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FALKLAND ISLAND STAMPS AND GREENWICH On the Falkland Islands Post Office Web site can be noted their issue of commemorative stamps. These include on the 9p &emdash; a picture of a Merryweather & Son, Greenwich Gem. This was a steam-driven fire engine which started service with the Brigade in 1898. Described by the manufacturers as "the new Patent Double Cylinder Vertical Steam Fire Engine" its arrival in Port Stanley heralded the beginning of the Fire Service. Another is on the 17p which shows Merryweather's Hatfield Trailer Pump. A petrol driven "Hatfield" Trailer pump and Foamite "Firefoam" chemical engine Model 'D' was brought into service in 1928. |
by Barbara Ludlow
Fishing in the River Thames was part of everyday life for its riverside communities, as can be testified by the many 'manor ways' leading from towns and villages to the banks of the river. Subsistence fishing was soon in competition with commercial enterprise and as early as the twelfth century powerful landowners placed 'kidels' across the Thames, to the detriment of private fishermen. In 1197 the City of London, on purchasing the Crown's Thames fishing rights, stipulated "that all kidels that are in the Thames shall be removed".
As the population of the metropolis and its environs grew the Thames, described in the reign of Henry II as being full of fish, could not supply the amount or variety fish required by the market. The British had been catching off-shore cod since Roman times but in the late fourteenth century adventurous fishermen from various ports sailed into Icelandic waters. So far no records have been found to prove that Greenwich fishermen went to Iceland that early but there is evidence to show how important the industry had become in the town at that time
About 1560 twenty-two sites on the Thames were designated on the banks of the Thames for various merchandise and raw materials. The quay at Billingsgate in the City was given over to fish, salt, corn and fruit. It would be convenient to state that Billingsgate Dock in Greenwich became associated with fish at the same time but sadly there is no proof of this. However, situated in the heart of the town Greenwich's Billingsgate had become a centre for shipping. The first known written reference to the Dock is in royal building accounts of l449. A price was quoted for conveying materials from Billingsgate Dock to 'Bella Vista', Margaret of Anjou's house by the river. This was later demolished and the Tudor Palace of Greenwich built on its site
It must be presumed that the early Billingsgate Dock accommodated fishing smacks but it was not the only quay used by fishermen. Fisher Lane/Alley ran close to the river between Greenwich Church Street and the perimeter of the Greenwich Hospital for Seamen, later the Royal Naval College and now housing part of the University of Greenwich. Ship Dock and Ship Stairs at the eastern end of Fisher Lane were used by the fishing fraternity and this small area of Greenwich near the river became a fish market before 1700. The early 1700s Greenwich fishermen were allowed to sell in the newly established Charter market. This was later abolished to make way for the Greenwich Hospital Infirmary of 1764, subsequently the Dreadnought Seamen's Hospital. Albeit old habits die hard and the fishermen went on selling their catches at Ship Dock until it, Ship Stairs and most of Fisher Lane disappeared under the Greenwich Hospital Improvement Acts of 1830-1850. In lieu of this, Billingsgate Dock was enlarged.
The enlarging of the dock took place around the time when the Greenwich 'fishing fleet' was on the wane. It was not steam trawlers which set this in motion but the formation of the Great Grimsby Dock Company (1845) and the quick development of the railway between London and the eastern counties. The Eastern Counties Railway of 1836 started the ball rolling and by 1845 the Great Central Railway was transporting fish from Grimsby to London.
Attempts were made to help the fishermen of Greenwich and the Fishermen's Provident Annuity Society was founded in 1636. Thomas Norledge of Greenwich became an official of the new Great Grimsby Dock Company and James Meadows of Greenwich was based in Grimsby as an agent for the Greenwich fishers. After the 1860s fewer and fewer fishing smacks left Greenwich for Icelandic waters and the rich fishing grounds of the North- Sea. After about 1870 the steam trawlers of Grimsby were taking over the trade and a large number of fishermen and their families left Greenwich and Barking to settle in Grimsby and Lowestoft.
New markets and new inventions killed off the Greenwich deep-sea fishing industry, ironically just as the demand for fresh fish exploded with the opening of a great number of fish and chip shops. In 1893 Dickens's Dictionary of the Thames recorded that "many of the fishermen have left the river for other more profitable pursuits and there has scarcely been a youth apprenticed to the calling of fisherman for the last few years".
The industrial life of Billingsgate Dock cannot be resurrected.
However, perhaps an historical time-chart with illustrations could be
erected adjacent to the Dock and a short pamphlet outlining its
history made available at Greenwich Tourist Office now housed in
Pepys House, Cutty Sark Gardens.
TICCIH VISIT In early September The International Committee for the Conservation of the Industrial Heritage visited Greenwich as part of a week-long Conference and tour. (Please see News Shopper for 6th September). A group of Society members &emdash; helped by a party of Greenwich Tour Guides &emdash; met the party with a view to showing them industrial Greenwich. It rained .. and it rained.. and it rained. One group came a short distance and four people (out of 250) walked down the riverside. Well we tried! But the rain beat us. All delegates got copies of literature provided by the Council (thank you Janice) and English Partnerships (thank you Kay). Hopefully one day they will come back when it's drier!
GREENWICH GLASS HOUSE From the Web: http://www.interalpha.net/customer/cbrain/greenwh.htm In 1641 there was a glass house at Greenwich owned by Jeremy Bago and Francis Bristow. This glass house contravened Sir Robert Mansel's monopoly and they were ordered to close down, but defied this order and continued working until the House of Lords caught up with them and they were jailed in 1642. John Evelyn, a diarist, states that in June 1673 he "went with friends to the formal and formidable camp at Blackheath and thence to the Italian glass-house at Greenwich, where glass was blown of finer mettal than that of Murano at Venice". At that stage the glass house was probably still owned by the Duke of Buckingham, who had a patent for making crystal glass in 1663 for the period of fourteen years. It is probable that this patent ran most of its course. Jeremy Bago had married Susanna Henzey (from a well-established glass-making family) in Oldswinford in 1619 and he had returned there by 1650. Francis Bristow had been involved in a range of different glass houses, including one in Coventry in 1621. Greenwich was not mentioned by Houghton in his list of glass houses in 1696, so it probably closed in the 1670s when it could not compete with the new 'flint' glass.
NEW MOSAIC An amazing new mosaic was opened in Kingsman Square in Woolwich on 7th September by Nick Raynsford MP. It shows the launch of HMS Trafalgar in 1857 at Woolwich, as well as other Dockyard scenes. The work was done by local children under the watchful eye of Greenwich Mural Workshop.
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Where addresses are not given, please contact through the Editor, c/o 24 Humber Road, London SE3
From Thomas Wilde
I have an ancestor who owned property in Deptford at the end of the 18th century. John Wild (1724-1800) High Constable of Holborn who purchased, in 1792, a freehold property known as the Tidemill Estate in Deptford. It comprised three messuages and a dock, rented at £50 a year. The title deeds commence on 25th June 1717. After John's death, for about five years, his estate was administered by his nephew, Thomas Wilde who had an office &emdash; I believe &emdash; at Deptford Bridge. Thomas was an attorney in the City of London. I like to think of him going up and down the river like Pepys in the previous century. After 1805 the estate was placed in the hands of Masters of Chancery who controlled it until the heirs of John Wild came of age c.1818. Finally, the Tide Mill was sold in 1827. I would be very grateful for any further information.
From Paul Cannon
I am looking for information on the East Greenwich Gas Works. The reason for this is not only a genuine interest in coal manufactured gas plants, but I am doing a project on the decline of the works at Greenwich and at Beckton. Therefore I would be very grateful for copies of any literature, other sources you may have and/or, more importantly, pictures/photographs of the Greenwich site before demolition.
From F.A. Gilbert-Bentley
Re. my letter in Vol.1. Issue 3. August 1999. The film at the Premier Cinema, Woolwich, in October 1940 which was interrupted by the Luftwaffe was David Livingstone &emdash; a black and white film. For a brief moment, the screen having departed in the blast, the picture flashed on to an outside wall.
Mr. Gilbert Bentley wrote to us last year to tell us how he was bombed out of a Woolwich cinema in the war.
From Pat 0'Driscoll
With regard to the short article Billingsgate - Greenwich's ancient harbour in Greenwich Industrial History, Vol. 3 No. 4. &endash;
What probably drove the Greenwich smacks away to Grimsby was increasing pollution of the Thames. Many smacks were fitted with a "well" between two watertight bulkheads in which fish, caught by a hand line, could be kept alive until the vessel returned to market the catch. Holes bored in the vessel in the area of the well ensured a constant circulation of seawater. An illustration showing a well can be seen on p.87 of Harvey Benham's book The Codbangers which also shows how Grimsby became a major fishing centre, helped by a rail link to London established in 1848. Four years later the Royal Dock, Grimsby, was opened and fishermen were offered attractive terms to move there.
While many smacks fished the North Sea grounds, a number went as far as Iceland after cod. The first successful steam trawler was the Zodiac of 1880-1. Hewett & Co of Barking had steam cutters from 1865 onward, designed to collect boxes of fish from craft fishing as a fleet and running them to Billingsgate Fish Market (to Shadwell Market from the mid-1880 to 1900). They were fitted with trawling gear so that they could trawl at suitable times. Because of this they escaped Thames River Dues - another reason for steam fish carriers to have a secondary role as trawlers.
Unfortunately, Greenwich's fishing fleet came and went with little or nothing being recorded about it.
Pat O'Driscoll is late of Fishing News &emdash; a weekly paper of British commercial fishermen since 1913.
From Vernon Broom
On reading the article Two Vanished Greenwich Pubs in Bygone Kent, I thought I had come across the name Star in the East somewhere before. As I am not familiar with that part of Greenwich I wondered if it was connected with my transport interests. On looking through my small collection of bus tickets I found printed on a route 108 ticket Tunnel Avenue Star in the East (Route 108 ran from Crystal Palace through Blackwall Tunnel to Bromley High Street 'Seven Sisters'). These Bell Punch tickets, known as Geographical tickets had all the Fare Stages printed on them and were used until early 1952. I am not sure of the exact date of my ticket but I think it is from about this time. Presumably the Star in the East was still operating as a pub at this time.
From John Day
Re: letter from Niclas Dahlvang in the last issue. There is a paper on The Steam Gun in Volume 11 (1999) of The Ordnance Society's Journal. This tells the story of the Perkins gun and has pictures of it. One of the illustrations comes from an article in 'The Engineer' Vol.12, p. 390, (December 27th. 1861). There is also a limited edition (200 copies) biography 'Jacob Perkins' by G. and D. Bathe, published by The Historical Society of Pennsylvania in 1943. How do I know? I wrote the paper, and I have Vol. 12 of 'The Engineer' and copy No. 196 of the book!
As to the Blackwall Tunnel, there was a paper read before the Society of Arts on May 13th. 1896, entitled "Tunnelling by Compressed Air" by E.W.Moir, who was entrusted with the design of the plant and the carrying out of the work by the contractors for the Blackwall Tunnel. This was reprinted in 'The Practical Engineer' Vol XIII pp 639-641, 661-663 and Vol. XIV pp 18-20. About half of the paper is devoted to Blackwall and has drawings of the Paterson shield, shaft No. 3, an air lock and a longitudinal section.
From Stewart Borrett
Re: Correspondence on the Swanage Globe, and the letter from Bill Firth which asked what proof there was that the Globe was made in Greenwich....
I discussed this matter with David Hayson the curator of the Museum at Swanage and we both think that there is no doubt that the Globe was made in Greenwich. I don't think that there is any written evidence to support this, it may have just been stated and passed down.
However, the common sense part of it would tell us that this was the case. The Purbeck stone was down in Swanage, it was shipped to London. George Burt was developing his Durlston Park Estate of which The Castle and the Globe were part. The main reason why I think it was made in Greenwich was that it would have been a skilled operation to put it together and the expertise was in Greenwich and not with the stonemasons down there who were more used to dressing building stone rather than making something of this complexity. Also George Burt could inspect it himself up there as it was being put together, he spent most of his working time in London.
I think for these reasons it was made in London. There is a photo of it being made on the front of Curiosities of Swanage, a booklet. I hope this might be of some help.
From Peter Jones
I run a small company specialising in the care and upgrading of automatic machines, we have recently converted a gun barrel lapping machine for a company called Boss & Co. They have hand-built double-barrelled shotguns in London for, I believe, around 200 years. Until recently they had works in Bermondsey, they have recently moved to 'under the shop' in Mayfair and we delivered the upgraded machine last week.
The main reason for this letter is the motor fitted to the machine we rebuilt, which we have replaced. It is rated at 1 HP, is wound for 400v. ac (although it has survived on 415v ac for many years) and I would estimate it was manufactured in the 1920s-1930s although I have no way of knowing its age. It still runs perfectly. I have possession of the motor, before I send it to the scrapyard &emdash; is of interest to your group?
Peter Jones &emdash; before you send it to the scrapyard please send us your address - which you forgot to put on your letter.
From Audrey Walker
Three generations of my Smith family were barge builders on the Thames and I think it possible that they worked for Stratford & Co., as I have a pencil stub with that name on it and 'Barge Owners & Repairers of ...... and Andrews Wharves, Woolwich, S.E.9. I expect the company has long since disappeared but is it likely that records still exist? Do you know the name of the wharf - that part of the pencil had been used?
From Alan Lea
Merryweathers - I suspect that this won't be the first or the last time that an enquiry has been made about the once world-renowned company. Having recently purchased a Hatfield trailer pump manufactured in 1935 with the view to restoration, I am now searching for any info that may help me? Please reply with anything no matter even if you consider it trivial. Ta.
From Tim Smith
Re: your request for information about Greenwich steam engines.
Merryweather products in Museums:
I am sure there must be many more!
From John Furlong
I am looking for details of the Greenwich Reach development site, for which E.C. Harris are Project Managers. Site clearance and demolitions will be getting under way soon at the Greenwich Reach site, prior to construction works starting next year, and I have been asked to research old businesses and their buildings on the site that have previously been demolished - in particular ones which may impact on our works schedule.
I believe we are fairly well up to speed on the Phoenix Gas Works and its gasholders, however more recent businesses seem to be less well documented. For example, I have so far failed to find details of Petwain Ltd which occupied Dreadnought Wharf or Robinsons Metals at Dowells Wharf. What buildings did they occupy and when were they demolished?.
From Frank Lockhart
We have an original Festival of Britain sign at the Woolwich Ferry where I work. Fred Peskett, Chairman of the Festival of Britain Society, found two of them in Salisbury some ten years ago. He restored the other one and it looks like I shall have to make a replica of this one as it is quite badly decayed and to restore it would take away too much originality. If you would like to see it or the copy when done, please feel free to let me know. When the replica is made, can you think of a use for it, perhaps a local museum display next year?
From Russell Martin
In the latter years of the 17th century the Bowater family had extensive land holdings in Woolwich. The family home was on a hill to the south of the town called Mount Pleasant - later known Bowater House. With the arrival of the Army the family home was acquired as the Officers Mess at the Red Barracks.
In 1692 the Bowater Estate extended from the edge of The Warren in the east, along the river bank to Charlton with a southern border just short of Woolwich Common. Towards the river the Bowater Estate owned the Sand Pits, later used for Dockyard Railway Station. On the riverside they had a boat building yard - part of which was purchased by a gentleman by the name of Samuel Pepys Esq. for the use of his Britannic Majesty's Royal Navy. In 1784 the Navy purchased a further 600 acres for The Mast Pond.
My Great-Great-Grandmother was the natural daughter of John Bowater (d.1810) named of Georgina Mercote (1797-1865). In 1815 she married Joseph Harrington, a Solicitor, of Rectory Place Woolwich. They lived at Glen Mohr Cottage, Lower Road - today the site of the school opposite Maryon Road - their garden became the Warspite Industrial Estate.
I have a map which shows the development of the Warspite Industrial Estate. Some of the documents comment on the Siemens Brothers factory - in which they wanted to make electric light bulbs - but it was thought that there would not be much demand for that type of thing! Also a Mr Slazenger rented factory land to make tennis balls. The Standard Telegraph Cable Co., was also viewed with suspicion - it was thought that nobody would ever want to talk on a thing called the telephone to America.
In 1803, after various troubles, The Bowater Estate was put in Chancery and there followed a multitude of Litigations - even in those days the Lawyers tried to keep the pot boiling to ensure their constant income! In 1895 a survey was done of all the property owned by The Trust. This foolscap size book contains 70 pages and 38 maps at a scale of about 30 ins = 1 mile (but no actual scale is quoted). These maps detail every single property in Woolwich with data as to what the premises were being used for and the rents due to The Estate - some of them as little as £8.0s 0d pa.
I am trying to obtain a copy of Milton's Plan of Woolwich Dockyard published in 1753 and wonder if any of your members could help? I also have a photograph of A View of Woolwich surveyed by John Barker in 1748. Are any of your members aware of the current whereabouts of this plan and where can I get a copy from? Also, the location of the plan shown on page 60 of Vincent's history.
If some of your members are interested I would be prepared to come over to Blackheath one evening and show them some of the original maps and documents that I have been able to collect over the years.
I am involved at the old gunpowder works at Waltham Abbey. Production of 'gunpowder' (cordite) ceased towards the end of the Second World War and the site was used as a research establishment for Rocket Propellants until it was finally closed down in 1989. They are now creating a Heritage Centre on the site. Perhaps some of your members would be interested in visiting the site next summer.
From Andrew Hollings
Re: Appleby Bros, steam engine manufacturers of Southwark & Greenwich. I am presently researching the origin of a large Victorian-era steam capstan winch used to haul ships out of the water on a inclined marine railway called a "patent slipway". The winch was a piece of Victorian ingenuity with twin 25hp horizontal steam-driven engines. Power was transferred through a massive 7-gear gearbox which allowed the slipping of 4000 ton ships onto the inclined marine railway.
I am presently trying to reconstruct the winch machine but do not
have the original drawings to replicate missing parts. I wonder if
you could help me locate the archives and then the drawings of the
manufacturer? My winch was built circa 1860 by Appleby Brothers.
Appleby Brothers formed various buisness arrangements with steam
engine component manufacturers including a specialist steam bore and
a crane company. They became Jessop and Appleby of London and
Leicester. They then returned to the name of Applebys after
about 1914. My searching to date has yielded the scantiest details. I
do not have access to many searching sources in New Zealand .
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by Jack Vaughan
A visit was arranged, attended by a good number of Members, to the Royal Arsenal (West), its purpose being to show the Society the first stage of the Council's share of what will be a Museum/Heritage Centre.
The Party assembled at the Beresford Square end of Warren Lane (in former days the 'Arsenal' area was known as the Warren). There it was met by Mike Neill of Greenwich Borough at the entrance to the Main Guard House (1788 Grade II) now occupied by English Partnerships. Kitted out with compulsory fancy dress now obligatory on construction sites &emdash; yellow waist coast with decorations and 'Snowdrop' helmets (as worn by the American Military Police in the last war) the party moved across Dial Square to the front block. There were three of these blocks forming the Great Pile of Buildings (1716). The Sundial was added because of the unreliability of the first 'Arsenal' clock on the adjacent Royal Laboratories of which two 'partitions' remain.
The contents of the 'room' (30ft by 15ft, my guess) were mainly photographic and pictorial, illustrative of Arsenal scenes and activities &emdash; an extremely interesting display.
A television was running a video which was quite rivetting and there was a cabinet containing small artefacts which I am sure will form the nucleus of an expanding display of such items. At this point, the great number of 'finds' uncovered by the Oxford Archaeological Group will be ensconced and catalogued. The Society, Council and Borough Museum must ensure that they eventually return to a final resting place on the Arsenal site or in the Heritage Centre.
Leaving Dial Square the party walked to a building which Mike said had been a bullet factory. I admit to some confusion here: the bullet factory was on the adjacent site of the Royal Laboratories which was roofed-over and packed out with bullet presses, trimmers, etc. Also the building which we were exploring was next to No.17 building which was the paper cartridge factory in the mid 1800s.
Anyway, 'our' building had plenty of interesting construction features, including fine cast iron roof supporting pillars which, ingeniously, served as part of the roof drainage arrangements. The third and last part of the tour was a walk towards the eastern end of the site which gave the members sight of several listed buildings including the Grand Storehouses, Armstrong Gun Factory, the two pretty Riverside Guardhouses and the spectacular entrance to the Shell Factory (1850). A notable absentee was His Grace the Duke of Wellington MGO (statue) banished to some obscure corner. Mike could not say just where, but avowed that it would not be lost from the Arsenal site. We must all cross our fingers as other important items have disappeared.
The highlight of the visit for myself was to see three enormous cast iron (or steel) bases which were part of steam hammers housed in the forges near the Armstrong factory. They are to remain on site, presumably as 'ornaments' in the small 'park' behind the Shell Factory &emdash; already mentioned. The 40 ton Nasmyth hammer was not recovered and presumably was removed around 1950. The 30' deep foundations are still underground.
Altogether a worthwhile tour &emdash; hopefully the first of a coming series so that the growth of the whole Heritage Centre can be followed as it happens.
WHERE THE NEW HERITAGE CENTRE WILL BE &emdash;
41 & 41A New Laboratory Square
Built as part of the Royal Laboratory, the ammunition manufacturing branch of the Arsenal.
The West Range, of 1805, was the first, followed c. 1808-10 by the very similar East Range; the yard being enclosed to the north about the same time. All three ranges are of two storeys, of stock brick, with minimal stone dressings. The east and west ranges have their five central bays pedimented. It is not known whether the North Range did also. The 1850s saw a major refitting programme. Steam power was introduced. New engine and boiler houses were added at either end of the east range, into which cast iron columns were inserted. These columns survive, together with evidence for drive shafting. The northern engine and boiler houses survive. Those to the south do not.
Subsequently, the quadrangle became a factory for making ammunition boxes and barrels; the east range being a sawmill and cooperage, the west range carpenters' shops.
In 1878 the previously open south side was enclosed with a carpenters' workshop, a tall single storey iron-framed structure of two parallel ranges with saw-tooth profiled north light roofs. The ironwork is similar to that used to in-fill the Royal Laboratory courtyard in 1854 but is dated 1878. Two further, similar ranges were added to the north in 1890 in matching ironwork.
In this century a plain brick bay was added on the south
side of the 1878 range and a bizarre half timbered additional
storey was erected on top of the north range. Both of these have
recently been removed.
The latest local industry to close down is Convoys &emdash; which occupied the site of the old Deptford Dockyard &emdash; arguably one of the most important sites in British Naval history. The site is technically in Lewisham Borough (although it is so near the Borough boundary that the road alongside it is in Greenwich!). Can we appeal to any Lewisham based members to keep us all up to date on what is going on at the old Dockyard site &emdash; and anyone sitting on any material about the history of the site is very welcome to send it in.
In the meantime, here is the first part of an article by a member, Allan Burnett, about Deptford and its Naval traditions:
IN DEPTH DEPTFORD &emdash; CRADLE OF THE BRITISH NAVY
by Allan Burnett
There are places in our fair land that have universal appeal to the tourist. There are others of limited appeal that would attract the curious or the specialist. Yet again, there are others to avoid like the plague. One such place is Deptford. It is situated in south-east London and consists of a rough, very rough, two square miles of back streets, sandwiched between the A2 trunk route, the River Thames, and a veritable maze of railways both used and disused. It is a drab; it is dreary, and incredibly depressing. Dirt and decay, demolition and desolation seem to stalk the streets. Perhaps one day a new Deptford will rise from the ruins, but that is doubtful.
Such new buildings that have taken shape look as they have all tumbled out of the same square mould devoid of character, beauty, inspiration or ingenuity. It is as if Deptford was spawned by the Industrial Revolution and is still suffering.
But Deptford is considerably older than it looks; and that is saying something, in fact its history is its only redeeming feature. Roman remains were unearthed near the toll gate at New Cross in 1735 and it seems they had a chain of forts or bastions from the River Ravensbourne to St. George's Fields in order to keep out the heathen hordes from Kent - today the Connex South-Eastern railway is marginally successful in bringing them all back in again! The Ravensbourne is said to have received its name from Caesar who encamped at Keston, twelve miles to the south. It must be remembered that Bourne is a Saxon word for River or Stream - Deptford le Stronde.
At one time it was believed that Deptford was Known to the Saxons as Meretun the dwelling place in the marsh, perhaps the Saxon equivalent of 'Much Binding' and its first mention in history is in 871 AD when the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that King Aethelred, assisted by his brother Alfred (of subsequent fame as Alfred the Great) defeated the Danes here. The area was known as West Grenewych, but the Roman Bridge that carried the old Roman Road, Watling Street, over the River Ravensbourne fell into disuse and the area took its name from the ford called 'Depe', (the name is believed to have came from the word 'deep') and became known as 'Depe-ford', which with various spellings (there were eleven different ways of spelling used in the 16th. and 17th. centuries), has persisted ever since.
By the 14th century a wooden structure was in place and it was the duty of the whole of the 'Hundred of Blakeheth' to keep it in good repair. Being on the main artery to the Continent, it took a pounding. The Canterbury Pilgrims crossed over the bridge on their way to pay homage to Thomas a Beckett's shrine in Canterbury, as did Wat Tyler and his followers. King Henry V was met here in 1415 by the Mayor of London, the famous Richard Whittington, on his return from his wonderful victory at Agincourt &emdash; and so it went on, every journey between London and the continent via the English Channel crossed this fragile bridge.
Deptford was a traditional meeting place for ships and really came into its own in 1513 when King Henry VIII established a Royal Dockyard here a few miles up-stream from the existing one at Woolwich and only a mile from the Royal Palace of Placentia at Greenwich
This 'dockland' covered thirty acres and was, for over three hundred years, a centre of shipbuilding. At the same time the 'maisters, rules and maryners of your Navye within your Ryver Thamys and other places' petitioned the King for incorporation, claiming that young and inexperienced men were imperilling the lives and ships of the King's subjects by meddling with pilotage on the River Thames, depriving older ex-seamen of employment, but not themselves learning the art of seamanship. But bluff King Hal had other things on his mind at the time and it was not till the following year that he granted Letters Patent that incorporated the existing association of Guild of Pilots into the Trinity House Corporation.
(to be continued)
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IN OCTOBER, GIHS was pleased to welcome Alan Pearsall to our meeting to talk on Steam Colliers. The text reproduced below is that of a similar talk given to the Docklands History Group last year (and reproduced with their permission). Thank you Alan.
Alan began by defining 'colliers' as vessels carrying coal between the North-Eastern ports and London. From medieval times until the advent of the canals and the railways, virtually all coal to the capital arrived by sea. The last collier disappeared from the Thames only twenty years ago. Until 1810 -1820, coal was delivered by sailing colliers, comparatively small vessels carrying about 200 tons each. They would discharge the coal overside at tiers or at riverside berths, rather than using the enclosed docks. With the expansion of London in the first part of the nineteenth century, port facilities became very strained. As the sailing colliers tended to arrive en masse on a favourable wind, the river became clogged. Additionally, these vessels completed only about twelve voyages a year, partly because they had to be ballasted for the return journey after discharging the coal, whereas steam colliers could be water-ballasted.
Steam appeared on the Thames around 1814, the first vessels being paddle steamers. Since the paddles had to be sited amidships, cargo-carrying capacity was limited. The introduction of iron screw steamers in the 1840s solved many of the problems, and allowed an increase in cargo capacity.
In 1852, a consortium of North-East coalmine owners led by Charles Palmer was formed to construct larger vessels. The first of these was the John Bowes, which could carry 500 tons of coal. Many steam colliers were built by John Scott Russell on the Isle of Dogs but the principal yard was Palmer's at Jarrow. When the Palmer's yard eventually closed the town of Jarrow became a depressed area for many years.
Alan gave some impressive figures showing how the advent of steam colliers revolutionised the coal trade in to London:
1852 |
17 cargoes carried by steam |
9,500 tons of coal |
1853 |
123 cargoes carried by steam |
70,000 tons of coal |
1854 |
345 cargoes carried by steam |
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1862 |
1,427 cargoes carried by steam |
1 m. tons of coal |
The demand for coal was stimulated by the advent of gas lighting - the new gas companies demanded regular supplies of coal in large quantities and the sailing colliers just could not compete. Another stimulus was the Crimean War in 1854, when steam colliers were pressed into service to move troops and munitions to supply the army and navy. Steam colliers could carry 1000 tons dead weight and made one return voyage each week: sailing colliers could only carry 200 tons and only made 10/12 voyages a year. By the 1860s most coal carried to London came by steam colliers, with sailing vessels picking up the pieces.
Alan explained that, despite the dangers and arduous nature of the trade, some steam colliers had a life of fifty years. Some were re-engined to upgrade their performance, being strengthened and fitted with compound and even triple-expansion engines. Ships were owned in shares to reduce and spread the insurance costs. Several owners were aristocrats, like the Marquis of Londonderry and the Earl of Durham. A Coal Exchange was built in Lower Thames Street to facilitate trading
In the early days the coal was discharged manually by coal heavers who worked in the holds of vessels shovelling coal into baskets which were hoisted up on the yards of the ship and discharged into barges or carts. Eventually grab cranes were introduced, in around 1900. With the continued expansion of London and the increased use of gas and electricity the requirement for coal was insatiable.
William Cory began by discharging coal in Victoria Dock, but objected to paying dock dues. He found a large hulk called the Great Atlas and moored it off Angerstein Wharf, and fitted it with hydraulic cranes. Colliers were unloaded on one side and discharged into lighters on the other.
New wharves were built not only along the Thames but also in creeks and inlets to supply the new gas works and power stations. In 1869 coal was delivered directly to the newly opened Beckton Gas Works. The London Gas Light & Coke Co. commissioned Palmer's of Jarrow to build vessels with telescopic masts and collapsible funnels for delivery to Nine Elms, the first "flat irons". In the first half of the Twentieth Century, scores of flat iron steam colliers streamed in and out of London, owned by Gas and Electric Companies, William Cory and Stephenson Clarke. Although the domestic market for sea coal declined as it tended to be brought into London by rail and then delivered to houses via the horse and cart, the demands of industry continued apace, spurred on by gas and electricity and power stations.
However, Clean Air legislation in the 1950s and 1960s dealt these industries a heavy blow. Some colliers converted to diesel but with the introduction of natural gas many power companies closed or moved away. Gas production in London ceased in 1970 and the need for colliers disappeared.
In welcoming Alan Pearsall to the meeting, GIHS Chair Jack
Vaughan, produced a photograph of himself, Alan and some others
(looking very much younger) with the plaque rescued from Henry
Maudslay's tomb in Woolwich Churchyard &emdash; now there's a story
someone should be telling us all about
Since April 1999 the Oxford Archaeological Unit (OAU) has been carrying out a major programme of archaeological works and excavations at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich. This archaeological project, initially funded by English Partnerships London and now carried forward by the London Development Agency has been on-going throughout the regeneration of this brownfield site.
Naturally the main archaeological interest of the site arises from its use as the nation's principal arsenal and armaments factory, dating from the site's purchase by the Crown in 1671 to its final demise in 1994. At its peak during the 1914-18 war the Arsenal covered over 100 acres and employed over 80,000 people. To date the excavations have centred primarily on the western end of the site notably on the sites of the Royal Laboratories (built 1696-7 for ammunition production) and 'The Great Pile', a complex of gun finishing workshops and storehouses of 1717- 20 attributed to Nichols Hawksmoor. Both sites reveal evidence of continuous adaptation to new processes and technologies including the switch from horsepower to steam power, as well as hydraulic, gas and electric installations. The Royal Laboratory excavation revealed fragmentary remains from its early courtyard period and good evidence from its roofing in 1855 to form 'the largest covered machine shop in the world'. Excavations within the 'Great Pile' revealed machine bases, coal cellars, iron and bronze furnaces, casting bosses, boiler houses, an engine house, and flue systems. The remains were often of massive scale, the foundations for one steam engine consisting of 250 tonnes of stone blocks, whilst the casting pits excavated were over 4 metres deep. Finds recovered have included crucibles, gun mould fragments, foundry tools, stone lithographic blocks, cannon balls and iron Cannon, as well as lead shot and bullets, covering almost the whole period during which the Royal Arsenal Woolwich was in production
More recent works, have centred principally on the sites of the 'West (or Old) Forge (built from 1856) and the 'Central Power Station' built c.1890 on the site of the east quadrangle of the Napoleonic 'Grand Store'. During these works three massive steam hammer bases were encountered. Two of these were from the 10 Ton and 12 Ton hammers described by Vincent c.1875 (Vincent W.T. , Warlike Woolwich) p.31) whilst a third by Massey was somewhat later in date. Despite their colossal size and weight (up to 100 Tons each) the London Development Agency has funded their recovery and relocation for monumental display on site. Amongst a huge number of other recovered artefacts have been four 10 metre long rifled liners from 12" naval guns of the 1880s.
The investigations have also revealed a late Roman cemetery at the western end of the site. To date over 140 pagan graves have been excavated. Whilst no human remains survived, coffin and body stains were hauntingly apparent and some 25% of the burials included artefacts, notably pottery vessels, shale and copper alloy buttons, and bracelets, glass beads and glass vessel. Some outlying graves were also found, several-oriented east-west indicating Christian burials. Other pre-Arsenal features excavated have included foundations, ditches, pits and a medieval, double flued, tile-built, pottery kiln
Many of the recovered artefacts will be displayed on site in due course, hopefully in the proposed Borough Heritage Centre. A major publication on the archaeology of the site is in course of preparation.
Rob Kinchin-Smith & Ben Ford, Oxford
Archaeological Unit, 25th October 2000
This newsletter was produced for Greenwich Industrial History
Society
Views expressed in it are those of the authors and not of the
Society.
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