners of war taken from Napoleon's army. Nearby are some large block foundations to a wall that date back to the times of the Knights Templar.
If you see very large stones being used as the base of the wall, that's often an indication of a wall that may date back to medieval times. Straight walls and fields that seem more uniform may date back to the Enclosures period of the late 18th and early 19th century.
Dry stone walls are 'dry' because they are made without mortar, simply relying on their complex structure to stay up. They take time to build, and use about a tonne of stone per metre, all lifted by hand!
A good dry stone waller never picks up a piece of stone twice but is able to look at a pile of walling stone and pick up the right size and shape of stone every time. A well-built wall should last for more than 100 years, with minimal maintenance.
This ancient craft continues: there's strong interest in heritage skills and increasing appreciation of the technique of dry stone wallers. It's not an easy way to earn a living but according to James Titterington, it is satisfying: “I love how every stone has its own beauty and it’s my job to find the perfect spot to place it”.
Most people think of dry stone walls as something put up years ago or tended by an ancient farmer in their ‘spare time’ (!), so it’s good to see the craft of dry stone walling being taken up by younger people.
Tom Lodge and James Titterington are some of the youngest wallers I’ve come across yet their passion and craftsmanship are impressive and equal that of longer standing wallers. They’re fully qualified through the Yorkshire Dry Stone Walling Guild, and are both now working towards the coveted rank of ‘Master Waller’. There are very few of them in Yorkshire so it’s good to see their ambition and attention to detail. It can take several years to fully learn the trade and reach the pinnacle of craftsmanship.
Tom’s grandfather, David was a farmer and waller who Tom looked up to. Tom initially worked for a local builder where he was able to develop his enthusiasm and interest in dry stone walling before he decided to work towards these qualifications. James’ originally qualified as a bricklayer and won the Guild of Bricklayers national senior final in 2022. He often worked with stone and fell in love with the simplicity and beauty of dry stone walling, and so their company, Yorkshire Drystone Walling was born. They aim to build 4 linear metres each - that means handling 4 tonnes of stone each per day!
When walls eventually start to fall, sometimes due to ground erosion or knocks from livestock, they have to stripped back to their foundations and painstakingly re-built using the same techniques that have been passed on for generations. Foundations need to be about half as wide as the wall height.
Walls are not just built upwards: they have to be packed and filled tightly, with through-stones to tie the two skins of the wall together. They’re not added to every wall but can make walls stronger and more durable. The final course is made up of ‘toppers’, which need to be both secure and carefully lined up to give a level, uniform finish.
Look out for dry stone walling competitions and demonstrations at agricultural shows over the Summer - some give you a chance to have a go. Or you could do a taster course yourself with the Yorkshire Dry Stone Walling Guild.