- Ropewalk
A ropewalk is a long straight narrow
lane , or a covered pathway, where long strands of material were laid before being twisted intorope .Ropewalks historically were harsh
sweatshops , and frequently caught on fire as hemp dust forms an explosive mixture. Rope was essential insailing ships and the standard length for a British Naval Rope was 1000 ft (305m). A sailing ship such asHMS Victory required over 20 miles (32km) of rope.The ropewalk at
Chatham Dockyard is still producing rope commercially, and the rope walk has an internal length of 1,135 ft (346m). When it was constructed in1790 it was the longest brick building in Europe. Before steam power was used in1836 , it took over 200 men to form and close a 20in (circumference ) cable laid rope.The Historic Dockyard Chatham-where, legends were created. Guide Book. 2005. Jarrold Publishing] . The rope walk is used to form and close the rope, these being the final stages in rope making. Before this the rawhemp ,manila orsisal has to be , spun intoyarn , and tarredReferences
External links
* http://oha.ci.alexandria.va.us/archaeology/jonespoint/ar-jpt-ropewalk.html
* http://www.nps.gov/carto/PDF/BOSTmap8.pdf
* [http://www.StoryOfRope.org Ropewalk: A Cordage Engineer's Journey Through History]
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