Stocksbridge
| Stocksbridge | |
| Yorkshire West Riding | |
|---|---|
 Leisure Centre from the Steel Works | |
| Location | |
| Location: | 53°28’41"N, 1°35’17"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 13,663 (2001) |
| Post town: | Sheffield |
| Postcode: | S36 |
| Dialling code: | 0114 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Sheffield |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Penistone and Stocksbridge |
Stocksbridge is a small, busy industrial town in the West Riding of Yorkshire (with a population of 13,663 in 2001) on the eastern edge of the Peak District. The town is lies in the steep-sided valley of the Little Don River, below the Underbank Reservoir.
Steel Industry
The valley bottom is almost entirely occupied by steel works, which have been the main spur for the growth of the settlement, which did not exist until the early 19th century. Although, at one time, workers were bussed in from miles around, the steel works now employ 800 workers, and steel manufacture is due to continue.
Samuel Fox established a steel works from 1842, and built much of the infrastructure of Stocksbridge. He took over a disused corn mill near the centre of Stockbridge in 1842 and adapted it to making wire for textile pins. Around 1848 the business expanded to include wire for umbrella frames which led to Fox developing the "Paragon" umbrella frame in 1851. The business continued to expand and extended to different products, so that by the mid-1860s the works included furnaces and rolling mills allowing production of railway lines and springs. The business was transferred to a limited company in 1871.
During Second World War, 'Sammy Fox's' Steelworks was kept busy as part of the war effort. During the Blitz on Sheffield by the Luftwaffe, the bombers used the dam at the end of Stocksbridge to mark their turning point for their run back toward Sheffield.
Between 1872 and 1877 a railway line was built to link the works with the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway at Deepcar; the Stocksbridge Railway, which existed as a subsidiary company until 1992.
Samuel Fox & Co joined Steel, Peech and Tozer at Templeborough to form the United Steel Companies following the First World War. From then on the products of the USC sites were coordinated so that each works specialised in set products. Fox's specialised in special steel produce such as spring steel and stainless steels. This developed into the manufacture of high-quality steel for the aviation industry. One specialised department assembled and tested springs for Rolls-Royce cars.
Following nationalisation in 1967, the British Steel Corporation split the stainless steel departments off into a separate business which by 2004 had become Outokumpu.
During the 1980s and 1990s the Stocksbridge works was part of the United Engineering Steels group (a joint venture between British Steel and GKN) and was known as "Stocksbridge Engineering Steels".
Since 1999 the works have been owned by Corus, and are part of the Corus Engineering Steels (CES) group. Although for several years Corus ran at a loss, it has recently returned to profit, in part helped by the worldwide rise in demand for steel caused by Chinese economic activity.
Steel manufacture in Stocksbridge has always been by melting iron and steel firstly in crucibles (from 1860), then Bessemer converters (from 1862) and Siemens Open Hearth Furnaces (from 1899 until 1968) and lastly Electric arc furnaces (from 1939 until 2005). Iron has never been produced from iron ore at Fox's, by any method.
Despite the worldwide reputation of the produce of the Stocksbridge works, Corus reduced the works to a satellite site for the Rotherham (Aldwarke) works (also CES). In the process the main melting shop and the rolling mill were to be closed; however, the mill was actually kept open after the planned closure date as the production could not be handled at Rotherham. Re-melting of special grades continued using small (around 10-ton capacity), specialised furnaces with controlled atmospheres. The rolling mill (billet mill) was re-opened in April 2006 due to difficulties in rolling certain products at Aldwarke and it is likely to stay open for the immediate future.
A plan to invest a further £6 million at Stocksbridge was cancelled part way through in December 2005. This plan would have enhanced the re-melting furnace capacity at Stocksbridge, aimed at strengthening Corus' position to supply the rapidly growing market for engineering steels for the aerospace sector.
In October 2006, Corus was taken over by the Indian company Tata Steel. Corus Engineering Steels (Stocksbridge site) was renamed Tata Steels Speciality. During the 2008 recession Stocksbridge works reduced its workforce and output, focusing on producing lower quantities of high-value product for the aerospace and oil and gas markets. After the recession the company returned to profitability and began investing once again. In 2011 £6.5 million was invested in boosting the site's ability to produce aerospace steel, and further developments are planned for 2012.[1]
Transport links
The main road from Sheffield to Manchester originally passed through the town until the A616 Stocksbridge bypass opened in 1989. The new road links the M1 motorway at Junction 35A (and J36) to the Woodhead Pass (which is one of the main trans-Pennine routes from Sheffield to Manchester) bypassing the towns of Stocksbridge and Deepcar, taking away the steelworks traffic through the town as well.
A branch off the Woodhead Line was built up the valley to serve the steel works from a junction near Deepcar Station. The branch line still exists but the main Woodhead line to Manchester was shut. A campaign is currently active to turn this into a commuter line to Sheffield.
Culture
Stocksbridge Engineering Steels Brass Band was one of the top in the United Kingdom, though recently renamed Unite The Union band and moved rehearsals to central Sheffield.
Deepcar Brass Band remains locally.
Steel Valley Beacon is a strong amateur theatre group based in Stocksbridge, which produces Shakespeare and other plays every year.
Nearby Bolsterstone is home to a world famous male voice choir, particularly noted for its performances of Sheffield local carols.
Sport
- Football: Stocksbridge Park Steels, founded in 1986, whose home ground is Bracken Moor near the top of the valley
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Stocksbridge) |
- Sources for the study of the history of Stocksbridge Produced by Sheffield City Council's Libraries and Archives