A Historical Spotlight on Dry Stone Walls

Where did dry stone walls come from?

Dry stone walling is a craft that has been winding its way through rural areas since the Bronze Age. The original structures were created when boulders were removed from fields in order to clear them, and they’re so winding because they needed to accommodate different sized stones and avoid streams. They were mainly used to partition off farming land and fields for agriculture, and there is an estimated 70,000 miles of dry stone walls snaking their way across England!

Since the mid-19th Century, only dry stone wall repairs were necessary and it wasn’t commonplace to build new ones because of the lack of skilled and trained craftsmen. This is what makes Tom Trouton so unique – we are fully trained in constructing dry stone walls and have been trusted by heritage sites to commercial businesses to domestic homes to create stunning dry stone garden features and walls.

Eco-friendly landscaping and design

Dry stone walls are incredibly eco-friendly. They use local and naturally-occurring materials to create field boundaries and even garden wall installations. They can replace hedges and fences where ground or weather types may not be the most hospitable for these, and they can last for generations should no harm come to them and with minimal maintenance.

They’re also great little hideaways for local wildlife. Plants grow between the stones because of the rain trickling through the cracks, spiders and insects make their homes there, and even larger creatures like frogs, toads, and adders hide amongst the stones during the winter.