Sometimes when I’m out walking, I end up wandering through the desolate, post demolition sites of old factories and industrial complexes. These places always have a sort of apocalyptical feel about them with the traces of what was once there being consumed by nature. In a way I suppose they are like the landscapes in some sci-fi drama set after a devastating nuclear conflict or alien invasion. There is a sort of eerie emptiness to them. They feel slightly lawless and forgotten. The site of Caldwell’s Paper Mill in Inverkeithing is a bit like that with the scrub growing through the remains of concrete floors that seem to stretch on for miles. Crumbling concrete that is being swallowed back into the earth beneath it. While wandering around the place I sometimes feel like I’ve drifted into another dimension where humanity has collapsed and society ceased, but rather than bumping into some Mad Max types or some trundling Daleks, I’m usually met by some curious dog bounding through the scrub to bark loudly at me, try to get me to throw its ball, or maybe just attempt to sniff my crotch before being called back by its apologetic owner.
.jpg "The site of Caldwell’s Papermill, Inverkeithing")
.jpg "An aerial shot from Canmore of the site as it was when the papermill was in operation.")
Caldwell’s Paper Mill was built in 1914 for
Caldwell & Co. Papermakers Ltd. At
the time it was built the mill had four paper machines. It was bought over by Inveresk in 1928 who added
a fifth paper machine. They ran the
company until 2002 when it was purchased by the Scandinavian firm Klippan. About
a year after the takeover the mill was closed with the loss of 160 jobs. The mill then lay derelict until August 2012
when it was demolished.
.JPG "Remains of one of the papermill buildings")
.jpg "Remains of one of the papermill buildings")
.jpg "Remains of one of the paper mill buildings")
.jpg "Grate and bricks inside the building")
.jpg "View inside the building")
.jpg "View out over the site from the remains of the papermill building")
.JPG "Graffiti on the wall around the site of the papermill")
.JPG "Graffiti on the wall around the site of the papermill")
.JPG "View over remains of concrete floors to the wall around the site of the papermill")
.JPG "Stairs to the bridge over railway tracks at the back of the site")
.JPG "One of the many bricks scattered around the site")
.JPG "Four pipes and some metal")
.jpg "Graffiti on the remains of the concrete floor")
After a bit of a jaunt around the site I
ended up back at the partial remains of one of the buildings. There I left the Skulferatu that had
accompanied me on my walk, in a pipe hole in the wall of the building. As I
walked away, the glass from the thousands of smashed beer bottles covering the
ground nearby, glittered and sparkled in the early afternoon sunlight.
.jpg "Skulferatu #70")
.jpg "Skulferatu #70 in a pipe hole in the wall of the building")
.JPG "Thousands of smashed beer bottles glitter and sparkle in the afternoon sunlight")
.jpg "Map showing the location of Skulferatu #70")
The coordinates for the location of the
Skulferatu are –
Latitude 56.028555
Longitude -3.3968700
I used the following sources for
information on Caldwell’s Paper Mill -
Canmore - Caldwell's
Mill, Inverkeithing
Daily Record, Monday 13
August 2012
For anyone who is interested there is a rather good video by John Davis of the chimneys of the old mill being demolished in a controlled explosion. I've included the link here –
Demolition of Caldwell paper mill in Inverkeithing
Fallout Inverkeithing...the legendary unreleased edition!
ReplyDeleteI remember that just before it was demolished, swarms of Transit vans, flat-bed trucks descended on the site and "liberated" the roof tiles, etc.
For years, local schools would get a tour of the plant....it was the biggest employer in the town and, literally, generations of families had worked there. On a tour with the local primary school? Very likely to meet your auntie or uncle!
I often went past the buildings on the train and then one day suddenly saw they weren't there anymore. Then found out they'd been demolished a couple of years earlier...only took me two years to notice!
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