Tyne Yard, on the outskirts of Newcastle was once one of the largest railway yards in the country. A decline in the railway freight system meant the yard was drastically downsized. This signal box controlled the yard and much of the nearby mainline. Electrification and re-signalling of the mainline in the 1980s finally meant that this huge signal box was no longer required.
In 1897, B.J. Forder and Son opened a Fletton brickworks at Wootton Pillinge (later to be called Stewartby). The company later merged with several other companies, the main one being the London Brick Company (which had been founded in 1889). By 1936 the London Brick Company and was recognised as the largest brickworks in the world employing 2,000 and manufactured over 500 million bricks per year. In 1984, the London Brick Company was taken over by Hanson. In 2005 there were just 230 people employed at the Stewartby brickworks, and only 2 kilns and 3 chimneys in use, producing a total of 135 millions bricks a year.
More than £1 million was spent on Stewartby Brickworks in 2005-7 in an attempt to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions. This attempt was unsuccessful and the brickworks finally closed in February 2008.
If you want to find out more, a very comprehensive website about the brickworks can be found here.
Six months after closure, the site remains in fabulous condition. The yard is full of new bricks awaiting shipment.
Another quick round up ROC posts that I’ve recently visited.
ROC posts were small underground observation posts to monitor nuclear fallout during the Cold War. Around 1600 were built, but many have since been demolished/filled in/flooded. Some remain intact, but welded shut. And some are open..
Barrow Gurney Hospital closed in 2006 and had the dubious honour of being the dirtiest hospital in the country. I can’t even begin to write an introduction that details this location’s history. If you are interested, please check out this excellent write up on Forlorn Britain.
Barrow Hospital occupies a huge, foresty site. Unfortunately time was against us, so we only saw a few buildings…
Butleigh Hospital is situated in a small village close to Glastonbury. It was built in 1882 and closed in 2005.
I have no external pictures, but one from 1955 can be found at the Francis Frith collection.
Tone Vale Hospital was built in 1897 and closed in 1995. This is now pretty much totally converted into homes, and a few leisure services.
The main recreation hall is really the only derelict piece of interest left. Situated bang in the middle of the development, it contains a curious selection of junk – presumably from people now living in the converted parts…
The Odeon cinema in Ipswich was the town’s first multiplex when it opened in 1991. A huge rival Multiplex opened on the edge of Ipswich in 1998. The popularity of the new cinema led to the demise of the Odeon, and it closed its doors for the final time in August 2005.
The day after our visit, work was due to begin on converting it into a nightclub, bowling alley and restaurant complex – the lobby was full of new bar equipment and fittings. Over a year later, the conversion hasn’t happened – developers pulled the plug on the conversion. The cinema, again, remains empty awaiting a buyer..
Hiding deep within the Norfolk countryside is a small abandoned farm-food processing plant. Formerly operated by BOCM Pauls, it closed in 1996. As with most places I visit, there are plans to build on the site, but I doubt anything will happen for ages, if at all…
Being closed for 12 years + tons of pigeons + pig food remnants everywhere + hot summery day = grossest explore ever.
Silverlands House was built in the 1800s and has had a rather interesting history. It was a private home, an actors orphanage and a nurse training school. The training school finally closed in the 1990s.
In 2001 there were plans to turn it into a clinic for convicted paedophiles. Needless to say, local residents protested against it, what-with it being so close to local schools. During the protests, the house received a £3million refit for it’s new role. But in 2002 the protests paid off and Parliament decided to end the conversion. It has remained empty since then…
Morlands was Glastonbury’s major industry – specialising in stuff made from sheep – like gloves, shoes, flying jackets etc.
In recent years, the huge 31 acre site has slowly been demolished leaving just a few buildings. There are plans afoot to redevelop the site
Out of the four remaining buildings, two of them were accessible…
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