Tower Pit

The house with a view over the ice pond contains a significant piece of industrial archaeology.

The Poynton coalfield is divided by the Red Rock Fault, a major westerly downthrow which effectively precludes any mining on the western side due to the depth of the coal. In the first half of the nineteenth century the geological situation here was less well understood and Lord Vernon's agent Thomas Ashworth resolved to sink a pit on the west side to see whether workable seams could be found. A shaft was commenced in 1846 at the side of the colliery workshops in Towers Yard. It was discovered that the shaft was actually being sunk into the fault and conditions proved difficult. By 1848 it was concluded that they were wasting their time and the pit was abandoned, with Ashworth stating that "This rock is dangerous and objectionable".

The slightly higher section of the modern house with a gable end towards the camera once housed the rotative beam engine used for the sinking of the shaft. For many years it was the cottage for the cowman at Towers Yard farm , but has recently been greatly extended and modernised.