Brymbo Ironworks railway

Brymbo Ironworks railway

Infobox rail
railroad_name= Brymbo Ironworks railway
gauge=RailGauge|24
start_year=1899
end_year=1946
length=
hq_city=Hook Norton
locale=England
successor_line=Abandoned

The Brymbo Ironworks railway was a narrow gauge industrial railway serving the Brymbo ironstone quarry and steel works at Hook Norton in Oxfordshire.

History

The original Brymbo Ironworks was founded near Wrexham in Wales in 1753 by John Wilkinson. Wilkinson was one of the pioneers of the industrial revolution and made a significant fortune from his ironworks. When he died in 1808 his company went into litigation. In 1841 a new company was formed to run the Brymbo Ironworks and in 1856 was one of the first to use the Bessemer process for making steel.

By 1899 the works had come close to exhausting the supply of ironstone near Wrexham and was looking for an alternative quarry to feed its furnaces. Ironstone fields near Hook Norton were purchased and a new ironworks set up to consume the ore. An internal tramway system was established to serve the quarry and works. This grew to become the largest RailGauge|24 gauge railway in the British steel making industry.

The outbreak of the First World War saw a significant increase in demand for iron and steel to feed the munitions factories. In 1917 a new company was established to expand production at Brymbo. After the cessation of hostilities demand for steel fell rapidly and the recession of the late 1920s further depressed the economic situation. By the end of the decade the new company was in receivership. The quarry and railway went into a hiatus that lasted until 1934.

The build up to World War II saw an increase in demand for iron and steel, and in 1934 the quarry re-opened. Locomotives were acquired from north Wales to operate the tramway. The works flourished for the last time.

Immediately after the end of the war, cheaper European ore and steel became available again and the fortunes of the Brymbo works rapidly declined. In June 1946 the quarry closed for the last time and all the plant and land was sold or scrapped by 1948.

Locomotives

References

*

ee also

* British industrial narrow gauge railways


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Brymbo Steelworks — The Brymbo Steelworks was a former large steelworks in the village of Brymbo near Wrexham, Wales. For much of its life it was a rather ordinary ironworks and later steelworks, but is significant on account of its founder, and as having one of a… …   Wikipedia

  • Dowlais Ironworks — by George Childs (1840) The Dowlais Ironworks was a major ironworks and steelworks located at Dowlais near Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales. Founded in the 18th century, it operated until the end of the 20th, at one time in the 19th century being the… …   Wikipedia

  • Bersham Ironworks — were large ironworks at Bersham, near Wrexham, North Wales. They are most famous for being the original working site of John Wilkinson. They were also the first site in the world to use a new way of boring holes in cannon and steam engine… …   Wikipedia

  • North Wales Mineral Railway — The North Wales Mineral Railway was constructed in 1844 during the early years of the so called Railway Mania. It was originally intended to link Chester via Wrexham to Ruabon; there were branches to Brymbo and Minera from Wheatsheaf junction via …   Wikipedia

  • Russell (locomotive) — [ thumb|right|Russell running on the Welsh Highland Railway (Porthmadog) in 1995] Russell is an over 100 year old narrow gauge steam locomotive originally built for the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways (NWNGR), but most famously associated with… …   Wikipedia

  • 1841 in Wales — This article is about the particular significance of the year 1841 to Wales and its people. Incumbents*Prince of Wales Edward Albert, son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (from December 8) *Princess of Wales vacant Events*February 20 The… …   Wikipedia

  • Wrexham — infobox UK place country = Wales welsh name=Wrecsam constituency welsh assembly=Wrexham, Clwyd South latitude=53.03 longitude= 2.98 official name= Wrexham unitary wales= Wrexham population= 63,084 (2001) lieutenancy wales= Clwyd constituency… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Wrexham — The history of Wrexham from the prehistoric to current day. Wrexham is a large town in the north east of Wales with a long history of both heavy industry and as a market town (see Wrexham).Prehistoric to Roman timesApproximately 8,000 years ago… …   Wikipedia

  • Coed Talon — Former Calvinistic Methodist chapel in Coed Talon Coed Talon (also spelt Coed talon ) is a small, formerly industrial village between Leeswood and Treuddyn in Flintshire, North Wales. Its name is derived from the Welsh word coed ( wood ) and the… …   Wikipedia

  • Coedpoeth — Coordinates: 53°03′17″N 3°04′27″W / 53.054722°N 3.074167°W / 53.054722; 3.074167 …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”