|
Holwell
Works received iron ore from Sewstern Quarry to the east of Asfordby.
Maurice Bailey began work there as an apprentice electrician in 1942.
He describes the process by which the iron was extracted.
 |
A quarry was
usually worked by two machines. A dragline machine stripped off
the over burden which is the soil and subsoil which overlaid the
iron ore bed. Sewstern was very fortunate they - had very shallow
working and the iron ore bed was never more that five to six feet
deep. The dragline machine stripped that off and put it over the
other side of the quarry where it was restored to farmland again.
The shovel machine which was a different type of machine actually
dug the iron ore and loaded it into the wagons on the railway at
the side and haulage at that time was by steam locomotive.
(Maurice
Bailey)
|
| |
Iron ore was transported
to Holwell by railway and placed in the top of the furnaces.
|
You know Holwell
was a bit behind the times, it was a bit archaic actually. The raw
material was loaded into barrows at the bottom of the furnace. Taken
to the top of the furnace in a hoist or lift and at the top of the
furnace another team of men pushed the barrow from the hoist to
the furnace and tip the material into the top of the furnace. Now
Stanton at that time and a lot of other furnace plants had got self-feeders.
So Holwell was as I say a little behind its time.
(Mervyn Hammond)
|
| |
|
