Whiting Ring

From the late 18th century through to the early 20th century one of the more unusual industries in Calstone was that of whiting, or whitening, production.  This was the process of making whiting from chalk which was used for doorsteps, hearths, window ledges and sometimes walls, in the form of whitewash.  This industry goes back to at least Anglo-Saxon times as it is believed “whiting” is derived from the Saxon word ‘Hwíting-melu’, which literally means ‘whitening powder’.  The photo above shows Whiting House, as it was known in the 1861 census, which was just over the road from Uplands House, near South Farm.  The Green family ran the business through the 19^th and early 20^th centuries. Henry Green, born in Calstone in 1796, was the first recorded person making whiting at the house pictured above. He was later joined by his sister, Rebecca Gerrish, and his son Edwin. Henry is recorded in the census as being a whiting maker up to 1881, when he was 85.  Following his death in Nov 1882, Edwin took over the family business aged 46. Prior to moving back into Whiting House, Edwin had lived with his wife and 9 children in one of the cottages near East Farm.  Edwin’s occupation was recorded as “Whiting Manufacturer” in the wedding register of one of his sons, Albert, in 1915 so I assume he was still active then. Edwin died in 1921 aged 86.  The production of whiting may have stopped at around this time.

There were two main production methods for producing whiting, the wet and dry processes. The Green family used the dry process which involved digging up good quality chalk from the downs, bringing it to Whiting House by horse and cart.  It would then be broken up into small chunks and crushed using a horse pulled stone.  The horse would pull the stone wheel around a whiting ring.  You can see in the photo above the horse and stone than it pulled.  You can also see someone, probably Edwin Green, leading the horse in what appears to be a snowman’s outfit and straw hat, but I assume is his normal work clothes covered in years of chalk dust!  You can see the chunks of chalk waiting to be crushed stacked up in Mr Green’s shed on the left. For those interested in our four-legged friends you can see a dog, maybe Mr Green’s, by the fence on the right side of the photo.

The horse was a key part of the production team, both pulling the cart containing the chalk from the downs and pulling the crushing stone. In the 1901 census Edwin Green is recorded as employing his own carter, Jacob Clifford, who also boarded with them.  Albert, one of Edwin’s sons, went on to become a carter himself. 

The Green family were very industrious as they not only had a Wiltshire wide reputation for producing the finest quality whiting, but they also constructed dew ponds on the downs for the livestock to drink from. It makes sense that the two activities go together as whiting production relies on dry drier, warm weather whereas dew ponds can be constructed in the winter.  It may also have been possible to use the chalk removed when producing a dew pond to produce whiting.