Lemington Power Station
Encyclopedia
Lemington Power Station is a small, now defunct coal-fired power station
, located in North East England
. It is situated on the Lemington Gut, a backwater of the River Tyne
, at Lemington
, 3.5 mi (5.6 km) west of Newcastle upon Tyne
. The station's main building still stands today and is a rare example of an early power station, dating from before the nationalisation
of the United Kingdom
's electrical supply industry
.
The station was opened in 1903 and had a total generating capacity of 970 kilowatts. The electricity generated was used to power a tram system, as well as to provide local households and streets
with electric lighting. After the station closed in 1919 it was used as a sub-station
, until 1946 when the tram line closed. It was then partially demolished in 1949, but has since been made a locally listed building and is now used by a construction company.
, Forth Banks
and The Close
. Two supply companies built the stations, the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company
(NESCo) to the east of Newcastle, and the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
(DisCo) to the west.
DisCo built a station at Lemington
, in the western outskirts of the city, to provide electricity for a tram line which ran through their supply area, from the City Centre to Throckley
. The station was sited amid the derelict buildings of the Tyne Iron Company's ironworks
. They had opened in 1797 and closed in 1886. The works were largely demolished, but some of the ironworks' buildings and chimneys still stood unused, and the power station was built amongst them. DisCo opened Lemington Power Station in 1903.
, which creates a large double-gabled
building. It is of steel frame
construction with brick
cladding
. Other features include round-headed openings and ridge vent
ilators. This building originally housed the station's boiler
s and turbo generator
s. Constructed alongside the station was a brick
built chimney
, to remove gasses from the boilers. The station was first brick built power station in North East England, with corrugated iron being the usual material used prior to this.
The station's boiler house housed three coal-fired Lancashire boilers, each of 200 HP capacity and each with individual economisers. These boilers provided steam for two 410 kilowatt (kW) and one 150 kW direct current
Parsons
turbo generators. This gave the station a total generating capacity of 970 kW. Before being used in the Lemington power station, these generators had been used in Forth Banks Power Station
and in Newburn Steelworks
. One of the steam turbine
s from these sets is now on display at the Electric Power and Historical Museum in Yokohama
, Japan
, after sitting on display in the entrance to Blyth Power Station
for many years.
marked the end of the Wylam Waggonway, which brough coal from a number of nearby collieries to the staithes for export. Coal was hauled from the staithes to the power station, before being dumped directly into overhead hoppers in the boiler house. From there it was burned in the boiler
s to provide steam for the turbo generator
s. This steam was then cooled after use, using condenser
s, the water for which was taken from the Lemington Gut. This was a backwater
of the River Tyne, created when a new channel was cut in 1876.
As well as providing power for the tram system, the station was a source of electricity for local homes. The building of a power station brought major environmental improvements to what was a highly polluted area, because electricity represented a much cleaner source of household energy than coal, which was used at the time. Local households gradually switched to the new power source. A partner in the enterprise of the Lemington power station was Sir Matthew White Ridley, who had considerable interests in coal and banking.
. The building was retained and continued to be used to supply power to the tram route by housing a sub-station
, which used rotary converter
s. The station also provided a service for local residents who wanted their wireless accumulators
recharged. The station continued to operate in this way until 1946, when the tram route was closed. The station's chimney was demolished in 1949, along with remaining structures of the Tyne Iron Works, which had stood next to the power station throughout its operation.
The main turbine and boiler building is now a locally listed building, standing today as a monument to the important role that Tyne and Wear
played in the development of electrical supply. The building had been considered for the more protected Listed Building status, but the decision was taken in May 2004 not to promote it. Other early power stations in the area (such as those at Dunston
and Wallsend
) have all been entirely demolished. The Lemington station is partly still standing due to riverside sites becoming less important to industrial development, leading to the site never being redeveloped.
The large remaining building currently stands in amongst a small industrial estate at the foot of the nearby Lemington Glass Cone
. Along with the neighbouring Ironworks site, it is owned by Norland Construction, a crane
and plant company formerly known as Reeds Cranes and Plant, the builing used as storage for their machinary. The site is thought to be contaminated with coal products, fuels and oils such as PCBs
, as well as dioxin
s and furan
s. In 2003, Newcastle City Council realsed plans that they hoped to redevelop the site for heritage tourism
in the future.
Fossil fuel power plant
A fossil-fuel power station is a power station that burns fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or petroleum to produce electricity. Central station fossil-fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation...
, located in North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
. It is situated on the Lemington Gut, a backwater of the River Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
, at Lemington
Lemington
Lemington is a housing area and electoral ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England.-History:Lemington has a strong industrial history. It is famous for its brick glassworks cone, built in 1787...
, 3.5 mi (5.6 km) west of Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
. The station's main building still stands today and is a rare example of an early power station, dating from before the nationalisation
Electricity Act 1947 (UK)
The Electricity Act 1947 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that nationalised the numerous municipal and privately owned electricity generation and supply utilities in Great Britain...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's electrical supply industry
Electrical power industry
The electric power industry provides the production and delivery of electric energy, often known as power, or electricity, in sufficient quantities to areas that need electricity through a grid connection. The grid distributes electrical energy to customers...
.
The station was opened in 1903 and had a total generating capacity of 970 kilowatts. The electricity generated was used to power a tram system, as well as to provide local households and streets
Street light
A street light, lamppost, street lamp, light standard, or lamp standard is a raised source of light on the edge of a road or walkway, which is turned on or lit at a certain time every night. Modern lamps may also have light-sensitive photocells to turn them on at dusk, off at dawn, or activate...
with electric lighting. After the station closed in 1919 it was used as a sub-station
Electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions...
, until 1946 when the tram line closed. It was then partially demolished in 1949, but has since been made a locally listed building and is now used by a construction company.
Background
In the early 1900s, an increasing number of areas were being provided with electricity, and train and tram lines were being electrified. In the area around Newcastle upon Tyne, this required the opening of power stations at WallsendNeptune Bank Power Station
Neptune Bank Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated on the River Tyne at Wallsend near Newcastle upon Tyne. Commissioned in 1901 by the Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company, the station was the first in the world to provide electricity for purposes other than domestic and...
, Forth Banks
Forth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station refers to a now-demolished coal-fired power station in North East England. It was situated in the city centre of Newcastle upon Tyne on Forth Banks, a street to the rear of Newcastle's Central Station...
and The Close
The Close Power Station
Close Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated on Newcastle upon Tyne's Quayside, in Tyne and Wear. The station was built by the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company in 1902, near their Forth Banks Power Station....
. Two supply companies built the stations, the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company
Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company
The North Eastern Electric Supply Company was responsible for the supply of electricity to a large amount of North East England, prior to the nationalisation of the British electricity industry with the Electricity Act 1947...
(NESCo) to the east of Newcastle, and the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
The Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company was a pre-nationalisation, private electricity supply company, based in Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. The company was set up in 1889 by Charles Algernon Parsons...
(DisCo) to the west.
DisCo built a station at Lemington
Lemington
Lemington is a housing area and electoral ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England.-History:Lemington has a strong industrial history. It is famous for its brick glassworks cone, built in 1787...
, in the western outskirts of the city, to provide electricity for a tram line which ran through their supply area, from the City Centre to Throckley
Throckley
Throckley is a village, located approximately 11 km west of Newcastle upon Tyne, in North East England. Hadrian's Wall passes through the village, its course traced by the village's main road, Hexham Road....
. The station was sited amid the derelict buildings of the Tyne Iron Company's ironworks
Ironworks
An ironworks or iron works is a building or site where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and/or steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e...
. They had opened in 1797 and closed in 1886. The works were largely demolished, but some of the ironworks' buildings and chimneys still stood unused, and the power station was built amongst them. DisCo opened Lemington Power Station in 1903.
Design and specification
The station consists of a parallel boiler house and turbine hallTurbine Hall
The turbine hall, generating hall or turbine building is a building that is a part of any steam cycle or hydroelectric power plant which houses a number of components vital to the generation of electricity from the steam that comes from the boiler, or from the water coming from the reservoir...
, which creates a large double-gabled
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
building. It is of steel frame
Steel frame
Steel frame usually refers to a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal -beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame...
construction with brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
cladding
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
. Other features include round-headed openings and ridge vent
Ridge vent
A ridge vent is a type of vent installed at the peak of a sloped roof which allows warm, humid air to escape a building's attic. Ridge vents are most common on shingled residential buildings.-External links:***** from HGTV* *****...
ilators. This building originally housed the station's boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
s and turbo generator
Turbo generator
A turbo generator is a turbine directly connected to an electric generator for the generation of electric power. Large steam powered turbo generators provide the majority of the world's electricity and are also used by steam powered turbo-electric ships.Smaller turbo-generators with gas turbines...
s. Constructed alongside the station was a brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
built chimney
Flue gas stack
A flue-gas stack is a type of chimney, a vertical pipe, channel or similar structure through which combustion product gases called flue gases are exhausted to the outside air. Flue gases are produced when coal, oil, natural gas, wood or any other fuel is combusted in an industrial furnace, a power...
, to remove gasses from the boilers. The station was first brick built power station in North East England, with corrugated iron being the usual material used prior to this.
The station's boiler house housed three coal-fired Lancashire boilers, each of 200 HP capacity and each with individual economisers. These boilers provided steam for two 410 kilowatt (kW) and one 150 kW direct current
Direct current
Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
Parsons
C. A. Parsons and Company
C. A. Parsons and Company was a British engineering firm which was once one of the largest employers on Tyneside.-History:The Company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1889 to produce turbo-generators, his own invention. At the beginning of the Twentieth Century, the company was producing...
turbo generators. This gave the station a total generating capacity of 970 kW. Before being used in the Lemington power station, these generators had been used in Forth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station
Forth Banks Power Station refers to a now-demolished coal-fired power station in North East England. It was situated in the city centre of Newcastle upon Tyne on Forth Banks, a street to the rear of Newcastle's Central Station...
and in Newburn Steelworks
Newburn Steelworks
Newburn Steelworks was a large steel mill on the banks of the River Tyne at Newburn, near Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England.-History:John Spencer originally opened the works in Newburn in 1822, in a water driven mill on the Dewley Burn which he converted for file grinding. In 1867 Spencer was...
. One of the steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s from these sets is now on display at the Electric Power and Historical Museum in Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, after sitting on display in the entrance to Blyth Power Station
Blyth Power Station
Blyth Power Station refers to a pair of now demolished coal-fired power stations, which were located on the Northumberland coast in North East England. The two stations were built alongside each other on a site near Cambois in Northumberland, on the northern bank of the River Blyth, between its...
for many years.
Operations
The power station was well situated for coal deliveries as it was only 200 yd (182.9 m) from Lemington Staithes. The staithesWharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...
marked the end of the Wylam Waggonway, which brough coal from a number of nearby collieries to the staithes for export. Coal was hauled from the staithes to the power station, before being dumped directly into overhead hoppers in the boiler house. From there it was burned in the boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
s to provide steam for the turbo generator
Turbo generator
A turbo generator is a turbine directly connected to an electric generator for the generation of electric power. Large steam powered turbo generators provide the majority of the world's electricity and are also used by steam powered turbo-electric ships.Smaller turbo-generators with gas turbines...
s. This steam was then cooled after use, using condenser
Condenser
Condenser may refer to:*Condenser , a device or unit used to condense vapor into liquid. More specific articles on some types include:*Air coil used in HVAC refrigeration systems...
s, the water for which was taken from the Lemington Gut. This was a backwater
Backwater (river)
A backwater is a part of a river in which there is little or no current. It refers either to a branch of a main river which lies alongside it and then rejoins it or to a body of water in a main river which is backed up by an obstruction such as the tide or a dam.-Alternative channel:If a river has...
of the River Tyne, created when a new channel was cut in 1876.
As well as providing power for the tram system, the station was a source of electricity for local homes. The building of a power station brought major environmental improvements to what was a highly polluted area, because electricity represented a much cleaner source of household energy than coal, which was used at the time. Local households gradually switched to the new power source. A partner in the enterprise of the Lemington power station was Sir Matthew White Ridley, who had considerable interests in coal and banking.
Closure and present
Production of electricity in the station ceased in 1919, ushered in by the completion of an extension to generating equipment at Newburn SteelworksNewburn Steelworks
Newburn Steelworks was a large steel mill on the banks of the River Tyne at Newburn, near Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England.-History:John Spencer originally opened the works in Newburn in 1822, in a water driven mill on the Dewley Burn which he converted for file grinding. In 1867 Spencer was...
. The building was retained and continued to be used to supply power to the tram route by housing a sub-station
Electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system. Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several other important functions...
, which used rotary converter
Rotary converter
A rotary converter is a type of electrical machine which acts as a mechanical rectifier or inverter. It was used to convert AC to DC or DC to AC power before the advent of chemical or solid state power rectification...
s. The station also provided a service for local residents who wanted their wireless accumulators
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
recharged. The station continued to operate in this way until 1946, when the tram route was closed. The station's chimney was demolished in 1949, along with remaining structures of the Tyne Iron Works, which had stood next to the power station throughout its operation.
The main turbine and boiler building is now a locally listed building, standing today as a monument to the important role that Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in north east England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972...
played in the development of electrical supply. The building had been considered for the more protected Listed Building status, but the decision was taken in May 2004 not to promote it. Other early power stations in the area (such as those at Dunston
Dunston Power Station
Dunston Power Station refers to a pair of adjacent coal-fired power stations in the North East of England, now demolished. They were built on the south bank of the River Tyne, in the western outskirts of Dunston in Gateshead. The two stations were built on a site which is now occupied by the...
and Wallsend
Neptune Bank Power Station
Neptune Bank Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated on the River Tyne at Wallsend near Newcastle upon Tyne. Commissioned in 1901 by the Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company, the station was the first in the world to provide electricity for purposes other than domestic and...
) have all been entirely demolished. The Lemington station is partly still standing due to riverside sites becoming less important to industrial development, leading to the site never being redeveloped.
The large remaining building currently stands in amongst a small industrial estate at the foot of the nearby Lemington Glass Cone
Lemington Glass Works
Lemington Glass Works was the site of glass production in Lemington, Newcastle upon Tyne, England for over 200 years. All that remains now is its iconic last glass cone, a famous local landmark.- History :...
. Along with the neighbouring Ironworks site, it is owned by Norland Construction, a crane
Crane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
and plant company formerly known as Reeds Cranes and Plant, the builing used as storage for their machinary. The site is thought to be contaminated with coal products, fuels and oils such as PCBs
Polychlorinated biphenyl
Polychlorinated biphenyls are a class of organic compounds with 2 to 10 chlorine atoms attached to biphenyl, which is a molecule composed of two benzene rings. The chemical formula for PCBs is C12H10-xClx...
, as well as dioxin
Dioxin
Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins , or simply dioxins, are a group of organic polyhalogenated compounds that are significant environmental pollutants. They are commonly but inaccurately referred to as dioxins for simplicity, because every PCDD molecule contains a dioxin skeletal structure as the...
s and furan
Furan
Furan is a heterocyclic organic compound, consisting of a five-membered aromatic ring with four carbon atoms and one oxygen. The class of compounds containing such rings are also referred to as furans....
s. In 2003, Newcastle City Council realsed plans that they hoped to redevelop the site for heritage tourism
Heritage tourism
Cultural heritage tourism is a branch of tourism oriented towards the cultural heritage of the location where tourism is occurring...
in the future.