Foundries Collection

Firth Brown 5 ton steam hammer, junction of Savile Street and Sutherland Street, Attercliffe
This was built in 1947 by the Brightside Engineering Company and was restored and moved to its present day location in 1994.The hammer was used in forging steel rings for railway tyres

Steel making plant in the Don Valley, Sheffield, Yorkshire
From an original at Sheffield Libraries: u07724

19th century illustration showing industrial smog over Dudley caused by smoke from the town's Iron Foundries. 1853
5310712 19th century illustration showing industrial smog over Dudley caused by smoke from the town's Iron Foundries. 1853; (add.info.: Date: 1853); Universal History Archive/UIG

Metal casting: Statue casting foundry
3787520 Metal casting: Statue casting foundry; (add.info.: Metal casting: Statue casting foundry (French: Dans une fonderie de statues')

Visitors watching Bessemer Steel Process at John Brown and Co foundry, 1889 (hand-coloured engraving)
3245411 Visitors watching Bessemer Steel Process at John Brown and Co foundry, 1889 (hand-coloured engraving) by British School, (19th century); Private Collection; Peter Newark Pictures; British

Manufacture of the Armstrong Gun at Woolwich Arsenal, welding the Coil (engraving)
1620179 Manufacture of the Armstrong Gun at Woolwich Arsenal, welding the Coil (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Casting a Monster Cylinder for Her Majestys Armour-Plated Frigate Agincourt at Maudslay and Companys Foundry (engraving)
1620158 Casting a Monster Cylinder for Her Majestys Armour-Plated Frigate Agincourt at Maudslay and Companys Foundry (engraving) by English School

The Casting of the Bell for the Great Clock of Westminster Palace, at Norton, Stockton-on-Tees (engraving)
1097698 The Casting of the Bell for the Great Clock of Westminster Palace, at Norton, Stockton-on-Tees (engraving) by English School

Toning the Bell, 1874 (oil on canvas)
2968821 Toning the Bell, 1874 (oil on canvas) by Shirlaw, Walter (1838-1909); 101.6x76.2 cm; The Art Institute of Chicago, IL, USA; Friends of American Art Collection; American, out of copyright

The Familistery of Guise and its founder Jean-Baptiste Andre Godin (1817-88)
CHT200422 The Familistery of Guise and its founder Jean-Baptiste Andre Godin (1817-88), from Les Hommes d Aujourd hui, c. 1880 (engraving) (b/w photo) by French School

The tremendous casting (Colour Litho)
2778566 The tremendous casting (Colour Litho) by Beltrame, Achille (1871-1945); Private Collection; (add.info.: The terrible casting)

Casting a Large Cylinder at the Canal Ironworks, Poplar (engraving)
1588146 Casting a Large Cylinder at the Canal Ironworks, Poplar (engraving) by Skill, Frederick John (1824-81); Private Collection; (add.info.: Casting a Large Cylinder at the Canal Ironworks)

Casting a Monster Anvil Block (to be used in the Manufacture of Whitworth Guns) at the Midland Works
1588342 Casting a Monster Anvil Block (to be used in the Manufacture of Whitworth Guns) at the Midland Works, Sheffield (engraving) by English School

Method of Making the Bell-Mould (engraving)
1097699 Method of Making the Bell-Mould (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Method of Making the Bell-Mould)

Mortar Casting, at the Regent s-Canal Ironworks (engraving)
1608424 Mortar Casting, at the Regent s-Canal Ironworks (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Mortar Casting, at the Regent s-Canal Ironworks)

Englands Preparations for Emergencies, forging Big Guns at Woolwich (engraving)
1605546 Englands Preparations for Emergencies, forging Big Guns at Woolwich (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Englands Preparations for Emergencies)

Melting the Metal for the Bronze Sphinx to be placed on the Thames Embankment (engraving)
1590344 Melting the Metal for the Bronze Sphinx to be placed on the Thames Embankment (engraving) by Paget, Walter (1863-1935); Private Collection; (add.info)

John Page, Albion Iron Foundry, trade card (engraving)
731530 John Page, Albion Iron Foundry, trade card (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: John Page, Albion Iron Foundry)

Casting one of the plates for the great steam hammer at Woolwich (engraving)
603831 Casting one of the plates for the great steam hammer at Woolwich (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Armstrong Gun (engraving)
1620266 Armstrong Gun (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Armstrong Gun. Illustration for The Illustrated London News, 5 April 1862)

The Village Blacksmith, 1918 (w / c on paper)
2601933 The Village Blacksmith, 1918 (w/c on paper) by Tozer, Henry Spernon (c.1870-1940); Private Collection; Bourne Gallery, Reigate, Surrey; English, out of copyright

Iron foundries of Le Creusot, France (engraving)
6001999 Iron foundries of Le Creusot, France (engraving) by French School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Iron foundries of Le Creusot, France)

Process of Rolling Armour-Plates for Her Majestys Ships at the Atlas Steelworks, Sheffield (engraving)
1619771 Process of Rolling Armour-Plates for Her Majestys Ships at the Atlas Steelworks, Sheffield (engraving) by English School

Royal Visit to Sheffield, casting a Steel Ingot at Messers Firth and Sons Factory (engraving)
1621279 Royal Visit to Sheffield, casting a Steel Ingot at Messers Firth and Sons Factory (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Royal Visit to Sheffield)

Progress of the International Exhibition Building, the Forge (engraving)
1620146 Progress of the International Exhibition Building, the Forge (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Progress of the International Exhibition Building)

An Ironworks by Moonlight (oil on canvas)
2604199 An Ironworks by Moonlight (oil on canvas) by Pether, Sebastian (1790-1844); Bourne Gallery, Reigate, Surrey, UK; English, out of copyright

"Closing the Link, "now on Exhibition at the Royal Academy (litho)
1599013 " Closing the Link, " now on Exhibition at the Royal Academy (litho) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: " Closing the Link)

Chain-Cables (engraving)
1601881 Chain-Cables (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Chain-Cables. Illustration for The Illustrated London News, 6 January 1855)

Casting a Cylinder for the New Albert Bridge at Chelsea (engraving)
1613466 Casting a Cylinder for the New Albert Bridge at Chelsea (engraving) by Robinson, Charles (1840-81); Private Collection; (add.info.: Casting a Cylinder for the New Albert Bridge at Chelsea)

Stephensons Locomotive Manufactory at Newcastle-on-Tyne (engraving)
1613289 Stephensons Locomotive Manufactory at Newcastle-on-Tyne (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Stephensons Locomotive Manufactory at Newcastle-on-Tyne)

Recasting the Great Bell for the Clock Tower, New Houses of Parliament (engraving)
1609484 Recasting the Great Bell for the Clock Tower, New Houses of Parliament (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Cylinder of the Great Hydraulic Press used for raising the Tubes of the Britannia Bridge (engraving)
1102175 Cylinder of the Great Hydraulic Press used for raising the Tubes of the Britannia Bridge (engraving) by Read, Samuel (1816-83); Private Collection; (add.info)

Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield 1871
Various scene inside the government-owned rifle factory, Royal Small-Arms Factory, Enfield. Date: 1871

Low Moor - Ironworks 1856
Exterior of the Ironworks foundry in West Yorkshire. Date: 1856

Poughkeepsie, and its Founderies at Night, 1874. Creator: Harry Fenn
Poughkeepsie, and its Founderies at Night, 1874. Industrial scene and panorama of the city of Poughkeepsie on the Hudson River in New York State, USA

The Black Country Scene
The sky at night is lit up by the foundries, furnaces and factories of the Black Country - the region around Wolverhampton and Dudley in the west midlands of England

Mrs Violet Nixon works in a Yorkshire Foundry metal industry September 1947

Sheffield steel men
From an original at Sheffield Libraries: u07976

Steel foundry, 1919
This scene shows the furnace being tapped in the steel foundry at the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railways (LYR) Horwich works in August 1919

Vieille Montagne zinc company. Mines, works and foundries in France and Belgium

An Iron Foundry
The interior of one of the principal iron foundries in Colebrookdale, Shropshire Date: 1827

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Foundries have long been the heart and soul of industrial cities, like Sheffield in Yorkshire. The Firth Brown 5 ton steam hammer stands tall at the junction of Savile Street and Sutherland Street in Attercliffe, a testament to the power and craftsmanship that once resided within these walls. In the Don Valley, a steel-making plant emerged, shaping not only metal but also the destiny of Sheffield. The city became synonymous with quality steel production, earning its people the title of "Sheffield steel men. " Visitors flocked to witness marvels like the Bessemer Steel Process at John Brown and Co foundry in 1889. Hand-coloured engravings captured this momentous event for posterity. Across England, other foundries played their part in history. At Woolwich Arsenal, skilled workers welded coils for Armstrong Guns during times of conflict. Maudslay and Company's Foundry casted a monster cylinder for Her Majesty's Armour-Plated Frigate Agincourt – an impressive feat indeed. Even iconic landmarks owe their existence to foundries' artistry. Norton in Stockton-on-Tees witnessed the casting of Big Ben's bell for Westminster Palace - an engraving immortalizing this significant event exists today. Toning it meticulously was another task altogether; artists captured this delicate process on canvas. Beyond England's borders lies Guise's Familistery - a visionary creation by Jean-Baptiste Andre Godin himself. This utopian community thrived thanks to his innovative ideas brought to life within his own foundry. The sheer scale of some castings is awe-inspiring; one cannot help but be amazed by images depicting tremendous casts or large cylinders being created at places like Canal Ironworks in Poplar or Midland Works in Sheffield where monster anvils were forged for Whitworth Guns and can more than just factories; they are crucibles where raw materials transform into objects that shape our world.