Great Quarry, Swindon () is a 0.994

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

geological Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI) in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England, notified in 1951.

Location

The site is in Old Town, in the southern ridge of

Swindon Swindon () is a town in Wiltshire, England. At the time of the 2021 Census the population of the built-up area was 183,638, making it the largest settlement in the county. Located at the northeastern edge of the South West England region, Swi ...

. It was formerly named Town Garden Quarries which, with the Old Town Station Cutting, comprised Town Garden Quarries and Station Cutting SSSI. The two are now separate with Station Cutting renamed

Old Town Railway Cutting, Swindon Old Town Railway Cutting () is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Swindon, Wiltshire, SSSI notification, notified in 1975. It is near the site of the former Swindon Town railway station. The site is notable for an unusual expo ...

, SSSI. "It has long been famous for the richness of its molluscan faunas from the marine Swindon Roach. These beds, of Portlandian age, comprise a suite of sediments ranging in their depositional environment from freshwater and hypersaline lagoons to true marine shell beds and soil profiles. The site has been the subject of dozens of published accounts since the mid 19th century and is still the subject of active research. The channelled form and erosive pebbly bases which characterise the majority of the beds in this succession and the variety of environments exhibited make this by far the most complex Jurassic section in Britain."

Sources

Natural England citation sheet for the site
(accessed 1 April 2022)

External links

Natural England website SSSI information
Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Wiltshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1951 Swindon Geology of Wiltshire Quarries in Wiltshire {{Wiltshire-geo-stub