Elsecar has a colliery, ironworks, a Newcomen Beam Engine, workshops and a steam railway!
The 4th Earl of Fitzwilliam inherited the Wentworth Estate from his uncle in 1782 and by the end of 1795 the Elsecar New Colliery has been sunk and the ironworks built by John and William Darwin & Co – you can still see the ruins of the buildings today.
The ironstone was mined close to Elsecar, although the best ironstone came from Tankersley and was brought to the ironworks by horse and cart. Darwin & Co. sold pig iron and made domestic ranges, spouting rails for colliery tramways, window frames and arches which can still be seen on various buildings around the site.
Elsecar New Colliery was much deeper than those previously sunk in the area and so a Newcomen Beam Engine was built to extract water from the mine, allowing the exploration of deeper coal seams. The Engine ran from 1795 to 1923, then replaced with electric pumps. This Newcomen Beam Engine is the only one of its kind in the world to remain in its original location!
The Elsecar workshops were built in 1850 in response to the various industrial enterprises around the Fitzwilliam estate. The Elsecar Steam Railway, located behind the Centre, was built to serve the Earl Fitzwilliam’s collieries and ironworks. It now operates on a one mile section of the branch, using historic steam and diesel locomotives.
Elsecar Heritage Centre, Wath Road, Elsecar, South Yorkshire, S74 8HJ.
Elsecar has a colliery, ironworks, a Newcomen Beam Engine, workshops and a steam railway!
The 4th Earl of Fitzwilliam inherited the Wentworth Estate from his uncle in 1782 and by the end of 1795 the Elsecar New Colliery has been sunk and the ironworks built by John and William Darwin & Co – you can still see the ruins of the buildings today.
The ironstone was mined close to Elsecar, although the best ironstone came from Tankersley and was brought to the ironworks by horse and cart. Darwin & Co. sold pig iron and made domestic ranges, spouting rails for colliery tramways, window frames and arches which can still be seen on various buildings around the site.
Elsecar New Colliery was much deeper than those previously sunk in the area and so a Newcomen Beam Engine was built to extract water from the mine, allowing the exploration of deeper coal seams. The Engine ran from 1795 to 1923, then replaced with electric pumps. This Newcomen Beam Engine is the only one of its kind in the world to remain in its original location!
The Elsecar workshops were built in 1850 in response to the various industrial enterprises around the Fitzwilliam estate. The Elsecar Steam Railway, located behind the Centre, was built to serve the Earl Fitzwilliam’s collieries and ironworks. It now operates on a one mile section of the branch, using historic steam and diesel locomotives.
Elsecar Heritage Centre, Wath Road, Elsecar, South Yorkshire, S74 8HJ.
