A Newsletter was started at Christmas 1999 to keep both current volunteers and other society members informed of developments at Wortley Top Forge and also ensure that everybody gets to know of upcoming events and important safety information.
Only edited high lights are published here as some content of the Newsletters is not of any general interest.
Issues No.1 to No.4 (2000)
Issues No.5 to No.8 (2001)
Issues No.9 to No.12 (2002)
Issues No.13 to No.16 (2003)
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Welcome to the first Newsletter covering activities at the properties owned by the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society. This is an unofficial trial publication to test the reaction of the Society members and active volunteers. It is intended to inform the wider membership of the progress being undertaken by the active members and to act as a notice board to inform the active members of important news that they may otherwise miss. A deliberate move is being made not name names for any particular work. This is mainly because no one job is generally undertaken by a fixed group, instead everybody seems to end up involved with all jobs at some time of another, but also because the editor does not trust himself to remember all the right names against the right projects.
It is the weekend before Christmas and I am sat in a nice warm house listening to the radio, a far cry from being at Wortley Top Forge this morning in the freezing cold with the sun only just making it over the top of the opposite hill. The Forge is packed up for the winter with the water turned off, the dumper truck and picnic tables under cover and as much as possible sheeted up. It is a very different scene from the height of summer (what we got of it this year) but the forge makes a picturesque sight with the grass white with frost.
At Wortley we are all waiting for the first official visit of the new Trust Chairman Mr Jim McQuaid. He is no stranger to many members but has been working away from the area for a number of years, but now retirement has allowed him to return. May his time in this position be long and productive.
Only a little work has been carried out on the main forge recently but work is progressing to move some of the machines that are currently stored at the end nearest the cottages. Next to be moved out is the Sheffield Press, which is now on temporary wheels. Also the preparation of the more detailed drawing for the reconstruction of the blower has begun.
In the Blacksmiths, minor remedial works have been carried out on the lathe to allow it to be operated on a regular basis, and one of the first jobs it has been used on is to modify a flywheel from a long dismantled diesel engine. This flywheel is now going to be use on a small steam engine that will soon be joining the working display up in the Joiners Shop.
The only work in the Foundry building this autumn has been the removal of most of the oils that were stored in the area where the steam boiler once sat. However in the Joiners Shop work continues on the display of stationary steam engines. Now most are operating, a handrail is being assembled to keep our visitors at a safe distance.
After completion of the roof of the extension building (after many years) the floor is now being laid as and when people can spare the time. Work is slow as the floor is of concrete blocks with machines being positioned as soon as the floor is ready for them. Progress was hampered during the summer because of a wasps nest under one machine.
In the Smithy, the room made by moving the Tangy Engine Bed into the back field has quickly been taken up by the dumper truck being moved inside to keep it out of the worst of the weather.
A set of second hand industrial lights have been obtained at minimal cost and these are being installed in both buildings when they have been repainted in black (from their current orange and silver).
The worst of the autumn leaves have been cleared from the engine house in late November and the time was taken to oil the engine and bar the engine over. This is the first time the engine has been turned in several years but hopefully it will not be as long again.
This autumn has seen repairs to the bucket on the dumper, with a large new section welded on. In addition the editor is working on a completely new bucket that will be better suited to carrying the more unusual loads that it now has to deal with (the existing bucket is designed for carrying and tipping soil and gravel).
A replacement tyre has been fitted to the front of the Lister Autotruck that will hopefully give it better grip on the rough ground that we have.
The large yard area around the forge cottages is paved in stone flags, but the regular growth of Algae and moss make them very slippery in wet weather. Work is progressing to pressure wash this area which when carried out with a commercial cleaning fluid results in a safe, clean surface. This work however has been delayed by problems with the pressure washer and bad weather (try pressure washing stone that is covered in a 3mm layer of frozen detergent).
Members are therefore asked to take extreme care when walking over the darker areas of the stone flags and also to point out the danger to visitors.
Only a small amount of clearance work has been carried out so far on the undergrowth in the back field, but the annual digging out of the open drain behind the sheds was carried out as soon as the nettles and brambles had died back sufficiently.
The Engine Bed and Crank Shaft / Flywheel of the Tangy Steam Engine have been moved to in front of the scrap pit and sheeted over. Hopefully these and the privately owned road compressor will help to disguise the scrap pile.
In Mid November Wortley Top Forge was the scene of annual trials by Sheffield University students of a glass furnace. This is built to a design devised from the remains of ancient furnaces that have been excavated.
Previously the trials were carried out at Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet, but the closure of that site has brought them to us.
As a spectator sport, watching a group of students try to make a fire burn as hot as possible may not sound like a lot of fun but when there is frost on the ground, standing around a brick furnace at 900 C is quite attractive. I hope we also gave them a few ideas to think about.
New Volunteers are always welcome at Wortley Top Forge. At the present time there are about eight of us regularly working at the Forge and for the first time in a number of years, real progress is being made that can be seen by visitors. Possible jobs are too numerous to list but could include cleaning & painting, brick laying, machine work, gardening (during the warmer weather) and acting as a guide for visitors. If you think you can spare some time to help us, please contact the Honorary Custodian Mr Ken Hawley.
We are also in need of old bed sheets and cloths that can be used as cleaning rags or covers for our machinery.
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Welcome to the second Newsletter covering activities at the properties owned by the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society. As you may guess by this being written, the first issue received a good response, or at lease good enough for this second issue to be produced.
Please remember any News or Notices for inclusion for the next newsletter should be handed to the Editor (please write them down as I am likely to forget some part of them).
Wortley Top Forge opened to the public on the first Sunday in February, after the Christmas break. It turned out to be one of those strange days, starting with four of us ‘jumping ship' for the morning and dragging the Honorary custodian off for a guided tour of the Tin Mill and Low Forge.
For an encore after lunch, we took delivery of two steam pumps (see ‘Arrivals') and had 11 members at Wortley during the afternoon (we nearly had to go out looking for extra tea mugs). Lets hope this is a sign of what the rest of the year will bring.
Work continues to improve the Wortley site by putting more equipment on display and hopefully soon, working. It would be nice to think that we could have something new to show for the joint open day to be held with the Model Engineers on the first Sunday in August.
This story starts somewhere between 20 and 30 years ago (no one can remember for sure, but please tell us if you know for sure what happened). Two steam driven pumps have been collected from a Coking Plant at Wath on Dearne, and together with a metal cutting shear, arrive at Top Forge on a lorry belonging to Mr Peter Marsden (owner of the works on Chemistry Lane, opposite Top Forge). In the days before the big cranes at the Forge, unloading is not possible so the three machines are left in Mr Marsden's yard for safe keeping and there they stayed until February 2000.
Following our walk around the valley on 6th February, three of us made our way round to Mr Marsden's yard to see if we could see the engines and shear. Not only did we find them, but the two men working there offered us use of their JCB to lift the engines out and carry them round to the forge. Offers like this do not come every week, so we accepted and so within two hours, both engines were finally on our property.
Some parts along with the Shear remain across the river, but we have plans to move them and hopefully this will be completed in the next few weeks. And of course, our thanks to Mr Marsden for storing the machines and David Goldthorpe and his brother Richard for doing the honours with their digger.
The two hammer wheels remain in running order and the only change in the forge is the removal of the seats and benches back out to the Cottage yard.
In the Blacksmiths our machinist Don, has completed another turning job for us using the big lathe, a cross shaft for the shaping machine. While a small electric pillar drill is being setup adjacent to the fitting bench. This was brought to site by Tony and his Landrover and should allow us to carry out smaller jobs without the need to run the big line shafting.
Finally, the two oil tanks have been removed from the Foundry building and are now stored empty at the back of the Elizabeth Enginehouse. A start can now be made on moving the old vertical boiler into the space left by the tanks and this will leave space in the main building for the snuff mill engine to be brought inside.
As finances permit, the lights in the cottages and Blacksmiths/Joiners Shops are being fitted with ‘Compact Fluorescent Lamps'. The type used look like tungsten lamps but are claimed to use one fifth of the energy and to last for 10,000 hours (that's 9½ years the way we use them). Six pounds spent now should save us £60 over time, but please remember these lamps take a few seconds to come up to full strength.
The new (to us) industrial lights are now in place and working in the Smithy. Please remember they are worked off the centre light switch and take several minutes to reach their full brightness, because of this 5 of the traditional lights have been maintained in case people are entering for a short time only.
The Dumper and its new flatbed bucket are still taking up space in the Smithy, but will soon now be moved outside for the summer.
Work on the Extension Building floor has stopped to give every bodies backs time to recover, while the Sheffield press is still in the forge, awaiting a second attempt to move it across the yard.
Work here has been concentrated on the basement, which has thankfully remained dry again this winter. Meanwhile plans continue to be made for a temporary frontage to be built to keep the weather out.
After a successful test in February, the new flatbed bucket for the dumper just need the edges cleaning up and good coat of paint and then we should start to reap the benefits.
Your editor has taken it upon himself to cut down a number of overhanging and dead branches from the trees around the back field. This includes the two trees growing up through the Moorside Engine.
The resulting wood and a large area of undergrowth is now being burnt, as are a large number of rotten branches and tree trunks logs that were in the far corner of the Back Field
The two new pumping engines have taken up temporary residence at the side of the yard crane, but should soon be moved closer to the big drop hammers or possibly the site currently occupied by the Snuff Mill Engine. The only work done on them is wash off the worst of the mud that they have become covered with.
Using the excuse of finding parts for the big file cutting machine, our Honorary Custodian has spent three Sundays in the boxvans trying to label all the odd bits of machine and potential restoration project. It looks as though he will be spending a good few more days in there. Rumours that there is a bed in one of the boxvans have been denied.
It is hoped that by the summer, there will be two or three more oil drums painted blue and converted into litter bins. Please use them, but do not have fires in them as this will burn the paint off . They should also have lettering painted on in the coming weeks. A drum by the scrap pile in the back field is specifically for broken glass. Please make use of it, and for safety reasons, keep the glass separate.
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Welcome to the third Newsletter recording the activities at the properties owned by the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society for the late spring and early summer.
Please remember any News or Notices for inclusion for the next newsletter should be handed to the Editor (please write them down as I am likely to forget some part of them).
Getting Bigger ? - Now I've had time to play with the settings on my computer, I have reduced the margins to increase the amount of text that will fit on a page. I hope you do not find it distracting, only I do not want to expand onto 2 sheets yet, nor leave too much out.
The First Saturday in June saw the Forge open to the members of our Neighbouring Parish Councils. The weather was warm and sunny, and we seemed to get a good number of interested people, many saying things like "do you know, I've driven past so many time and never been in". As well as the Miniature Railway we had Bert and Richard's Atmospheric engine running and Ken brought a noisy little hot air engine.
We can hopefully now look forward to increased co-operation with our neighbours on the respective parish councils.
The Sheffield press was moved out of the Forge at last, on the very closing date of press for this newsletter. The move went without incident but not without drama. Photos should be available soon
Progress has also been made with the Snuff Mill Engine. During late May and early June the engine was dismantled and carried over towards its new home in the Foundry. As some people will notice, getting the flywheel through the door is going to take some thinking about (isn't it Duncan!).
Since the last newsletter we have only managed a few more concrete blocks for the floor of the extension building. Materials for Lighting in the extension and a partial rewire of the Smithy proper are being collected and this work should start when the new sheets are in place on the Smithy roof. At long last, repair work should take place on the Friction drive press while the roof sheets are off.
After being partly dismantled for 12 months, work started again in May on the small crane's winch drum, and thanks to Ken, Duncan and Don, the winch assemble was quickly dismantled after it was lifted from the chassis. The next stage of dismantling may have to wait a while as we now need a very big extracting tool (probably to be made in house).
You will not need to be told that the various lawn mowers at our disposal have been hard at work again, but not this year on the cottage lawn in front of the blacksmiths. Thanks to the efforts of Ann Morgan and Marjorie Smith, this is now a ‘Wild Meadow' with only a small pathway being cut. As regards planting new areas, they have turned their attention to the area between the cottage lawn and the road, which is starting to looking a lot better in spite of Y.E. (see below).
Clearance work in the far corner of the backfield has continued, with scrap metal being gathered at the ‘recycling' pile ready for sorting. Small scraps of timber are being burnt, the larger rotten timbers however are being saved for a ‘members only' bonfire on the evening of the 5th November (weather permitting).
A new addition to the Back Field is our first steel shipping container. Once retired from their intended job (carrying cargos on Ship, Trains and Lorries) they are increasingly being used as site cabins and secure stores. Ours came from a building site and already had a ‘Lock Box' welded on (to make it harder to break into).
After a day of Duncan and John clearing it out and having a large fire to burn the rubbish, the container is ready for loading with our equipment. A new coat of paint is also require (Bright Red! is just a little out of keeping). Needless to say, Duncan has levelled the container to his usual standard (good enough to play snooker on the floor).
If you know the Top Forge site, you will know that there is a power cable that comes across the river bringing power to the street lights and our neighbours as well as the Forge (Have you ever seen our Electric Tree?). Now Yorkshire Electricity have been renewing their equipment in the area for about six months on and off, and the middle of June was the time when they got around to changing the cables spanning the river.
Unfortunately they managed to incorrectly connect one of the four cables used, which meant that come Sunday morning half our lights were off and non of our motors would work.
To their credit, we had an electrician on site within an hour and then soon after more men and a big van. But that was not the end of it, by mid afternoon we had had six men, two vans and two Land Rovers on site, we nearly had more Y.E. men than Visitors!!
The Fault was repaired and everybody had left by 5:30 PM.
Photograph of Y.E. vehicles at Top Forge
Sunday, 6th August 2000 - Joint open day with Model Engineers. Many miniature locomotives and small engines should be on site, either on display or running.
Sunday, 1st October 2000 - All being well the fourth newsletter will be made available from this date
When your editor has time to spare and fancies a bit of a play, you should watch out. This time he invested in some new software and started writing web pages for the Internet.
If you want to see the results you will need a computer with Internet access and look up ‘http://www.top-forge.fsnet.co.uk'. (Yes Ken, your computer at Hawley Buildings will do it).
I have big plans and I need a little help. I am looking for information about the Society, the Trust and historic local industries (wire, stone, coal, chemicals etc) to put on the web site. Also biographies on key people who have in the past played their part in the Society and Top Forge. All material to the Editor please.
It is hoped that by the summer open day, there will be two or three more oil drums painted blue and converted into litter bins. Please use them, but do not have fires in them as this will burn the paint off . Some are already lettered and in place. A drum (the corrugated steel one) by the recycling (scrap) pile, in the back field is specifically for broken glass. Please make use of it, and for safety reasons, keep the glass separate.
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Welcome to the fourth Newsletter recording the activities at the properties owned by the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society, for the summer and early autumn.
As a special treat I have squeezed two photographs in this time. Don't expect this every time ! - I had some space let over for once.
I received an E-mail in late August. It said something like - "we need another guide for a day, I'm sure you can do it". After four years, I thought I knew enough to at least have a go.
Fortunately, Gordon & Derrick had already got a set of notes written out for new guides. After borrowing these and rewriting them to match how I imagined a tour should go, I thought I was about ready.
Come the big day, I ended up with a group of about 9 people, including our Trust Chairman, Dr McQuaid.
The tour went well (although time was a bit short), but would you believe after 4 years and reading various notes, I still learned a new bit about the Forge's History (Did you know the Forge had it's own colliery !). It just goes to prove something I keep saying - Every time I go to Top Forge and ‘look and talk', I learn something new! Do other people find this as well ?
An unusual number of members and their families seem to under the weather at this time. We all wish them a speedy recovery to good health !
Early September saw two groups visiting us on the same day. Fortunately they had booked in advance so we had chance to organise all the guides we could find (including your editor and the custodian - in a tie). The Victorian Weekend at Elsecar saw the Society stall and Atmospheric engine model in the main building as well as guided tours around the genuine Atmospheric engine by our own volunteer Richard Lamb.
After a fantastic effort the parts of the Snuff Mill Engine are now inside the Foundry, with the crank shaft and flywheel having been set up for grinding the bearing surfaces back into reasonable shape. Workers and visitor alike were being asked to help spin the flywheel until a motor could be rigged to do the hard work. Many other parts are being cleaned up and painted, while a number of concrete blocks have been carried over to the foundry to start work on the support plinth (thanks to Phil and Gordon)
If you weren't there and didn't see the effort of getting the flywheel through the doorway , the photos will be loaded onto the web site as soon as Boots (the Chemists) get their act together.
In No.7 Cottage, the Kitchen has been stripped out. The 1960s & 1970s fittings are being removed and disposed of as the first move towards restoring the whole building to at an appropriate era, before Stainless Steel sinks and Electric Cookers. A set pot is being lined up for inclusion in the kitchen.
If all goes to plan, the roofs and gutters of the Cottages should be repaired before the worst of the winter sets in.
The rewire of the Smithy is now well underway, with most materials on site and the major work now complete. Next in line for electrical work is the South Yorkshire Iron Works Building so that work can go on working under cover in there during the winter.
The front face of the Smithy roof has now been replaced. The bright shining zinc will be painted black to look more in keeping when the surface has weathered. Small patches on the back roof and some timber to support the flashing should see the Smithy properly weather proofed (probably for the first time).
In August the Big Crane passed it's insurance inspection and continues to perform as required. Thanks to the insurance inspector we now have a load chart for the crane as well.
Work has continued on the Small Crane's with the winch drum lifted back into place and efforts diverted to the engine. Thanks to Tony for overhauling the winch drum, brake and clutch during July. The engine may end up to be replaced.
Unfortunately Ann Morgan has been unable to come down through the summer but Marjorie has battled on with the gardening this summer, with occasional help from the rest of us. The Back Field - after the effort of installing the container and assembling the line of engines and machines on display, not much has happened in the back field over the summer. This may be due to the undergrowth getting out of control again. The next big move will be to dispose of most of the rotting timber on the bonfire (see below).
Sunday, 26th November 2000 - Top Forge closes for the winter break. Working parties in December & January to be arranged.
Sunday, 4th February 2001 - Top Forge Reopens to the Public from 11:00 am.
Remember the Wortley Top Forge Web Site address ‘http://www.top-forge.fsnet.co.uk' - soon with photographs ! Contributions are still welcome on Top Forge, the Former Owners, Associated Sites, Similar Site and Local Industries, all material to the Editor please. News Letters by E-Mail At present this news letter has only a small print run (25). In order to keep costs down, copies can be e-mailed to those people with suitable computers. If you are happy to have an e-mail copy only, please let the editor have your e-mail address. (Files will be ‘Word Perfect' *.wpd or ‘Word' *.doc only, please state which). Notices are also accepted by e-mail.
An edited edition of the Newsletter may be published on the Website in due course, if people are agreeable (remember the whole world will have access to it).
Production of new litter bins has been slower than hoped but is still progressing. Please continue to keep glass separate, and empty rubbish into the incinerator (former Steam Roller Boiler) in the far corner of the back field. Collections (by dumper truck) can be arranged. It is not desirable to have small, smoky fires on the main part of the site (unless they are in a locomotive).
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