Description and History of Site:-
The Craven Lead Works was established by Foster Horner and John Fell in 1835 to manufacture sheet lead , gas pipes and water pipes. Pig lead bought from nearby Grassington Moor mines and smelted at Cupola Mill was used. (See NYK01670)
Foster Horner was already involved with the lead industry, his father in law Robert Fell was a principle partner in the Coalgrovehead Mine on Grassington Moor.
During 1907-8 a Mr W.A. Atkinson of Leeds made a cycling tour of some of the Dales lead mines and, by arrangement, a tour of the Craven Lead Works. He has left records of his eye witness account of the workings of an Edwardian lead works. Those records are held by The Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society in Leeds.
The Craven Lead Works consisted in the main, of a Rolling Mill which is the surviving building, and a Pipe House which has since been demolished to make way for housing and would have stood alongside the mill to the East, alongside Keighley Road was the works office.
The Rolling Mill consisted of a Rolling Table 40' x 10' (12.1 x 3.0m) with a number of wooden rollers but also two large steel rollers that were driven by a powerful horizontal steam engine with reversing mechanism, alongside. The steel rollers could be moved closer to each other at each pass of the lead sheet to reduce down to the required thickness.
Underneath the Rolling Table was a Donkey Engine which operated a Guillotine Knife set across the table to cut the sheet to size.
Lead was melted in an open Vat nearby and heated by a fire underneath it. Containing 10 tons of lead it would be all used in one day. The molten lead was run from the Vat, using a movable iron trench into the nearby Casting Tank. The tank had hinged sides to aid the removal of the resulting cast slab which measured 8'-9' (2.4 - 2.7m) square by 6'' (152mm) deep.
The still hot slab was craned onto the Rolling Table which passed it back and forth through the steel rollers. The sheet having been formed was folded over double thickness and stamped down flat by clogged feet. The double sheet was rolled again to it's final required thickness. At It's final pass through side cutters trimmed the edges, with the trimmings being thrown back into the Vat. The sheet was then guillotined at the ends using the Donkey Engine's power. Sheets were then rolled up, like a carpet, and weighed being sold by weight and not size or thickness.
The Pipe House was a large square room with it's back area raised about 10' (3.0m) in order to form an upper floor area, like a balcony and reached by steps, on which were positioned two winding reels.
A vat of molten lead was positioned next to each of the two presses. They were about 2' (0.6m) tall and 5'' (127mm) internal diameter cylinders. A plunger descended into it from a crosshead above. Molten lead was run from the Vat using a movable iron trench into the cylinder. As the plunger descended, lead pipe was extruded from the top of the pump, the pipe rising to the upper floor then being wound onto the waiting reel by another worker. As the supply of lead was exhausted a further refill of the pump took place. The vertical rod and plunger, or die, were interchangeable to enable differing diameters and wall thicknesses of pipe to be produced.
Atkinson doesn't comment on the arrangement to power the presses, however on his hand drawn plan of the Pipe Works he clearly shows an Engine, and it's probable that this powered a hydraulic pump for the presses.
Tin lined lead pipes were also produced at these works.
Workers were encouraged to wash their hands frequently, especially before eating, however Atkinson notes that 'two or three men looked very unhealthy, one ghastly white and haggard, two others an unnatural pink hue'.
Numbers of pigs of lead were stacked in the yard, much of it came from Australia at that time, the Grassington Moor mines having closed by that date. Craven Lead Works established by Foster Horner and John Fell in 1835.
The works chimney was built in 1850.
1858 the business passed into the hands of Robert Fell & Sons.
1978 the chimney was demolished as Robert Fell & Sons turned away from lead working to bathroom sales and plumbing supplies.
Robert Fell & Sons moved the business to Harrogate. The Rolling Mill was sold for redevelopment to apartments and the Pipe House demolished to make way for housing.

Further Reading and References:-
Kelly's Directory of West Riding 1857 p665, p982
History of Skipton, E.J. Morten publishers, Dawson, W.H. p284
NMRS British Mining Number 23, Descriptions of an Edwardian Traveller 1907-8, compiled by Brears, C.D. pp14-21
The Lead Smelting Mills of the Yorkshire Dales and Northern Pennines, Clough, R.T. pp76-77
The History of Skipton, Austin Macauley publishers, Lockwood, I. p212
http://www.bgwaters.co.uk/fosterhorner.htm

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Key Words :- lead workers merchant rolling mill pipe works

Viewing the Site :- Public footpath alongside Lower Union Street

Address :- Lower Union Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, BD23 2UN
Grid Ref :- SD 98907 51303
Co-ordinates :- Lat 53.957815 , Long -2.018145
Local Authority :- Craven District Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - West Riding
Site Status :- Listed - Grade II
Historic England List No - 1131848,
Site Condition :- Site refurbished to residential housing
Site Dates :- 1835 -
Record Date :- 11 July 2018

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Andrew Garford