Collyweston Slating: David Ellis |
On leaving school in 1953 David Ellis took up an apprenticeship in slating at Collyweston with the master slater and quarry owner J.J Harrod. One of the first tasks that David had to carry out as an apprentice was to work forty foot down a mine in cold temperatures and poor lighting conditions to extract the slate. He says:
(Men of The Stones Yearbook and Directory, 2001) In 1982 David had the good fortune to come across stone slate beds at Cuckoo Lodge Quarry at Duddington. This became the new supply of Collyweston slate and has been primarily used for renovation work. Two other sources still exist; the Burleigh Pit at Easton on the Hill and Claude Smith's Pit at Collyweston. David has continued to work with slate throughout his career and continues to run Ellis Stone Slating, which has carried out some prestigious jobs such as the Yard East Building of the Guildhall in London. Background information about Stone Slating |