Newburn Steelworks
Encyclopedia
Newburn Steelworks was a large steel mill
on the banks of the River Tyne
at Newburn
, near Newcastle upon Tyne
, North East England
.
provided coal for a set of coke ovens also owned by the TCC, who's main customer was Spencer's steel works.
Although the works were initially used to make springs for the railway industry, Newburn Steelworks quickly became grew to become one of the most advanced steel mills in the country with the booming of the shipbuilding industry on Tyneside at the beginning of the 20th century. The works had expanded so much by 1895 that Newburn Hall, originally a fifteenth-century pele tower, was embedded within it. In 1904, the works made the steel plate for the RMS Mauritania
, the most famous liner ever built on Tyneside. The steel works, along with mining and railway industries, brought great prosperity to Newburn. The works employed 1,500 people, and provided steel plates and springs, amongst other products, for the railway, shipping, armaments and mining industries all over the world. However, the works fell into decline in the depression following World War I
, with the demand for steel falling. The works were closed in 1926 and demolished in 1933.
Despite the demise of the steelworks, the company continued as John Spencer and Sons and produced railway axle and springs, as well as gun springs and barrels for World War II
. The company eventually folded in the 1960s. A number of buildings associated with the steelworks still stand in the Newburn area.
in 1797. In 1869, John Spencer & Sons took the works over, renaming it the Tyne Haematite Iron Company when it reopened in 1871. The works then used imported Spanish ore, rather than locally mined ore. The works closed in 1886, and in 1903 the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company
erected Lemington Power Station
on its site.
extended its supply area to include Newburn. In 1908 they opened a power station next to the steel mill. The station generated electricity using waste heat in the form of steam available from the mill's reciprocating engine
s. Initially the station used only a single 750 kilowatt (kW) Parsons
exhaust steam turbo-alternator, but the plant was extended in 1915 with the addition of a single 2,000 kW Parsons turbo alternator, which as well as being powered by exhaust steam could be supplemented by two 20,000 lb/h boilers. The commissioning of this extension ushered the closure of Lemington Power Station
in 1919. Following the closure of the steel works in 1924 the station's plant was no longer used and the change over in the grid system to 50 cycles rendered the station useless, forcing its complete closure and dismantling.
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
on the banks 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 Newburn
Newburn
Newburn is a semi rural village, parish, electoral ward and former urban district in western Tyne and Wear, North East England. Situated on the banks of the River Tyne, it is built rising up the valley from the river...
, near 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...
, 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...
.
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 involved in the formation of the Throckley Coal Company (TCC). The TCC's Isabella colliery in ThrockleyThrockley
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....
provided coal for a set of coke ovens also owned by the TCC, who's main customer was Spencer's steel works.
Although the works were initially used to make springs for the railway industry, Newburn Steelworks quickly became grew to become one of the most advanced steel mills in the country with the booming of the shipbuilding industry on Tyneside at the beginning of the 20th century. The works had expanded so much by 1895 that Newburn Hall, originally a fifteenth-century pele tower, was embedded within it. In 1904, the works made the steel plate for the RMS Mauritania
RMS Mauretania (1906)
RMS Mauretania was an ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Wallsend, Tyne and Wear for the British Cunard Line, and launched on 20 September 1906. At the time, she was the largest and fastest ship in the world. Mauretania became a favourite among...
, the most famous liner ever built on Tyneside. The steel works, along with mining and railway industries, brought great prosperity to Newburn. The works employed 1,500 people, and provided steel plates and springs, amongst other products, for the railway, shipping, armaments and mining industries all over the world. However, the works fell into decline in the depression following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, with the demand for steel falling. The works were closed in 1926 and demolished in 1933.
Despite the demise of the steelworks, the company continued as John Spencer and Sons and produced railway axle and springs, as well as gun springs and barrels for World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The company eventually folded in the 1960s. A number of buildings associated with the steelworks still stand in the Newburn area.
Haematite Iron Company
The Tyne Iron Works was established in LemingtonLemington
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 1797. In 1869, John Spencer & Sons took the works over, renaming it the Tyne Haematite Iron Company when it reopened in 1871. The works then used imported Spanish ore, rather than locally mined ore. The works closed in 1886, and in 1903 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...
erected Lemington Power Station
Lemington Power Station
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, west of Newcastle upon Tyne...
on its site.
Newburn power station
In 1902 the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting CompanyNewcastle 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...
extended its supply area to include Newburn. In 1908 they opened a power station next to the steel mill. The station generated electricity using waste heat in the form of steam available from the mill's reciprocating engine
Reciprocating engine
A reciprocating engine, also often known as a piston engine, is a heat engine that uses one or more reciprocating pistons to convert pressure into a rotating motion. This article describes the common features of all types...
s. Initially the station used only a single 750 kilowatt (kW) 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...
exhaust steam turbo-alternator, but the plant was extended in 1915 with the addition of a single 2,000 kW Parsons turbo alternator, which as well as being powered by exhaust steam could be supplemented by two 20,000 lb/h boilers. The commissioning of this extension ushered the closure of Lemington Power Station
Lemington Power Station
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, west of Newcastle upon Tyne...
in 1919. Following the closure of the steel works in 1924 the station's plant was no longer used and the change over in the grid system to 50 cycles rendered the station useless, forcing its complete closure and dismantling.