J. BLAKEBOROUGH & SONS LTD
BLAKEBOROUGH VALVES
SOME BRILLIANT PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE OLD FACTORY AND SOME OF THE WORKERS IN THE LEAD UP TO ITS CLOSURE ON THE 12th APRIL 1989
INTRODUCTION
Blakeborough Valves was a large engineering company which started trading in 1828. As the company grew, it moved to Woodhouse Works on Birds Royd Lane / River Street, Rastrick and at it’s peak, employed over 1,200 people. Different generations of many local families followed each other into the factory and it was not uncommon for a grandfather, father and son to have been employed there, occasionally at the same time.
The unthinkable happened when the company ceased trading on the 12th April 1989. The name still lives on as the nearby GA Valves bought the intellectual property rights and manufacture spare parts for Blakeborough valves. In the four years prior to the closure, from 1985, Richard Heath was employed by the company and was one of the last people to work there. Richard took many photographs of the factory as the machinery was removed and he also captured the images of many of the last workers in the lead up to their eventual redundancy.
Richard has kindly allowed me to reproduce his photographs on this website as he would like them to be preserved for other people to view. In order to make the record complete, your assistance is sought in identifying the different departments in the factory and the names of the people who are shown in the photographs.
IF YOU THINK YOU CAN HELP IN ANY WAY, PLEASE LEAVE A MESSAGE BY CLICKING ON THE BELOW LINK TO MY EMAIL ADDRESS.
The above map was recovered from a skip when the factory was being demolished. It must date back to the mid to late 1960’s as 22 Department (Small Valves) had been re-named 731 Department by 1972 when an early computerisation system was introduced.
The above photograph was also recovered from the factory as it was being closed. It shows the building of the bridge across the River Calder which is still referred to as Blake’s Bridge. The bridge was necessary as the land to the rear of the crane was going to house an extension to the factory and offices known as Sherwood Works. It was completed around 1962.
PHOTO 02 above – what part of the factory was this?
PHOTO 03 above – Dave Austwick. He worked in the small valves fitting department in the early 1970’s but possibly moved to another department later on.
PHOTO 04 above – what part of the factory was this?
PHOTO 05 above – is the midpoint between what was the old fitting shop (23 Dept.) and the medium valve machine shop (26 Dept.).
PHOTO 06 above – what part of the factory was this?
This is taken from the steps leading down the factory gates from near to the railway bridge on Woodhouse Lane. It shows the machine shop and fitting department with the apex of the roof of the apprentice training school just showing over the wall of the steps.
PHOTO 08 above – This is Albert Hickman driving an electric truck which was used for taking small loads around the factory. He is pictured outside the pattern shop.
This photograph is taken from the Woodhouse side of the railway bridge, looking across the railway lines to the factory. The brass shop that was adjacent to Birds Royd Lane has gone but the erecting shop (long building) is still evident behind.
Another photograph taken from the top of the steps on Woodhouse Lane, looking down on the machine shop. The small low building at the very end was the weigh office. A large weigh bridge was located just outside that office but the brass department beyond, has been demolished.
PHOTO 11 above – Milton Scott who was an electrician on the maintenance team. He lived in Mirfield and died in 2014 aged 89 years.
PHOTO 12 above – Les Stewart is the man driving the truck near to the foundry. He is a former secretary at rastrick Constitutional Club but is sadly no longer with us.
PHOTO 13 above – Harry Marshall was at one time a night foreman in the foundry but he is another man who is no longer with us.
PHOTO 14 above – As in Photo 27, this is Pat the Painter but what was his real name?
PHOTO 15 above – where is this?
PHOTO 16 above – Robert Kilner is seated beside the brush but who is the other man in the picture? They are working in the job testing valves (731 Dept.)
PHOTO 17 above – is the small valves fitting track but what on earth the man laid on the tracks is doing, who knows !
PHOTO 18 above – Another unknown location. Where was it?
PHOTO 19 above – who are the two security men?
PHOTO 20 above – One of the ‘clocking in’ machines with a harsh warning above stating that ‘no person is allowed to check in or out for another under penalty of instant dismissal.’
But where was it located?
PHOTO 21 above – Steps from Woodhouse Lane which led down to the main gates by the weigh office.
I hope that the photographs have brought back some memories for people who were employed at the Blakeborough factory and that the images of people from over 30 years ago have been of interest to many, seeing them in their everyday working environment. Some of them are no longer with us whilst the survivors will be 30+ years older now.
Any help in identifying the people or the buildings would certainly help to make this article a lasting tribute to the Blakeborough company and those who worked there in the final few years. It will hopefully be looked at on this website for many years to come.