E2 New Erecting Shop, Doncaster Plant Works

Summary

Locomotive erecting workshop. 1890-1891. Built by Doncaster firm of H Arnold & Son Ltd for the Great Northern Railway (GNR). Iron-framed with orange brick exterior walls, modern corrugated metal sheet roofs. Pursuant to s.1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 the modern, low, single-storey building attached to the centre of the south-east gable wall is not of special interest and is excluded from the listing.

Reasons for Designation

The E2 Erecting Shop, Doncaster Plant Works, of 1890-1, built by H Arnold & Son Ltd. for the Great Northern Railway (GNR) is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Historic interest: the building was used in the assembly of some of the most innovative steam locomotives of their time, particularly those designed by Sir Nigel Gresley; notably the record breaking Flying Scotsman and Mallard locomotives.

* Architectural interest: this largely intact brick building retains features designed in response to the growth in size of locomotives, representing a progression from the earlier, listed, 1853 erecting shop. It remains fully operational in much the original manner for maintenance of trains including main line locomotives;

* Group value: the E2 Erecting Shop benefits from strong group value, by virtue of proximity and functional association, with the listed original Plant Works building of 1851, and the 1853 main engine shop to its rear, which contains the original erecting shop.

History

Doncaster Plant Works was built for the Great Northern Railway (GNR). The initial phase dated from 1853-1855 and comprised five acres of covered workshops on an eleven acre site. Amongst these was the original Erecting Shop (listed Grade II as part of the main engine shop to rear of original Plant Works), which had thirty locomotive berths, fifteen to each side of a central aisle in which a steam powered traveller transported locomotives the full length of the Shop. The building was further extended in 1866, but despite this the narrow aisles and short locomotive berths were becoming a major constraint as locomotives continued to grow in size. In 1890-1891 the Doncaster firm of H Arnold & Son Ltd built a new Erecting Shop near the Forge and New Boiler Shop to the west of the site. It cost £13,000 and consisted of two large erecting bays and a smaller central bay for machinery. Both erecting bays could accommodate up to five locomotives to each of the two outer pits, with a central outgoing road for finished locomotives, giving the Shop a total capacity of twenty engines. Each erecting bay also had two 30 ton overhead cranes, supplied by Messrs Craven Bros, Manchester, operated by cotton ropes driven by a two-cylinder steam wall engine.

The rectangular building is shown on the Epoch 2 1:2500 Ordnance Survey map published in 1903. In 1962 a small extension was built against the centre of the south-east gable wall to provide staff eating and toilet facilities. In the late C20 the wide, round-headed doorway on the right-hand side of the south-east gable wall was replaced by two wide, square entrances with roller shutters. A wide entrance with an rsj lintel has also been inserted towards the right-hand end of the north-east, long elevation. In the C21 the original roof covering was replaced by corrugated metal sheeting, the extension was rebuilt to extend further, and recently a large, corrugated metal shed has been built against the left-hand corner of the south-east gable wall. The original overhead cranes were upgraded later in the C20 to 45 tons and some in the late-C20 to 45 tonnes.

In 1895 the GNR appointed Henry Alfred Ivatt as Locomotive Superintendent. His powerful Class C1 Klondyke Atlantic passenger steam locomotives were assembled in the New Erecting Shop. Upon his retirement in 1911 he was succeeded by Nigel Gresley who went on to become a renowned railway engineer, designing many highly successful locomotives which were also built in the New Erecting Shop at Doncaster. During the inter-war period Gresley designed the Class A3 Pacific locomotive. In 1923 his No.4472 Flying Scotsman was built and in 1928 the 'Flying Scotsman Service' was introduced running non-stop between London and Edinburgh, a distance of 392 miles. The train also became the first steam locomotive to be officially authenticated at 100mph. Gresley then went on to design the new, streamlined Class A4 Pacific locomotive. The most famous of these was No.4468 Mallard, which in 1938 attained a world record for steam traction of 126 mph, a record which still stands today. Amongst the other locomotives he designed was a powerful new freight engine of which the V2 2-6-2 Green Arrow is the best known. Gresley was knighted in 1936.

The New Erecting Shop is still in active use for the overhaul, conversion, and maintenance of rail vehicles including Main Line locomotives.

Details

Locomotive erecting workshop. 1890-1891. Built by Doncaster firm of H Arnold & Son Ltd for the Great Northern Railway (GNR). Iron-framed with orange brick exterior walls, modern corrugated metal sheet roofs.

PLAN: twelve-bay rectangular building with two wide erecting bays running the length of the building separated by a narrower central aisle. The north-east erecting bay has two pits running the length of the building with tracks leading out through the south-east end of the building and a shorter pit adjacent to the central aisle. The south-west erecting bay has three pits with tracks from the central pit leading out through the south-east end of the building. A modern, single-storey extension block built against the centre of the south-east gable wall contains staff facilities. The two erecting bays both have two 45 ton/tonne overhead cranes. The central aisle has a smaller overhead crane.

EXTERIOR: the erecting shop has a pier and panel construction of orange brick in English bond with a deep plinth of blue bricks and stone sills to the windows. The three double-pitched roofs over the two outer bays and central aisle have modern, white-coated, corrugated metal sheets. The main entrance is in the south-east gable wall. It has two tall, wide outer gables, each divided into three bays by piers, with a lower, narrow central gable of a single bay defined by piers. The left-hand gable has a very large, round-headed doorway in the central bay with timber double doors with strap hinges. Above is a circular window with a brick frame. The outer bays each originally had a large, segmental-arched window with a stone sill at ground-floor level; the right-hand window has now been blocked and is partially obscured by the low, modern extension which abuts the wall (the extension is not of special interest). Both bays have shorter, segmental-arched windows above with stone sills. All the windows have iron frames with small-pane glazing. Those at the upper level have fixed glazing and the ground-floor window has a central, three-by-three pane panel which opens on a central pivot. The ground floor of the narrow central gable is obscured by the modern extension. Above is a similar, shorter, segmental-arched window with an iron frame with fixed small-pane glazing. The right-hand gable has a similar ground-floor window to the left. The rest of the ground-floor elevation has been altered to form two very large, straight-headed openings, separated by a square brick pier, with metal roller shutters. The bricks round these openings have been bonded in but differ slightly in colour. The elevation above is unaltered and is similar to the left-hand gable with a central, circular window and a shorter, segmental-arched window in both of the outer bays. The north-east long elevation has twelve bays defined by piers. The two outer bays contain a single large, segmental-arched window with a stone sill at ground-floor level with a shorter, segmental-arched window with a stone sill at first-floor level. The bays between each contain two similar windows at ground-floor level and two shorter windows at first-floor level. The windows have iron frames with small-pane glazing and those on the ground floor have similar pivoting, three-by-three pane panels. In the eighth bay an opening the width of the bay with an RSJ lintel has been inserted, truncating the lower part of the two windows. The opening has a metal roller shutter. The north-west gable wall has two wide outer gables, each divided into three bays by piers, with a lower, narrow central gable of a single bay defined by piers. The two outer gables each have a central doorway beneath a full-width segmental arch. The flat-headed doorways both have tall overlights reaching up to the segmental arch. The overlights have iron frames with small-pane glazing. The outer bays each have a large, segmental-arched window with a stone sill at ground-floor level. Above are shorter, segmental-arched windows with stone sills and the central bay has a circular window with a brick frame. The narrow central gable has a similar large, segmental-arched window on the ground floor and shorter window above. All the windows have similar metal frames and small-pane glazing as the other elevations. The south-west long elevation has twelve bays defined by piers. The two outer bays both have a single large, ground-floor window with a shorter window at first-floor level. The bays between each have two ground-floor windows with shorter windows above. The windows and window frames are similar to those in the north-east long elevation.

INTERIOR: the two erecting bays are lined with two rows of large, rectangular, pierced cast-iron columns with integral capitals which run the length of the building. The outer rows of columns are set against the exterior brick walls. The inner rows are open with the space between forming the central aisle. Riveted girders span between the columns supporting the two 45 ton/tonne overhead travelling cranes in each erecting bay. The inner girders also support a smaller, overhead travelling crane in the central aisle and additional struts which rise to support lattice girders above. These act as wall plates for the three sets of iron roof trusses spanning the bays. The concrete floors of the erecting bays have deep inspection pits edged by rails, which are covered when not in use. The roofs above the iron trusses are partially boarded with timber and partially corrugated metal sheeting, all painted white.

EXCLUSION: pursuant to s.1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, the modern, low, single-storey building attached to the centre of the south-east gable wall is not of special interest and is excluded from the listing.

Sources

Books and journals
Tuffrey, Peter, Roe, Michael, 150 Years of Doncaster Plant Works, (2003)

Other
Barry W Lifsey, Office Boy to Industrial Engineer 1958-1987, Plant Works, 2014,

End of official list entry

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