Cementation furnace, Sheffield

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The Cementation furnace in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England is a Grade II Listed Building [1] and is the only example of this type of steel making furnace to survive intact in Great Britain. It is situated on Doncaster Street in the St Vincent's Quarter just 0.6 miles (1 km) north west of the city centre.

Sheffield City and Metropolitan borough in England

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. With some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely industrial roots to encompass a wider economic base. The population of the City of Sheffield is 577,800 (mid-2017 est.) and it is one of the eight largest regional English cities that make up the Core Cities Group. Sheffield is the third-largest English district by population. The metropolitan population of Sheffield is 1,569,000.

South Yorkshire County of England

South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in England. It is the southernmost county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region and had a population of 1.34 million in 2011. It has an area of 1,552 square kilometres (599 sq mi) and consists of four metropolitan boroughs, Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield. South Yorkshire was created on 1 April 1974 as a result of the Local Government Act 1972.Its largest settlement is Sheffield.

Great Britain island in the North Atlantic off the north-west coast of continental Europe

Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of 209,331 km2 (80,823 sq mi), it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island, and the ninth-largest island in the world. In 2011, Great Britain had a population of about 61 million people, making it the world's third-most populous island after Java in Indonesia and Honshu in Japan. The island of Ireland is situated to the west of Great Britain, and together these islands, along with over 1,000 smaller surrounding islands, form the British Isles archipelago.

Contents

History

The furnace was built in 1848 to produce steel by the cementation process by the local steel firm of Daniel Doncasters and Sons, a firm which had been established in Sheffield in 1778. [2] By 1860 there were 250 cementation furnaces in Sheffield capable of producing 80,000 tons of blister steel and the large conical structures were a characteristic feature of the city‘s industrial landscape. [3] The furnace on Doncaster Street is the only remaining example which is undamaged although there are two other sites in the immediate area which have examples which are partially intact, these being at Bower Spring and Millsands. The Doncaster Street furnace operated throughout World War II and a blackout cover was fitted to the furnace outlet as a precaution during air raids, this is still in place today (painted white). The furnace ceased operation in 1951. [4]

Cementation process

The cementation process is an obsolete technology for making steel by carburization of iron. Unlike modern steelmaking, it increased the amount of carbon in the iron. It was apparently developed before the 17th century. Derwentcote Steel Furnace, built in 1720, is the earliest surviving example of a cementation furnace. Another example in the UK is the cementation furnace in Doncaster Street, Sheffield.

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Blackout (wartime) anti-aircraft measure that consists of minimizing light output of a city

A blackout during war, or in preparation for an expected war, is the practice of collectively minimizing outdoor light, including upwardly directed light. This was done in the 20th century to prevent crews of enemy aircraft from being able to identify their targets by sight, for example during the London Blitz of 1940. In coastal regions a shore-side blackout of city lights also helped protect ships from being seen in silhouette against the shore by enemy submarines farther out at sea.

Present day

After standing unused for 40 years the furnace was restored in 1992/93 with financial assistance from the HSBC (then Midland) Bank. The furnace stands on land owned by the HSBC on the periphery of a car park for their offices on Hoyle Street. The furnace is surrounded by low fencing and a locked gate with the key being available from the curator at the nearby Kelham Island Museum. [5]

HSBC British multinational banking and financial services holding company

HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational banking and financial services holding company. It is the 7th largest bank in the world, and the largest in Europe, with total assets of US$2.558 trillion. HSBC traces its origin to a hong in Hong Kong, and its present form was established in London by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation to act as a new group holding company in 1991. The origins of the bank lie mainly in Hong Kong and to a lesser extent in Shanghai, where branches were first opened in 1865. The HSBC name is derived from the initials of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. The company was first formally incorporated in 1866. The company continues to see both the United Kingdom and Hong Kong as its "home markets".

Kelham Island Museum

The Kelham Island Museum is an industrial museum on Alma Street, alongside the River Don, in the centre of Sheffield, England. It was opened in 1982.

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References

  1. ↑ Sheffield City Council. Archived 24 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine . Gives a list of all listed buildings in Sheffield.
  2. ↑ www.doncasters.com. Gives some details on the firm Daniel Doncasters.
  3. ↑ Shakespeare public house (Gibraltar St). Archived 10 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine . Gives number of furnaces and output.
  4. ↑ "Pevsner Architectural Guides - Sheffield", Ruth Harman & John Minnis, ISBN   0-300-10585-1, Pages 163-165 Gives 1848 as year of construction and details of other partial cementation furnaces in Sheffield.
  5. ↑ "Information board at site", Gives history and description of furnace.

Coordinates: 53°23′15″N1°28′39″W / 53.3874°N 1.4775°W / 53.3874; -1.4775

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.

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