HIstory of sawmill joiners and smithy shops

The Works Smithy Shop

The Smithy Shop was built in 1860 and extended in 1900. It is a fine building of 350 feet long and 90 feet wide. The activities contained within this shop were Spring makers, Forge men, Smiths and Boilermakers.

The Smithy Shop also had the most up-to-date and relevant machinery such as forge presses, welding machines, drop stamps, forging hammers, roll mills, nut and bolt machines, punches and sheers. The Smithy Shop in its heyday had over 400 men working within in its walls.

When the new work ceased in 1963, most of the machinery was removed and in 1985 the Smithy relocated to the old Iron Stores and again moved to the Top Shop in 1987 The last time this was used or entered by works stuff was in 1993 until 2014 when the shed was entered to look at artifacts within the cellars and air raid shelters

Joiners/Pattern room

The Carpenters Shop/ Pattern room was also built in 1860 and is situated between the 40 boilers and Smithy Shop. All kinds of furniture and fittings are made here for the offices around the Works and stations on the LNWR lines. It was powered by electric and had relevant machines like planing machines, jig saws, shaping, tensioning, moulding, mortising machines, and lathes for general work. There is a raised platform that runs the length of the shop which is reached by a flight of steps, under which desks and other furniture are stored. There is also a pattern room, all patterning required in the Works is done in the room. Interesting fact the glass window at the top of the bath house door was made in the Patten room and has real gold lettering in the glass. The Patten store is located in the cellar and full of patterns waiting to be rescued

Sawmill number

Built in 1865 the saw mill was a very extensive and laid out shop This shop is provided with an immense amount of machinery there are no less 80 machines many of them very large ones of various kinds and of these a naturally in the majority including frame saws, band saws,chain bench saws, jij saws, Cross cut saws large and Small rack saws and circular saws, The frame saw including two for cutting logs and two for deals.

The frame held any number of blades up to 30. and the latter up to 6.

Apart from the saws the machinery comprises mortising and boring tenoning rebating, moulding planning and scrapping machines a general joinery machine a wood chopping machine a tab shaping and boring machine for wheel tabs.

There are two cranes in use one inside the mill and the other just outside the mill. The latter is arranged in a convenient position for lifting logs of wagons and transferring them to the trolleys which run on the narrow gauge rails through the sawmill.

In such shop there is a large quantity of shavings and sawdust and provision has had to be made for the disposal of this. This is done by the mean of a hole cut into the floor under or close to each machine. the sawdust etc falls through the holes into a trough under the mill and is conveyed to the the fires of what is known as the forty boilers ( later after the forty boilers was demolished the sawdust went through a system of cyclone machines seen on the sawmill today some sawdust etc was sent to the powerhouse to fire the boilers and some of the shavings etc use stored in a rail truck and used by staff as pet be ding)

The machines are driven electrically, 32 motors ranging from 8 hp to 50 hp being required with the except on of a few in the mill extension which are fixed to the floor all these motors are underneath the mill.

There is a small crane in one part of the shop where a few coach makers are employed in marking out of the timber to be used in the building of coach's ready for the machines.

Tools are ground and saws sharpened in a tool room adjoining where a staff of fitters is kept these men also do the repairs to machines which may require attention at any time.

Outside of the mill is a drying kiln in which timber is dried by hot air. Steam is provided from the forty boilers and is forced by a fan blower up through the floor of the kiln eventually making it out the other end. (this kiln was demolished the same time as the forty boilers date to be confirmed)

The sawmill actives have moved to the west repair shop in the late 1980s. Sadly the sawmill in now unsafe to enter the roof is collapsing and some of the floor have collapsed 1993 saw this building used for storage and abandoned, Staff entered this shop in 2014 to look at artifacts when the building and cellars