Risteau Kiln

Risteau Kiln was likely built of local fieldstone before 1785 as an intermittent burn box kiln, a type that greatly increased lime production over earlier pit or field kilns. Lime was made by loading the kiln from the top with alternating layers of fuel, usually wood, and Cockeysville Marble quarried less than 200 yards away and hauled by mule cart, then igniting the bottom fuel so heat rose through the layers above to warm and bake the rock while the lowest limestone layer was burned directly by the fire below. The wood and marble mixture burned down for several days, and one lime-burning cycle usually took nine to twelve days. In 1865, ownership of Long Island Farm and the kiln passed from Dr. Thomas C. Risteau to his grandson Thomas Ristaeu Jenifer, who operated the farm until his death in 1915. Built into a hillside and reinforced by two curved wing walls on its front, the kiln has one large opening and four smaller ones between the wing walls. The large two-foot by six-foot opening is the draw hole through which finished quicklime was removed, while the upper and lower vent holes on both sides were used in different combinations to admit air to the burning chamber and control heat. Grass sod was sometimes placed over the top to lower the heat and slow the burn, and by the middle to late 1880s this kind of kiln was gradually replaced by more efficient continuous-burning kilns such as the nearby Jenifer Kiln.

Hampton, Maryland · United States