Barrow Hematite Steel Company
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The Barrow Hematite Steel Company Limited was a major iron and steel producer based in Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire (now Cumbria), England, between 1859 and 1963. At the turn of the 20th century and the Technological Revolution it operated the largest steel mill in the world.[1]
History
Iron prospector
The steelworks continued to operate during World War II where, alongside the booming shipyard, they were a prime enemy target during the
Although the Barrow Hematite Steel Company exported its products to all corners of the world including for major railway projects, steel was utilised in Barrow itself in the form of shipbuilding. Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering (now BAE Systems) was and still remains one of the UK's largest shipbuilding centres, and the only one to build Royal Navy submarines.
Legacy
Steel produced at the works was used throughout the 20th century by VSEL to construct hundreds of vessels, many of which supported the British war efforts in World War I and II. Steel rails were however the works' signature product and were laid for railways in Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Ireland, Japan, Rhodesia, South Africa, South America, and the United States.[3]
Only the main entrance arch remains. It was re-constructed in a different part of the works in 1987, and is currently occupied by Stagecoach Buses. The rest of the site is now being occupied by a number of industrial parks and the campus of Furness College. Despite this, Barrow's infamous 'Slag bank' is a lasting reminder of the town's industrial past. The slag bank contains over a century's worth of waste from the iron and steelworks which was dumped in north Hindpool, adjacent to Walney Channel. Since the 1990s, an ongoing scheme has been reclaiming the derelict and contaminated land by laying soil on top of the heap.
There are three sculptures in Barrow commemorating the iron and steelworks, the largest of which resembles a large book describing the history of the works on Duke Street.[3] Two sculptures of steelworkers can be found at the centre of Dalton Road and 'Red Man's Way' - a coastal path alongside the Walney Channel.
See also
References
- ^ "Barrow-in-Furness". Visit Cumbria. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
- ^ a b c "Barrow Hematite Steel Co". Grace's guide. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
- ^ a b "Duke Street Iron and Steelworks Sculpture". Flickr. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
External links
- Documents and clippings about Barrow Hematite Steel Company in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
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