tarboat's photos

Decorative keystone over the archway at the Walkers Nonsuch toffee factory in Longton. It records the initials of the original owners, boiled sweet manufacturers, Horleston Brothers Ltd. See the previous image for whe whole building.

Edward Joseph Walker began making toffee at his Stoke-on-Trent sweet shop in the 1890's. The business flourished and in 1915, he and his son Edward Victor Walker established Walkers' Nonsuch as an independent family company, producing toffee from a factory near his shop. In 1947 they moved to these premises in Calverley Street, Longton which was built in 1894 for boiled sweet manufacturer, Horleston Brothers Ltd. The company is still family owned and manufactures only toffee.

I don't often get angry, but to see the devastation that once was Cresswell Colliery really upset me. A fine example of a whole community thrown on the scrapheap for political ends. What was once one of the most productive collieries in the East Midlands is now a wasteland where even the underground cabling has been stripped out for scrap. The village institute, originally provided by the Bolsover Colliery Company, stands almost derelict and the sports fields appear to be under attack by bulldozers. Only the model village still stands after a massive investment of public money, but what future for the people who live there? I came away very depressed with a society that is prepared to throw people's lives away as they have been throughout the coalfields. The abandoned track of the former tub circuit leads to one of the shaft buildings which was retained after closure in 1991and used for ventilation and emergency winding for (I think) Welbeck colliery.

Afternoon service to Linghe sets out from the Huangjia terminus of the Nanpiao Mining Railway. The bustling street market alongside the line here is a favourite location for watching the passenger trains.

A shot from when I was messing about with the zoom whilst up on the hill above Ramsbottom a couple of weeks ago. I just like the rooftops and chimneypots.

The former central Co-operative Society shop premises in Glossop. Nicely dated 1930 on the panels between first and second floors. I wonder what the large bronze fixtures mounted on the upper walls were for. I suppose they might have carried flagpoles?

The old Macclesfield Drill Hall is on Bridge Street. It was erected by public subscription in 1871 for the use of the 8th Cheshire Rifle Volunteers. The tower was added in 1872. Now converted into apartments the building has a secure furture unlike its replacement of c1980 which has already been demolished.

Edward Mill of 1924, was one of the last to be built in Congleton. It was a silk mill and replace the Albert Mill of 1871. It is now a gym and fitness centre.

Situated on Foundry Bank, the Victoria Mill was originally a silk mill and in 1858 was occupied by Berisfords for powered ribbon weaving. At that time it was known as Foundry Mill. Today it is divided into a number of commercial units.

The Meihekou Coal Railway splits at this point just south-west of the mining headquarters and washery at Yijing. The line on the left goes west to the interchange with China Rail at Heishantou, whilst the right line goes for about 10km south serving the Erjing (2nd), Wujing (5th), and Sanjing (3rd) mines. As a long loaded train sets out for the interchange, the crossing keeper signals to the driver to proceed with caution across the main road level crossing at this point. It had been my intention to make the shot of the keeper with the train much closer to the crossing but having made the signal she proceeded back to the roadside.

Washery at the Vreoci, Serbia. Part of the state owner Kolubara group, the washery handles coal from four opencast mines. I had lots of problems here with the tripod getting stuck in the holes of the walkway decking. In the end I lost one of the feet completely. :-(

During a visit to the Baotou steelworks in December, a trip to the slag tips was a must. Unfortunately the steelworks security had a different view and our permit to visit proved to be of little consequence. Before being removed I was able to see one train on the tips and this is a composite view to make up for all the ones that I didn't get to see. A stitch of three images with the middle train shortened to make it fit between the other two views of itself.

A very long train of empties departs from the Donfanghong washery at Jalainur and heads for the Tiebeikuang mine . The banking engine is still a long way out of shot but its location can be identified by the vast clouds of exhaust steam in the distance.

The development of coking practice from working in large heaps (as used in charcoal burning) to the coke-oven, saw an intermediate kiln process developed in the mid nineteenth century. This is the process observed at the Sijing cokeworks and also in this illustration from a book in my collection. 'The History of Coke Making and of The Coke Oven Managers' Association', published in 1936. Contemporary reports suggest that the coke burners had to work hard to keep the channels free of ash and fallen pices of coal and also that in times of high wind it was difficult to control the process. The kiln approach was generally discarded because of the tendency to combust a considerable part of the charge in the areas of the air channels.

A closer look into the kilns at the Sijing cokeworks. Those in the first row are empty but the next row has a number of burning kilns in which the coal can be seen piled high. The ovens are 17mm x 4m x 2.5m high and a charge of coal takes 2 weeks to convert to high quality coke for use in the blast furnaces at Shenyang. A most interesting survival of an archaic process .

The Sijing cokeworks near Jixi appear to use the open kiln technique to produce coke, The works was not accessible and so resort was made to climbing a bank that gave a view over the operating area. Unfortunately this was against the light but did allow a look at the large number of kilns set out in rows. Only a few seemed to be in operation at this time, and these are in the far row. The ovens are 17mm x 4m x 2.5m high and a charge of coal takes 2 weeks to convert to high quality coke for use in the blast furnaces at Shenyang. A most interesting survival of an archaic process .

At the Bolton Steam Museum, Twin Beam Engine in action. This ran until 1953 at Crossfield Mill, Wardle, near Rochdale. It probably dates from c1840 with alterations in 1893.

Workforce laid off and the whole place silent. Railway workshops in Serbia.