Steam machines al fresco
| Fri, 1 Feb 2008 23:40 Chris Allen |
There are a surprising number of steam engines and steam hammers that are preserved in the open air and generally visible to the general public. This gallery is devoted to those machines. We start with steam hammers. This one in Shettleston road  has not been seen by me. Remaining in Scotland and along the Clyde we have examples at Braehead  and Port Glasgow  . There is a large example as a "gate guardian" at the Beamish open air museum  and another example in the car park at Trencherfield Mill  .To return to the start, James Nasmyth invented the steam hammer and this 1851 example is preserved by the entrance to his former works at Eccles  .A large example is preserved in Bolton that was used at the nearby Atlas Forge for wrought iron production  .Sheffield was the home of large hammers and a fitting example can be seen at Saville Street East  . Two smaller examples are seen next to the Kelham Island Industrial Museum   .In the midlands there is this little hammer at Lye  and a rather large one at Telford Services  .There are two hammers preserved al fresco in Blaenavon and this is the one opposite the ironworks  . |
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| Sat, 2 Feb 2008 23:56 Chris Allen |
There are four fixed steam cranes that survive in situ. The biggest is at Alexandra Dock, Hull and has a 100 ton capacity  . Second in size is the Fairbairn type "bannana" jib crane at Bristol  .There are two smaller cranes - one at Thwaite Mills, Leeds  and one at Mount Sion, Radcliffe  . The latter was in a bad way but it was claimed that it was due for some care and attention. This recent picture  shows that it has been partly repainted.Two sites retain derelict cranes that have been converted to electric drive. One is at Mount Tabor near Halifax  and the crane was built by Wm Bradley of Brighouse. The other site contains two cranes and is at Fagley, Bradford  .The large Scotch derricks from Armstrong Addison, Sunderland  are owned by a private collector and are in store.The crane at Watts Cliffe Stone Quarry, Elton  was scrapped c1988. |
| Sun, 3 Feb 2008 07:43 Chris Allen |
I can also think of four marine steam engines that are on public open air display. The oldest is that of the Paddle Steamer Leven and is in front of the Denny testing tank at Dumbarton   . This is a side lever beam engine.A double side lever beam engine from a tug is preserved near the ferry landing at Renfrew  ]]] .A small Weaver packet engine is preserved round the back of the Salt Museum at Northwich  . This is an inverted vertical compound.A bigger example is preserved at its maker's works outside Plenty at Newbury  |
| Mon, 26 May 2008 22:32 Chris Allen |
After a long break (I misplaced my list and had to re-do it) we can now return to look at stationary steam engines al fresco. We'll start with beam engines. Users of dartmouth Circus in Aston will be familiar with the Grazebrook beam blowing engine  although it is now largely obscured by trees.A Boulton and Watt waterworks beam pumping engine  has been preserved at Loughborough University for many years and a four column beam pumping engine is to be found at the former Mander College, Bedford  .A beam colliery winding engine, a very rare survivor, is to be found in Pontypridd  and parts of a railway incline beam winding engine are to be found in the open in Canterbury  and I have yet to see these pieces.The finest collection of Cornish beam pumping engines to be found anywhere were at Sudbrook and were used to drain the Severn tunnel. British Railways scrapped these in 1968 in an act of corporate vandalism that would have met with much more condemnation 10 years later. The engine house still stands  and one beam is preserved at Swansea Museum  . |
| Tue, 27 May 2008 22:04 Chris Allen |
One of the most basic and utilitarian designs is represented by the single cylinder machine. An early true vertical engine is preserved at the McClean Museum, Greenock  and there is a housebuilt version in Darwen  .The oldest is probably the Fieldhouse engine at the Tolson Museum, Huddersfield  and the smallest is probably that by Bury Bus Station  . I'm wary of superlatives because it's very easy to be caught out.This nice but vandalised example  was on display near the Boat Museum at Ellesmere Port but has now been removed for preservation elsewhere.An incomplete example was seen at the Auchentoshan Distillery  but I do not know if it was ever finished or whether it is still there.I had overlooked this fine example by S H Morton of Leith alongside the marina at Hull  . This operated a patent slip, a Morton speciality.I had also forgotten to include Trethowel china clay works near St Austell  . The engine furthest away is the remains of a horizontal single cylinder pumping engine, while closer to the camera is a haulage/winding engine that appeared to be a pair of disparate single cylinder engines coupled together. |
| Thu, 10 Jul 2008 23:02 Chris Allen |
There are a few larger stationary engines with more than one cylinder. The finest is probably the J & E Wood horizontal cross compound outside India mill, Darwen  . This featured in the film Spring & Port wine with James Mason as a mill engineer with a troublesome daughter.A smaller engine from the textile industry is this diagonal duplex engine  that is preserved on the site of Burrs Mill, Bury. These were once common in the textile finishing trades.This large non-rotative "differential" pump by Hathorn, Davey of Leeds  is preserved in the Ebbw Vale area and this shows it in its current location  .A small steam winch was to be found at the Ynysgedwyn iron works site  .A very derelict and incomplete steam winch is found in the Clyne Valley on the former Ynys Colliery site  . This is publicly accessible and as far as I know is still there.In the former Wrysgan Quarry near Tan-y-Grisiau there is a wrecked duplex winch  . I had been holding back on this because I believed it was long gone. However this illustration from August 2009 shows it little changed from my visit nearly 20 years earlier.A larger but incompletely erected colliery winder is tucked away on top of tall "foundations" at Prestongrange  .Finally, there is a derelict horizontal twin cylinder engine, as well as a ruinous steam crane on the derelict slate island of Belnahua. When somebody posts some shots i will include them. |
| Mon, 8 Sep 2008 00:07 Chris Allen |
The most modern design of engine is the high speed enclosed engine and Belliss & Morcom of Birmingham made in excess of 11,500 of these. One is preserved outside Purton village hall  and another is at the Crich tramway museum and I saw it from outside without paying admission  Another is at Railworld, Peterborough but that's £5 to get at  |
| Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:42 Chris Allen |
I have just added in the engine preserved north of Darwen near the junction of the A666 and M65. |
| Mon, 27 Oct 2008 23:38 Chris Allen |
I have added a steam hammer preserved near Bolton University. |
| Mon, 27 Oct 2008 23:46 Chris Allen |
There is a small horizontal duplex non-rotative pump preserved at Milton of Campsie  . This is now horrendously overgrown. A similar device, used as a firepump in a flour mill, is preserved at the Cambridge Museum of Technology  .Also in Cambridge, outside Tesco, is this single cylinder rotative tar pump  from the gasworks that stood on this site.I am primarily interested in true stationary steam engines but geograph does show a few portable examples - on wheels but not capable of self-propulsion. Try the following - Carrbridge  , Durham  , Bradley Green  (now moved on) and Caister Castle  .I am not even going to contemplate portable soil sterilisation boilers. |
