Arams, Ruddle - tanning (General)

by slowhands , proud of his ancient Dean Forest roots, Saturday, January 07, 2006, 04:54 (6886 days ago) @ R Thorne

The farm on the main Lydney - Gloucester road near to Arams ( before the rail bridge)is still called Tanhouse Farm today.

Underhill was on the Newnham side of the rail bridge and cease work as a tannery in the 1920's. I drove thru' last weekend, the farm buildings may still be there.

Traditional vegtable tanning uses bark for the tannin and is a long natural process. Oak - of which the Forest had plenty - would be the obvious choice for the bark. The leather produced is flexible and would often be used in luggage and furniture.