The Brine Industry

"The name "Nantwich" is derived from the Welsh name "Nant yr Heledd Wen", meaning the stream of the white salt pit."

​

If you were to travel back in time to around 200 million years ago, you'd see a shallow sea that covered the area known as the Cheshire-Shropshire salt field.

​

Nantwich town's naturally occurring brine springs once allowed for a thriving salt industry. The town was accessed by Roman garrisons from Chester and Stoke-on-Trent for its salt supply, of which they used as a preservative.

​

The brine was collected from the natural springs, heated and produced by evaporation. The final product was then stored in hollowed-out tree trunks, referred to as 'salt ships'.

​

​

"In the 17th century, Nantwich produced twice as much salt as Middlewich and three times that produced at Northwich, having a better concentration of brine and better access to ready markets."

​

​

The brine industry peaked in the late 16th century when 216 salt-making houses were drawing brine from a salt pit named "Old Biot", located by the Welsh Row bridge. Production ceased in the 1850s.

​

Believe it or not, "Old Biot" is still in use today and supplies the salt for Nantwich's outdoor brine pool at Snow Hill. A plaque can be found on the east side of The River Weaver near Waterlode. Why not have a look for it next time you visit or pass by?

​