A smokehouse which has produced kippers for almost 170 years has been given Grade II listed standing.
The modest stone smokehouse in Craster, Northumberland, has been within the Robson household for greater than a century.
Craster kippers are famend as a few of the greatest on the planet however the Robson premises are the final remnant of the North East’s as soon as thriving herring business.
From the mid-1800s to round 1920, most coastal cities and villages would have a smokehouse to protect locally-caught fish for a nationwide and worldwide market, offering customers with a wholesome and low-cost meal.
But the business declined with the rising availability of recent fish, slightly than pickled or smoked, with railway connections and higher refrigeration.
Craster, a small fishing village north east of Alnwick, as soon as boasted 4 smokehouses, however the Robson business is now the one remaining one within the North East.
James Robson arrange the business and in 1906 he took over the smokehouse, which was in-built 1856.
Now run by his great-grandson Neil and buying and selling as L Robson and Sons, it nonetheless makes use of the standard methods of curing the fish.
Staff grasp herring on tenter hooks and the oily fish are smoked for 16 hours by fires fuelled by whitewood shavings and oak sawdust.
The premises, with its smoke-charred roof tiles, has been granted grade II listed standing on the advice of Historic England.
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Mr Robson stated: “As the fourth-generation custodian of this business, I am delighted that the smokehouse has been granted listed status.
“This historic building enables us to continue to produce Craster kippers in the same way as my great-grandfather and subsequent generations, guaranteeing their quality for many years to come.”
Sarah Charlesworth, itemizing group chief for Historic England within the North, stated: “Kippers are an integral part of Craster’s cultural identity and the smokehouse is a physical embodiment of the village’s special character, as well as a living monument to the North East’s historic fishing industry.”
