_Iron Works and Iron Manufactures._
Iron is one of the staple manufactures of Scotland, and the development
which it has attained since the middle of the last century is
surprising and wonderful. The Scottish ores are known by the names of
the clayband ironstone and the blackband ironstone; the former only
was known and used in the eighteenth century, the latter was not even
discovered till about the beginning of the present century. But for
many years the Scotch ironmasters have imported considerable quantities
of hæmatite iron ores from England, ochrey iron ores from Spain,
magnetic iron ores, and spathic ores, from various countries, which
were used in the Scotch blast-furnaces. Thus the quality of Scottish
iron has not been dependant on the native ores. From an early period
small quantities of iron were smelted by a rude process.
A furnace was built at Goatfield in Argyleshire, about 1750; and about
the same time another was erected at Bonawe, also in Argyleshire, for
making charcoal iron from hæmatite ores. The Bonawe furnace continued
and was subsequently known as the Lorne furnace, and carried on by
Messrs. Harrison, Ainslie and Co. The hæmatite ore used in this furnace
was taken from Cumberland, and the charcoal was produced at the works
in the woods in the neighbourhood. In 1788, the produce of these two
furnaces was 1400 tons of iron per ♦annum. The Bonawe furnace, in 1875,
was only producing 800 tons a year, which is accounted for from its
being so far removed from the centre of iron ore and coal.
♦ “annnm” replaced with “annum”
In 1760, the Carron Ironworks were erected by a company, consisting of
Dr. John Roebuck, a native of Sheffield, William Cadell of Cockenzie,
Samuel Garbet of Prestonpans, and others. They were assisted in some
important contrivances connected with the work by Smeaton, the eminent
engineer. The first furnace was blown on the 1st of January, and from
that memorable day onward the works have had a remarkably successful
career.
These works in a few years became amongst the most famous in Europe;
and the products of the firm long held a high reputation in the leading
markets of the world. Sir John Sinclair in his _Statistical Account of
Scotland_, published in 1792, describes the Carron Works thus:――
“There are five blast furnaces, sixteen air-furnaces, a clay mill for
grinding clay and making fire-bricks for the use of the said furnaces,
an engine that raises four tons and a half of water at one stroke,
and on an average draws seven strokes per minute. This engine goes
in time of drought, and consumes sixteen tons of coal in twenty-four
hours. Besides the coals consumed by the engine, there are a hundred
and twenty tons burned every day in the works and by the inhabitants
belonging to them. Besides the air-furnaces there are three cupola
furnaces that go by virtue of the blast-furnaces, by pipes conveyed
from the machinery of the blasts; their business is much the same with
the air-furnaces. There are also four boring-mills for boring guns,
pipes, cylinders, etc. One of the boring-mills is adapted for turning
the guns on the outside. They have likewise Smith’s forges for making
the largest anchors and anvils, as well as small work of various kinds,
besides a forge for making malleable iron, and a plating forge; also a
forge for stamping iron, the hammer of which, with the helve, are both
of cast metal, and weigh a ton and a half.”
Thus it appears that, though Carron obtained its reputation chiefly for
its pig-iron manufacture and castings, it was also the first place in
Scotland where malleable iron was made. There are about two thousand
men and boys employed at the works. A farm of four hundred acres is
attached to the works, and there are five villages in the neighbourhood,
dependencies of the company, in which many of the houses have been
built by them.¹
¹ _Notices of some of the Principal Manufactures of the West
of Scotland_, pages 31‒32, 1876. From Burns to the present
day there is a concurrence of testimony to the effect that
it was next to impossible for any stranger to get a look
through the Carron Works. Mr. Smiles wished to see a long-
disused apparatus which Smeaton, the engineer, had contrived,
but in the autumn of 1858, when he called at the works for
that purpose, and requested admittance, the reply of the
manager was, “Na, na, it canna be allood. We canna be fashed
wi’ strangers here.”――_Lives of the Engineers_, Volume II.,
page 61.
From the establishment of these works till 1788, the quantity of iron
produced in Scotland was about 1500 tons per annum, but before the end
of the century a number of other iron works were erected. Shortly after
1770, the Cramond Works were started with two furnaces, which were
each 40 feet high and 14 in diameter. Between 1779 and 1796 there were
furnaces erected at Glenbuck, Muirkirk, Wilsontown, Calder, Clyde, and
Omoa, in Lanarkshire. The Clyde Works were begun in 1786; there were
two furnaces in blast in 1792, and in 1799 there were three. At that
time nearly the whole produce of the works was cast into cannon and
artillery equipments. In 1796 there were seventeen blast-furnaces in
Scotland, and the quantity of pig-iron produced in that year was 18,640
tons.
The first of the important group of blast-furnaces in the neighbourhood
of Coatbridge and Airdrie was commenced in 1800. Shortly after, David
Mushet discovered the blackband ironstone in this locality. While
he was crossing the river Calder, at a spot a little above Cairnhill
Old Mill, he first observed the blackband in an outcrop. When he
ascertained that it belonged to the upper coal measures he continued
his investigation, and soon found other beds of the blackband ironstone
in the lands of Clifton Hill, Airdrie, Burnfoot, Kipsbyre, Rochsoles,
Woodhall, and Lauchope. Since his discovery, this iron ore has been
found in other parts of the carboniferous system, and its existence has
contributed greatly to the progress of the Scotch iron trade.
“The blackband ironstone contains from 50 to 70 per cent. of iron in
combination with sufficient carbonaceous matter to calcine it when put
into heaps.”¹ Good blackband iron ore contains from 2 to 8 per cent.
of coal; if it contains more than 20 per cent. of coal, it is of little
value save when mixed with clayband, which uses up the excess of coal.
¹ _Notices of some of the Principal Manufactures of the West
of Scotland_, page 37.
After the discovery of the blackband ore, the iron trade advanced more
rapidly in Scotland. The most of this ore is embedded in Lanarkshire
and Ayrshire, and they became the chief centres of the iron manufacture.
The quantity of iron produced in 1806 was 20,240 tons; in 1825 it was
24,000 tons; and in 1829 it had reached 29,000. But the introduction of
railways now began to cause a greater demand for iron, and this, with
the rapidly increasing consumption of iron in supplying the machinery
and apparatuses of the many manufactories which were springing up
throughout the country, gave an enormous stimulation to the iron trade.
Accordingly new ironworks and many furnaces were erected in Scotland
between the years 1825 and 1850. In 1827, J. B. Neilson, engineer
of the Glasgow Gasworks, formed the idea of heating the air before
injecting it into the furnace; and in 1829 his invention was tried
at the Clyde Ironworks with marked success.¹ This invention gave a
great impetus to the iron trade; and the patentee and his partners were
reported to have realised £300,000 from it. Powerful engines are used
for generating the blast.
¹ _Industries of Scotland_, by D. ♦Bremner.
♦ “Bremmer” replaced with “Bremner”
An idea may be formed of the activity of the iron trade and its rapid
progress in Scotland from a comparison of the annual production of iron
at different periods. As stated above, the production in 1829 was 29,
000 tons; but for the year 1835 it had risen to 75,000; in 1840 it was
197,000 tons; in 1845 it reached to 475, 000 tons; in 1850 it was 690,
000 tons; in 1855 it was 820, 000 tons; in 1861 it rose to 1,050,000;
in 1865 it was 1,164,000 tons; the following year the production fell
to 994,000; but it rose again, and in 1870 it was 1,206,000. Thus the
production of iron in Scotland had increased in forty years more than
a million of tons. But this rapid development of the iron trade was
not peculiar to Scotland; there was also a remarkable increase in the
production of iron in England and in other countries springing from
similar causes.
The Gartsherrie Ironworks, in the vicinity of Coatbridge, which were
started by Alexander Baird in 1830, with one blast furnace are now
the largest in Scotland. These works were developed with remarkable
enterprise and skill. In 1875, the works consisted of sixteen furnaces,
placed in two parallel rows, one on each side of the Monkland Canal;
these furnaces are all open-topped, and, having been built at different
dates, they are of various patterns and sizes. The works produce
100,000 tons of pig iron per annum, and upwards of 3000 men and boys
are employed in connection with the works. In the neighbourhood of
the works there are some 500 houses belonging to the Messrs. Baird &
Company, which are occupied by their workmen.
In 1875 this firm had other four ironworks in Ayrshire; in all they had
forty furnaces, which produced 300,000 tons of pig-iron per annum, and
gave employment to about 9000 men and boys.
The Summerlee Ironworks, which were started in 1836, are near by
Gartsherrie Works. In 1875 these works had eight furnaces, from which
a portion of the gas is taken off and used for generating steam for
driving the blowing engines and heating the blast, and three of the
furnaces had been raised to a height of 70 feet; the others varied from
42 feet upward. The annual produce of Summerlee Works when the furnaces
were all in blast was from 50,000 to 70,000 tons of pig-iron. The
Langloan Ironworks, belonging to Messrs. Addie & Sons, are situated
in the same locality, and consist of eight furnaces, which are chiefly
employed in making foundry iron. In 1875, the Calder Ironworks, which
commenced in 1800, where blackband ironstone was first used, consisted
of eight furnaces. The Coltness Ironworks were begun in 1837, and in
1875 they consisted of twelve furnaces placed in two parallel rows.
Each of these furnaces produce from 12 to 15 tons at a cast, and are
tapped every twelve hours.¹
¹ _Notices of some of the Principal Manufactures of the West
of Scotland_, pages 39‒43.
In 1867 the number of furnaces in Scotland was 164, but they were
not all in blast. On an average each furnace produced about 9546 tons
per annum, and each gives employment, directly and indirectly, to
200 men and boys. Thus, if the furnaces were all in blast, the annual
production of iron would exceed 1,500,000 tons, and give employment to
upwards of 33,000 men and boys.
During the early stages of iron manufacture in Scotland there was not
much malleable iron produced. But between the years 1828 and 1836 this
branch was successfully established, and it has since been carried
on with surprising energy and skill. In 1875, there were upwards
of 400 puddling furnaces, many scrap and heating furnaces, and 50
rolling-mills. The average annual produce of malleable iron was about
145,000 tons, representing a value of over a million sterling.
These works produce plates, bars, and all kinds of manufactured iron;
and some of them are very large establishments. The Glasgow Iron
Company have the largest ironworks of this class in Scotland, at St.
Rollox and Motherwell, which were established in 1845. In 1875, these
works had 102 puddling furnaces, and fourteen rolling-mills; and were
fully equipped for turning out from 300 to 400 tons of finished iron
per week, consisting of ship and boiler plates, angle iron, tee iron,
and other kinds. The works of the firm were also equipped for producing
from 600 to 800 tons per week of sheets, rails, nail-rods, hoops, and
all kinds of small merchant iron.
There are many other great ironworks in and around Glasgow, but space
is limited, and I can only notice a few. The Parkhead Ironworks,
belonging to the Messrs. Beardmore, is a very large and remarkable
establishment. In 1875, the works had forty puddling furnaces, a
corresponding number of rolling-mills, fourteen steam hammers with
heads varying in weight from seven tons downwards, and many other
well-designed appliances of a heavy type. There were 600 hands employed
in the works, and they can turn out 1000 tons of plates, and 150 tons
of forgings of all descriptions, per month. It was in this work that
the double crank-shaft of the _Monarch_ (a huge warship) was forged,
which weighed, when it left the hammers, 32 tons.
The Lancefield Malleable Ironworks stand on the south side of Glasgow,
in Scotland Street, and its productions are of a similar nature to
those of the Parkhead works. The Lancefield establishment is famed
for its great forgings of the class of crank shafts, propeller shafts,
stern posts, and so on. “When it was required to produce the forgings
for the _Great Eastern_, there was only one forge in the whole world
ready and prepared to execute the task. That forge was Lancefield. The
propeller-shaft of the _Great Eastern_ was 47 feet long, and weighed
35 tons, the crank-shaft 31 tons, and the stern-frame 25 tons.” In
short, it was once said:――“When a shipbuilder requires a stern-frame
for an iron vessel of 5000 or 6000 tons burden ... there are in all
Europe only the government establishment of Russia, the forge of Messrs.
Marrell in France, one or two forges on the Thames and Mersey, and some
three or four on the Clyde equal to the task.”¹
¹ _Notices of some of the Principal Manufactures in the West
of Scotland_, pages 51‒53.
Steel has not been extensively manufactured in Scotland; and, in 1875,
it was mostly limited to one company, which commenced in 1871, under
the name of the “Steel Company of Scotland.” This firm then employed
700 men, and produced from 2000 to 2600 tons per month, consisting
chiefly of rails, forgings, and plates. This, with the exception of a
small quantity of crucible steel, embraced all the production of steel
in Scotland. Since there has been a large increase in the production
of steel, mainly caused by the substitution of steel for iron in
shipbuilding. Lanarkshire is the centre of the steel manufacture in
Scotland. In 1891 there were 4,393 men employed in this manufacture.
There are a number of branches connected with iron:――(1)
_Iron-founding_, often carried on in connection with special branches
of trade pursued by some engineering firms; and sometimes engineering
establishments are called foundries, though they have discontinued
iron-founding. But the general tendency for long has been to draw
the lines of the division of labour within more specialised limits;
and iron-founding now embraces several pretty well defined branches.
In the Glasgow district there are a number of foundries which limit
their attention to the production of iron castings alone; and in other
places――Dundee, Aberdeen, and other towns――such works have long been
in operation. The work produced in such foundries comprises sugar-pans
and batteries, round pans and coolers, vacuum pans and connections,
kokers, round and square tanks, bleaching boilers, soap pans and
boilers, chemical pans and retorts, castings for marine and land
engines, for sugar mills, gearing, hydraulic presses, etc. (2) Domestic,
sanitary, and architectural castings, gas and water castings; (3) the
pipe-founding trade; (4) apparatus for gasworks; (5) the iron tube
manufacture; (6) rivet, bolt, and nut trade; (7) screening apparatus;
(8) the machine tool trade; (9) boiler making, rivetting machines, etc.;
(10) iron piers, bridges, and roofing, etc.; (11) railway plant; (12)
locomotive engine trade; (13) colliery machinery; (14) blowing engines,
and pumping machinery; (15) agricultural implements and machinery;
(16) wood-working machinery; (17) sugar-making machinery; (18) textile
machinery; (19) the sewing machine trade; (20) distilling apparatus;
(21) cranes and other hoisting apparatus; (22) traction engines, and
many other mechanical appliances. All these branches of manufactures
are carried on in and around Glasgow to a greater or less extent,
and many of them also in the other centres of industry throughout the
kingdom.
Having indicated the progress of the coal and mining industries, which
may be considered as the foundation stones of the whole circle of
manufactures; and the progress of the iron manufacture, which may be
conceived as the dressed materials, the indispensable links in the
development of all the other great manufactures. But, before proceeding
to give a brief account of the evolution of the other manufactures,
the order of events, and the relation of causes and effects renders it
requisite to treat of the means of communication, for in a preceding
volume it was stated that――“Means of intercourse, as roads, bridges,
communication by sea, and postal arrangements, are closely connected
with trade and national progress. Roads, in the order of development,
naturally precede the other modes of transit, and are followed by
ferry-boats, canals, improved harbours, and a regular postal system.
As civilisation advances, these are rapidly improved, and by-and-by
partly superseded by better expedients and arrangements, as steamships,
railways, telegraphic and telephonic communication, all which
evince the resources of the human mind.”¹ Therefore, let us proceed
to indicate the progress which has taken place in the means of
communication during the past century and a half.
¹ Mackintosh’s _History of Civilisation in Scotland_, Volume
III., page 294.