No 195 Sept 2013 1 www.sihg.org.uk

Wealden Cave and Mine Society Receives Conservation Award 2013

Top: Robert Bryson, L, presents the award to Malcolm Tadd, R, photo SIHG

Right: in the Tunnel Cave, photo Ed Combes

Wealden Cave and Mine Society Receives Conservation Award 2013 31st SIHG annual conservation award from the press release by Alan Thomas, retiring SIHG Secretary

The 2013 Conservation Award of the Surrey Industrial History Group was presented to the Wealden Cave and Mine Society at Reigate on Saturday 20 July 2013 in recognition of the recent improvements made for visitors to the Tunnel ‘Caves’, which were driven under the centre of Reigate for the extrac- tion of sand for glass-making, and later used for storage, air-raid shelters and an emergency control centre. The award was commemorated by the presentation of a plaque by Robert Bryson (Chairman, Surrey Industrial History Group), to Mr Malcolm Tadd, (President, Wealden Cave and Mine Society).

The Wealden Cave and Mine Society The Society was originally founded in 1967 and is a registered charity (no. 1113767). In addition to its activities in exploring natural caves in various parts of the country, it also has a strong interest in mines and underground stone quarries, with an emphasis on the preservation and recording of industrial history. It has given particular attention to the old mines and tunnels of Surrey. The Tunnel Caves are open to the public once per month from May to September. Access is also available at the same times to the adjacent Baron’s cave under the Castle grounds. For further information see www.wcms.org.uk. ¤

Note: Alan has now relinquished the role of Secretary which he has fulfilled with great effectiveness for may years; he remains on the Committee. Newsletter 195 September 2013 2 Contents 1 Wealden Cave and Mine Society Receives Conservation Award 2013 report by Alan Thomas 2 Notices; Surrey Industrial History Group Officers 3 Venues, Times & Contacts; Diary: 20 September - 30 November 2013 4 Trefriw Woollen Mills by Robin Turier 4 National Archives note from Di Stiff, Surrey History Centre 5 Notorious Capsizes by Alan Thomas 7 Surrey Industrial History Group Accounts 2012-13 report by Anne Lea 8 Industrial Archaeology News 166 Autumn 2013 report by Gordon Knowles

Reports & Notices Details of meetings are reported in good faith, but information may become out of date. Please check before attending.

SIHG Visits, Details & Updates at www.sihg.org.uk

SIHG Membership Renewal for 2013-14 is now overdue If you have not yet done so, please make your cheque payable to ‘Surrey Archaeological Society’ and send it to Castle Arch, Guildford GU1 3SX A Membership Form is available online or may be obtained from the above address. You may also pay by Standing Order. My thanks to members who have renewed their subscription to SIHG already; the system seems to be working well. Pam Taylor, Membership Secretary SIHG If our records indicate that you have not yet renewed, you will find a reminder slip with this issue of the Newsletter.

London and Middlesex Archaeological Society Heritage Conference. Saturday 28 September On buildings in Greater London of all eras from Roman to the present, what has been done to preserve them and what threats they face. One part of the conference is on Deptford Dockyard. The cost, including buffet lunch, is £30; full details can be found on the website: www.lamas.org.uk/london-heritage-conference.html. Alternatively apply for a ticket to: R J Buchanan, 79 Ashridge Crescent, London, SE18 3EA enclosing a cheque payable to LAMAS and an SAE

SIHG Newsletter #195 September 2013 Web Edition This edition of the Surrey Industrial Group Newsletter has been reformatted so that it is more easily read online or printed out as a PDF. Diary entries have been curtailed to cover SIHG, or SIHG related, events only. Other editorial matter is practically as originally published, but some pictures have been replaced by coloured versions. Readers are advised that the views of contributors are not necessarily the views of SIHG ©Copyright SIHG and individual contributors 2013.

Surrey Industrial History Group Officers Chairman & Lectures Organiser: Robert Bryson, [email protected] Secretary: Alan Thomas, [email protected] Treasurer: Anne Lea , [email protected] Membership Secretary: Pam Taylor, [email protected] Newsletter Editor: Jan Spencer, [email protected]

SIHG is a group of the Surrey Archaeological Society, Registered Charity No 272098 Castle Arch Guildford Surrey GU1 3SX, Group President: Prof AG Crocker FSA Newsletter 195 September 2013 3 SIHG Newsletter No 195 September 2013 DIARY 38th series of SIHG Industrial Archaeology Lectures at Guildford starts on 1 October Alternate Tuesdays, 19:30-21:30, Education Centre, The Cathedral, Guildford Single lectures at £5, payable on the night, are open to all. The Education Centre is the first building on the left near the top of the road up to the cathedral; enter by the first door you come to There is easy parking and almost step-free access. Maps at www.sihg.org.uk. Thursday Morning Lectures at Leatherhead Autumn 2013 Series start on 3 October. Enrolment is for the whole course only - places still available! Enquires to Programme Co-ordinator Bob Bryson: [email protected].

Venues, Times & Contacts Amberley Museum & Heritage Centre: by Amberley Railway Station on the B2139; www.amberleymuseum.co.uk, 01798 831370; 1000-1730, £9.80. ATC, Ancient Technology Centre : Damerham Road, Cranborne, Dorset BH21 5RP (behind the Middle School), 01725 517618, www.ancienttechnologycentre.co.uk. BIAG, Berkshire Industrial Archaeology Group: Garden Room,Watlington House, Watlington Street, Reading; 19:30; £2.50; www.biag.org.uk. Brooklands: Brooklands Road, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0QN. Bursledon Brickworks: Coal Park Lane, Swanwick, Southampton SO31 7GW, www.bursledonbrickworks.org.uk, 01489 576248, £3. CNHSS, Croydon Natural History & Scientific Society: United Reformed Church Hall, Addiscombe Grove, East Croydon CR0 5LP; 19:45; 0208 668 1431. Crofton Beam Engines : Crofton Pumping Station, Crofton, Marlborough, Wilts SN8 3DW; 10:30-17:00; £8; www.croftonbeamengines.org, 01672 870300. Crossness Engines : The Old Works, Crossness STW, Belvedere Road, Abbey Wood, London SE2 9AQ; www.crossness.org.uk, 020 8311 3711; 1030-1600, £5. Didcot Railway Centre: Didcot Parkway railway station, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 7NJ. Docklands History Group: Museum of London Docklands, No 1 Warehouse, W India Quay, Hertsmere Rd, E14 4AL; 17:30, £2; 01689 851982; ww.docklandshistorygroup.org.uk. Greenwich Industrial History Society: the Old Bakehouse, rear of Age Exchange Centre, 11 Blackheath Village, SE3; 19:30, £1. HIAS, Hampshire Industrial Archaeology Society: Underhill Centre, St. John's Road, Hedge End, SO30 4AF, 1945, free. Honeywood Museum: Honeywood Walk, Carshalton SM6 3NX; 020 8770 4297. 1930, £3.50. Honeywood Museum Friends: contact Sue Horne 020 8773 0185. 1930, £3.50. Kempton Great Engines: Feltham Hill Road, Hanworth, Middx TW13 6XH (off elevated section of A316), www.kemptonsteam.org, 01932 765328, 1100-1600, £6 London Bus Museum: at Brooklands, Brooklands Road, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0QN. London Canal Museum: 12/13 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RT. Talk: 19:30, £3. 0207 713 0836, www.canalmuseum.org.uk. MERL, Museum of English Rural Life: Redlands Road, Reading, Berkshire RG1 5EX, www.reading.ac.uk/merl/, 0118 378 8660. Newcomen Society London: Fellows’ Room, Science Museum, Exhibition Road, London SW7 2DD; 17:45. Guests welcome, free. Railway and Canal Historical Society : The Rugby Tavern, Rugby Street, WC1N 3ES; 18:30; www.rchs.org.uk. River Thames (Teddington to Old Windsor Branch): contact Colin Day - 0208 824 1643, [email protected]. Rural Life Centre: Reeds Road, Tilford, Farnham, Surrey, GU10 2DL; 01252 795571. Shirley Windmill: Postmill Cl, Shirley CR0 5DY, 12:00-17:00, free, www.shirleywindmill.org.uk SIAS, Sussex Industrial Archaeology Society: Meetings at West Blatchington Mill Barn, Holmes Avenue, Hove; 19:30. STEAM - Museum of the Great Western Railway: Kemble Drive, Swindon SN2 2TA; 1000-1700, £6.40; 01793 466 646; www.steam-museum.org.uk. Twyford Waterworks: Hazeley Road, Twyford, Hampshire SO21 1QA; 11:00-16:00; 01962 714716, www.twyfordwaterworks.co.uk. Diary September 2013 21 Sat - 22 Sun Open House London: Programme available at www.open-city.org.uk, www.londonopenhouse.org. Diary October 2013 1 Tue First Guildford SIHG Lecture of the 38th Series: Guildford Railway Station by Roger Nicholas, Guildford Town Guide. 3 Thu First Leatherhead SIHG Lecture of the Autumn 2013 Series Stourport, Terminus - Staffs & Worcester Canal by Gordon Knowles. 15 Tue Second Guildford SIHG Lecture of the 38th Series: Monorails of the 19th Century Adrian Garner, Author 19 Sat Surrey Heritage: Farnham Heritage Showcase, 10:30-16:00, see page 7. 29 Tue Third Guildford SIHG Lecture of the 38th Series: The Post-Medieval Iron Industry in the Weald by Jeremy Hodgkinson, Wealden Iron Research Group Diary November 2013 5 Tue Fourth Guildford SIHG Lecture of the 38th Series: Meccano - Engineering in miniature by Frank Paine, Chair SELMEC. 26 Tue Fifth Guildford SIHG Lecture of the 38th Series: The Roman Wooden Water Pump - an ingenious machine by Dr Richard Stein, Archaeologist. Venues, Times & Contacts are on page 4. Newsletter 195 September 2013 4

Trefriw Woollen Mills by Robin Turier

I visited this business while on holiday in North Wales in June. It is near Llanrwst, north of Betws-y-Coed, and there has been a mill here since the early 19th Cen- tury. The principal building is an impres- sive three-storey stone structure. The mill has been altered over the years and it was last improved and re-equipped in the 1950s. It is powered by the River Crafnant, a tributary of the River Conwy. Hand spinning was being demonstrated and I had a go on a traditional hand- and foot-operated loom. As their leaflet says, “all the processes from fleece to fabric” are carried out. A turbine generates hydro-electricity. Remembering a lecture by Alan Crocker, I knew I would not be able to see the turbine itself. However, copies of the manufacturer’s drawings of the turbine are on display, showing that it is a Pelton wheel. Apparently a penstock pipe runs spinning mules and looms. The machines are operated through a space previously occupied by a waterwheel. as required by the needs of the business. Fortunately I The turbine’s output supplies the various electrically- was able to watch several of them working during my powered machines, including carding machines, visit. The mill’s income comes from the sales

of its products in its shop. This shop also stocks some other items “to com- plement our products” and there is an attractive tearoom with historical dis- plays. This contrasts with other mills I have visited. By way of invidious com- parison, the output of Whitchurch Silk Mill in Hampshire is probably inade- quate to maintain a profitable business. Shalford Mill (National Trust) is not operational. Admission to the mill is free. The dis- tinct parts of the mill and associated activities have differing opening times. I would therefore advise anyone else contemplating a visit to read the Trefriw Woollen Mills’ publicity leaflet or see their website, www.t-w-m.co.uk, before- hand. ¤

National Archives information from Di Stiff, Surrey History Centre

I thought SIHG members might like to know that The added to the indexes to the National Register of National Archives have now completed the Accessions Archives, and it is also edited and used to produce to Repositories programme 2012 and this information 36 thematic digests that are then distributed for publica- is now available on their website at tion in a number of learned journals and newsletters. ww.nationalarchives.gov.uk/accessions/. In its annual There are digests for many themes which have industrial ‘Accessions to Repositories’ survey The National history connections including Transport, Medieval and Archives collects information from over 300 record Early Modern, Building and Construction, Military, repositories throughout the British Isles (including Business, Brewing etc. Surrey History Centre), about manuscript accessions Simply click on the link, select the year ‘2012’ from the received in the previous 12 months. This information is drop-down menu and choose from the list of digests. ¤ Newsletter 195 September 2013 5

Notorious Capsizes by Alan Thomas

It is perhaps not generally appreciated that, save for water ingress is necessary to cause capsizing if a ship is some special vessels, the only attitude of a ship in which top-heavy. it is unconditionally stable is upside-down. Its suscepti- It may be asked why the centre of gravity is above the bility to capsizing when disturbed from its upright rest centre of , or at least why it is not kept as low position is determined by the relationship between the as possible. Unfortunately, as is common in engineering position of the centre of gravity and that of the centre of design, compromise is necessary. In a seaway a ship is buoyancy, which is affected by the shape of the hull as induced to roll by wave or wind action, and if the centre the ship rolls. (Figs.1a-c). The centre of gravity G is of gravity is low it will roll very heavily, although it will above the centre of buoyancy, which implies that if the not roll over because the safe angle of heel is corre- hull were a perfect cylinder, so that the centre of buoy- spondingly large. In early steamships, which had very ancy B did not shift with roll, the vessel would never be heavy engines low in the hull, this characteristic became stable except when upside-down. apparent and heavy rolling did occur: both of Brunel’s The theory of ship stability is well established.1 When the ship is up- right (Fig. 1a), the two centres are on the same vertical line, the gravi- tational and buoyancy are equal and opposite to each other and the system is stationary. As the ship heels, the centre of buoyancy moves towards the lower side, and a righting couple is produced, togeth- er with the of gravity, propor- tional to the length of the lever arm (G-X,Fig.1b). Regarding this ar- rangement as a control system for Ship stability diagrams stabilising the vertical attitude of the vessel, it is in a negative feedback regime in which great iron ships suffered from this defect. What is more the error, in this case the heel angle, operates the system surprising is that the Queen Mary did as well. This may to restore the attitude to upright. As the heel increases have been due to an Admiralty requirement for heavy the lever arm increases, but at some point reaches a guns to be installed on the top deck in wartime, while maximum and thereafter decreases. The angle at which retaining adequate stability, so that in normal service the it reaches zero is termed variously the angle of vanishing centre of gravity would be correspondingly low. What is stability or the critical angle of heel, or in control system less explicable is that the designers apparently believed terminology the nyquist point. The slightest further that she was too big to roll, and failed to fit handrails in movement will create an overturning the corridors between the cabins and elsewhere. As she moment, and at this point the system enters a positive rolled to 44° at times, this presented serious problems to feedback regime, in which the greater the heel angle the the passengers and caused many injuries. After the early greater is the overturning moment. The vessel thus rolls voyages action was taken to raise the centre of gravity without limit and the ship overturns (Fig. 1c). This (and fit handrails).2 movement is extremely rapid. As the roll increases, the It is possible to design vessels which will turn over com- increasing moment leads to increasing acceleration, and pletely and right themselves. Some lifeboats are de- the system could be said to snap over like a switch. This signed this way, but they roll heavily and are more like- characteristic of positive feedback is not mentioned gen- ly to capsize than a conventional boat. erally in accounts of capsizes, perhaps because of unfa- miliarity with the principles of control systems. We may now look at some celebrated, or notorious, cas- es of capsizing. The movement of the centre of buoyancy in relation to the centre of gravity as the angle of heel increases is The Vasa, a new Swedish royal ship, was about to de- determined by graphical methods. From knowledge of part on her maiden voyage from her berth alongside a the positions of the two centres and of the shape of the quay in Stockholm harbour in August 1628, having been hull, it is possible to calculate the angle of vanishing on display. With topsails set she left the quayside but stability. It is clearly essential to make this angle ade- after going only about 1.5 km encountered a squall, quate for the intended conditions of operation when de- which caused her to heel, fail to recover and capsize signing a ship and specifying the way in which it may be (Fig. 2). She sank in the mud, and this combined with loaded and ballasted. the generally low water preserved much of the structure and its contents so that in 1961 it was pos- The higher the centre of gravity the smaller is the critical sible to raise an almost complete ship and move it to a angle of heel. A top-heavy ship will therefore capsize at museum, where it may still be seen. The state of preser- a small angle of heel, but this danger will not necessarily vation was such that it was possible to calculate the an- be apparent if the ship is alongside or moored in calm gle of zero stability, using mathematical principles first water; but once at sea slight wave or wind action may worked out by the Swedish naval architect Fredrik cause the critical angle to be exceeded, and if it is Chapman in the second half of the 18th century. The exceeded the resulting capsize will be very rapid be- angle of zero stability was thus calculated to be 10°, cause of the positive feedback effect. It follows that a quite inadequate for any ship. The high centre of gravity rapid capsize is sufficient evidence that the ship is top- was probably caused by the presence of stores and guns heavy because of design errors or incorrect loading. No too high up in the ship. In particular, the king had or- Newsletter 195 September 2013 6 Large numbers of archers there would tend to destabilise the ship, as would heavy guns in the castles. It is important to note, as for the Vasa, that instability is not apparent while a ship is moored or moving in still water because of the low restoring force, inducing complacency until the ship overturns at a small angle of heel, as is indicated by the next case. On the other hand, a ship with a low cen- tre of gravity will tend to be very lively, as was demonstrated by the Queen Mary.5 The 100-gun first-rate HMS Royal George, a sister ship of Vic- tory, was in the last stages of preparing to leave in the expedition of August 1782 to relieve the siege of Gibraltar, and was anchored at Spithead, close to where sank. She had been heeled to one side, to allow access for repair to a component which was normally under water, by moving guns from one side of the ship to the other, thus shifting the centre of gravity. This procedure was not unusual, except for its timing so close to departure and with some hundreds of families, traders and ladies on board. The carpenter (a senior petty officer) was Fig. 2 Vasa, capsizing however alarmed and asked the officer of the watch to reduce the heel, but before this could be dered many modifications, including an additional gun done the ship capsized. This was so rapid that most of deck. It is perhaps not surprising that the disaster was those on board were drowned, including the admiral. An put down to the will of God, although the theory of ship eyewitness on shore, writing a letter, reported that the stability was not known at this time and designers had 3 ship disappeared in the time it took her to complete a only precedent and experience to rely on. sentence.6, 7 Henry VIII’s great ship Mary Rose, built in 1511 (Fig. 3), In heeling a ship in this way, for stability the centre of capsized in in 1545 during a battle with a 4 buoyancy has to track the movement of the centre of French invasion fleet. The rapidity of the capsize is gravity so that the two points are on the same vertical sufficient to indicate that she was top-heavy. Although line. If the shape of the hull is such that this ceases to her lower gun-ports were open, and often thought to happen, and the centre of gravity moves further out- account for the disaster, that would not account for the board than the centre of buoyancy, a positive feedback rapidity of the capsize. This was demonstrated in a tele- situation will arise and a rapid overturn will result. It vision programme some years ago, using models with does not follow that the safe angle of heel is as great as variable centres of gravity and with or without open gun that obtaining at sea with a normally-positioned centre -ports. Open ports alone did not cause capsizing. The of gravity. It is clear that the ship was close to a point of reason for the top-heaviness can only be the subject of critical instability. Barrels of rum were being loaded speculation, but it is known, from the number of bows through the lower gun-ports from a barge alongside, and and arrows found, that archers were car- ried. They would clearly need to operate from as high up in the ship as possible, probably from the tops of the fore and stern castles, which were very high (Fig 2).

CBA (Council for British Archaeology) South-East Conference Landscapes of South-East Britain during the Roman Period Queen Elizabeth School, Abbey Place, Faversham 16 November 2013 | 09:30 to 16:30 Jeremy Hodgkinson The Landscape of Iron Production in the Roman Weald‘ David Bird Landscapes of Roman Surrey & others Tickets from www.kafs.co.uk; £8/£10 on the day. Fig. 3 Mary Rose from Anthony Roll Inventory of the King’s Ships Newsletter 195 September 2013 7 this would have needed lifting tackle suspended from a occurred in shallow water, otherwise very few people, if yardarm, thus adding an overturning moment. There any, would have survived.9 may also have been sufficient water on the gun-deck to The bow doors were not visible from the bridge, and the add further to this moment by the free surface effect, of officer whose duty it was to observe that they were which more later. closed failed to do so. The assistant boatswain whose The subsequent court-martials were a whitewash, the duty it was to close them was taking a rest in his cabin accident being attributed to the collapse of the hull due and did not wake up in time before the ship was in mo- to rot and that no-one was to blame (although they did tion. The subsequent enquiry identified a ‘disease of not, as far as we know, court-martial the carpenter). The sloppiness’ and negligence at every level of the compa- captain, however, (who had survived) was not employed again. ny’s hierarchy. Although seven people faced criminal charges, five of them and the company itself were ac- The unfortunately-named Herald of Free Enterprise was quitted, but the case set a precedent for charges of cor- a roll-on roll-off car ferry. She was leaving Zeebrugge porate manslaughter. The international regulations for on 6 March 1987 and was 90 seconds into the voyage the design and equipment of this type of ship were when water began to enter the car-deck, the bow-doors changed in 1990. having not yet been closed. Although the deck was still above the water line, the ship had been trimmed bows Although we may allow mitigation of the blame in the down to receive the loading ramp, Zeebrugge not being first two examples, on account of lack of knowledge, the her usual port, The bows were further depressed by a carelessness and incompetence shown in the others is hydrodynamic effect as she moved at high speed over harder to forgive. ¤ shallow water, and when the speed reached 18.9 knots References the bow wave was sufficiently high to cause flooding. The free surface effect 8 took hold, in which water on a 1. Basic Ship Theory. K.J. Lawson and E.C. Tupper. 1968. deck or in a tank will slop to one side, causing a pro- 2. Queen Mary – the early days recalled. C.R.W. Win- gressive loss of stability, which will be fatal if the sur- ter .1986. 3. New Scientist 23/30 December 1986. p. 56. face is extensive enough – in this case, the whole width 4. How we found the Mary Rose. Alexander McKee. 1982. of the car-deck, which had no longitudinal bulkheads or 5. Queen Mary – the early days recalled. p. 126. baffles. As in the other cases above, the capsize was 6. HMS Royal George (1756). Wikipedia rev. April 2013. very rapid and was complete after about four minutes 7. Great Naval Blunders. Geoffrey Regan. 1993, 2012. pp.174-177.8. from the time of leaving harbour. It was fortunate that it Basic Ship Theory. pp.101-103. 9. MS Herald of Free Enterprise. Wikipedia. 2013.

Surrey Industrial History Group Accounts 2012-13 - presented by Anne Lea, SIHG Treasurer The group has had another successful year and is show- Book sales were somewhat down (£158, 2011-2 £270), ing a healthy surplus. On paper, subscriptions appear to perhaps owing to the lack of new publications. The have fallen by about £500. This is the result of a change newsletter, postage, stationery and the cost of the AGM in the way SyAS is transferring the subscriptions for were all up, the latter as we paid the Rural Life Museum SIHG. (The office of our parent organization, the Surrey for the enjoyable visit made there by our members. Archaeological Society, administers the collection of We continued to make dividends on our investments of SIHG subscriptions.) In the past we received the early £1,092. This amount will be less next year as the rate payments for the year i.e. those paying before the that the fund pays is being reduced. Also, the gain in 1 April, in the previous year’s accounts. This year we value was less this year but the amount fluctuated con- have not received those early payments (usually about siderably and hopefully will be well up at the next valu- £450) and so our total is down. Once this change has ation. With a willingness to take greater risks with our been through the system we should see the proper funds we could also increase the potential value of our amount and the new system is actually more appropri- investments but the committee feels that income genera- ate. tion is not our prime function. We believe that keeping The Leatherhead lectures continue to make a profit of our existing funds secure and available to meet any de- around £1,000. The Guildford lectures made a loss of mands for grants, subsidising activities etc. is of greater £236, but much less than in previous years (2011-2 importance. This is obviously a matter that the members £964) and hopefully, with a full year of meetings at the may wish to consider. ¤ Education Centre, Guildford Cathedral, next year we should see a small profit.

Subterranea Britannica Surrey Heritage & Partners present Farnham Heritage Showcase Autumn Meeting 10:30-16:00, Saturday 19 October 2013 Saturday 19th October 2013 Adult and Community Learning Centre, 09:30-17:30, Lecture Theatre 1.31, Royal School of West Street, Farnham, GU9 7DR Mines, Imperial College London, A day of FREE activities, talks and exhibitions to Prince Consort Road, LONDON SW7 2BP discover more about your local heritage! Illustrated talks and presentations £18 in advance or £20 on the day, Family history zone + Children's activities including tea and coffee. Archaeology & local history group stands & displays www.subbrit.org.uk/events/autumn-meeting-2013 ‘Ask the expert’ drop-in sessions www.exploringsurreyspast.org.uk/showcase Newsletter 195 September 2013 8

Industrial Archaeology News 166 Autumn 2013 report by Gordon Knowles Marilyn Palmer writes about her concerns over the pro- Nigel Grizzard, the Chief Executive of Our Northern posed changes to English Heritage whereby it will be Mills, describes how the group was established to assist split in two and the 423 historic properties of national in the regeneration of mills in the Leeds and importance will be hived off into a self-financing trust. In Manchester areas, their first project was the conversion of the short term £80m will be allocated but she wonders the Ena Mill in Atherton hear Wigan into a discount shop- how much of it will be spent in setting up the new chari- ping centre. Recently their work has extended to the ty. The statutory duties of English Heritage will Scottish borders and he quotes as an example the task of continue to be managed directly by the Historic Buildings restoring an historic granary in the fishing port of and Monuments Commission for England, the current in the Scottish borders. A conference is being official title for English Heritage. She is concerned at the arranged later this year to further their work and discuss that is going to be put on volunteers as more and opportunities with groups who may wish to join as partners. more of the historic environment is placed in their care. She also wonders if the National Heritage Collection can The Chairman of NEDIAS (North East Derbyshire ever become self-financing, given the £50m or so backlog Industrial Archaeology Society), Cliff Lea, describes of essential maintenance for these properties that has dog- the group’s first twelve years. When approaching ged English Heritage for several years. Chesterfield in the recent past the motorist was greeted by a sign showing the famous crooked spire and the inscrip- Bill Barksfield describes the recent AIA tour around the tion ‘The Heart of Industrial England’. This is unfortu- Ruhr where steel industry and railway relics were the nately no longer true but the area has a number of out- main themes. Sites visited included the Henrichshütte standing relics from the great days of the industrial period steel works which was in operation from 1854 until 1987 which his group have striven to record and/or preserve. and at its peak employed some 10,000 workers. Now, just He quotes examples such as three-mile-long tunnel exca- one blast furnace remains. The Villa Hügel, home of the vated under Clay Cross for the North Midland Railway in Krupp family, was visited as well as several museums, 1837-38 by George Stephenson and the works of the including the Railway Museum, Bochum-Dalhausen; also Staveley Coal & Iron Co. Ltd to the east of Chesterfield. the Zeche Zollverein coal mine and the 1889 ship lift at Membership of the society thrives seemingly, with meet- Henrichenburg on the Dortmund Ems canal. The fittest ings ‘often at bursting point’ in contrast to some other members of the party climbed up the 1938 coal conveyor local groups who are suffering from falling membership at Kokerei Hansa which could move 1,700,000 tons a and declining local interest. year up to the 300 coke ovens until 1992. The West- fälisches Landesmuseum für Handwerk is an open-air Two personalities are noted, the award of an OBE to museum founded in 1960 with many historic buildings Keith Falconer following his retirement after a long restored to use. A demonstration was given of hand-made career with English Heritage and its predecessors; and the nails; surprisingly there is a demand for these today death of James Sutherland, a key figure in the history which the craftsmen are unable to meet. groups of the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Institution of Structural Engineers and the Newcomen On a smaller scale the Hendrichs Forge in Solingen, a Society, of which he was a former President. James was drop forge specialising in the manufacture of scissors, married to Julia Elton, also a former president, and was visited. It ceased working in 1986 and is now a mu- accompanied her on her visits to give lectures at SIHG seum, where some of the original plant is used to demon- evening meetings in the recent past. strate the processes. The final visit was made to Wupper- tal and the unique Schwebebahn, the oldest elevated elec- Terry Waterfield implores you to keep your photo- tric railway with hanging cars in the world. The elevated graphs on hard discs and CDs, and not to give them to track runs over streets and the river Wupper, crossing ‘some clever clogs to store for you’. His concern is that a beneath a railway viaduct and above a road on the way. number of such storage businesses have failed with the resulting loss of individual records. He prints a table of John McGuiness muses as to whether the term available sites on the web and comments on their reliabil- ‘Industrial Revolution’ still has any meaning. The first ity and suitability. His message is ‘tread with caution’. Industrial Revolution consisted of industries that either changed the physical form of the material being worked There are announcements of new Restoration Grants by on or relied on empirical knowledge or experience. The the AIA; to Danzey Green Windmill at Avoncroft Muse- second revolution took place at the turn of the nineteenth um of Buildings for restoration following storm damage; and twentieth centuries with the introduction of the inter- to the Cotswold Canal Trust for restoration of Bowbridge nal combustion engine and electricity as the driving forc- Lock; for the restoration of a Thompson railway coach by es behind industrial production. It was no longer neces- the London & North Eastern Railway Coach Association; sary to be located within easy reach of coal mines. This and finally for the rebuilding of the Ryde Pier tram No 2, second revolution took place largely in the midlands and by the Steam Railway Company. southern counties of England and McGuiness cites as Your reviewer notes an increase in the number of large examples the motor works of Morris at Oxford and Ford advertisements for events around the country. Have in Dagenham. He notes that today many of these have organisers more funds or sponsorship to pay for such themselves lost ground to other countries or new technol- entries, or are they spending their money speculating that ogies in the same way that the north of the country previ- they will attract wider support from outside their local ously lost out to the south. area? ¤

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