John Player

1866.

John Player (1808-1870).

In the mid-19th century, English entrepreneur John Player founded Hütten- und Walzwerk Albion, (Albion Metallurgical Works), which manufactured Schwarzblech (blackplate). After bankruptcy in 1856, the plant was taken over by Buderus in 1857 and operated under the name Schwarz- und Weißblechwerk Germania (black and tinplate plant Germania) until it was closed in 1883. In 1918, the Gockel-Werke was established on the site, building railway carriages.

In February 1850, John Player applied to the Koblenz district government for permission to build an ironworks in Neuwied. It took until 21 June 1851 for the approval to be granted. For more information, see here.

Opened a tinplate works in Neuwied, Germany, in 1851, called it Albion and the company ceased to exist in 1856.

1859 Residing in Middlesbrough

1859 'BOILER EXPLOSIONS.

Sir, - Some of the remarks made by the President of the Manchester Association for the Prevention of Steam Boiler Explosions, reportedin THE ENGINEER of the 21st inst., induce me again to send you a few observations, w1th a v1ew of endeavouring to throw some light on a poss1ble cause of explosion from collapse, which I think in some instances arises from the unequal corrosion of the tube by galvanic action; the strength of which in course of time, becomes inadequate to withstand the pressure for which it was intended, and at last it gives way.
About the year 1831 I bought an old locomotive (I believe the first bu1lt in Wales), and set it up to pump water from a well in my father's factory, a well which had been sunk into the gravel near a tidal river. The water was brack1sh, and contained a considerable quantity of oxide of iron, but not much salt; after a time the tube in the boiler, of about 12 in. diameter, leaked so much that it was replaced by a new one, which was carried through the boiler from end to end, and the shell set in brickwork, like a Cornish boiler. This new tube was, like the old one, corroding very fast on the top side only, in small semi-globular p1ts of about 5/8 in. diameter and perfectly circular, as if bored out. The peculiarity of the corrosion which was going on in the bo1ler induced me to think it proceeded from some galvanic action, and I placed an ingot of zinc, 2 in. thick, on the tube; this perfectly succeeded in preventing the corrosion from proceeding further. The zinc in three or four months became a brown ox!de, and could be crumbled to powder. Zinc was afterwards continually used to prevent corrosion of the tube. The fact that the upper part of the tube only corroded shows that tubes may in this way be weakened, and collapse in consequence.'
JOHN PLAYER, C.E
Miiddlesbro'-on-Tees, January 25, 1859.

1859 'PUDDLED STEEL.
Sir,-The article on "Puddled Steel" in The Engineer of the 8th inst., and the late specifications of three patents for manufacturing that article, induced me to send you a few remarks, which may perhaps contribute to make the properties of puddled steel better known than at present. In the first place I will ask- What is puddled steel? Secondly, How is it made? And, thirdly, Where is it made? And reply to these questions by stating, first, that puddled steel (so called) is a strong malleable iron, with a fine granular fracture, containing a greater percentage of carbon than soft malleable iron of a fibrous fracture . Secondly, puddled steel is made by smelting pig iron in a puddling furnace with a slag composed of oxide of iron , silex, and other ingredients; and by boiling and stirring it, the impurities are washed out, until the thus purified iron agglutinates under the slag, at which time it is so- called puddled steel; if, however, the agglutinated ass is raised above the slag and remain s exposed to the flame, only for a few minutes, it loses that percentage of carbon which causes it to be called steel, and it becomes mal eable iron. Thirdly, puddled stee l was, I believe, first made above twenty years ago, by the celebrated steel-maker, Solley, from Indian charcoal pig and hematite pig iron, by using in the slag both manganese, common salt and clay - which invention was patented by Dr. Schafhautl, of ruunich, and sold to Solley. The ores from which these irons were made , containing but little manganese and clay, required those ingredients to be added in the puddling furnace, and even then the change remained four to five hours, and even longer in the slag- bath before the necessary change was effected to produce steel. About ten or more years ago it was found in Westphalia that Prussian pig iron could be converted into steel without the use of manganese, clay, &c. ; and since that time the manufacture of puddled steel has gradually increased in Prussia and other German States, in Belgium and France, and last year was successfully brought out at the Mersey Iron Woks, Liverpool ; before which, without the public being generally aware, it had been made at Low Moor in large quantities for the Sheffield market. Among the many Prussian works at which steel is thus made, the Phoenix Company (who have above a million pounds sterling invested in their different establishments) make largely, and the men are ordered to puddle steel or iron just as it is required. At the works founded by our countryman , John Cockerell, at Seraing, six puddling furnaces are used to make steel ; and since they have commenced this branch of business, no other steel is used in the manufactory for fitters' tools or any other purpose. The puddled steel is, however, for the finer purposes melted into cast steel. Puddled steel is also made in France, and in Nassau at a large works I built in 1842, where, by the last accounts I received, only steel for railway-wheel tyres was puddled there; so that from the foregoing it may be seen that puddling pig iron into steel is an old-established operation. .... Middlesbro'-on-Tees, April 25th, 1859. JOHN PLAYER'

1860 'REMARKABLE ECONOMY IN THE USE OF FUEL. ….About the year 1840 Mr. Farler de Four took out a patent for puddling with the gas taken from the top of a blast furnace. I saw one of his furnaces at work in Wurtemburg in 1848; it worked very well occasionally, but not regularly…. In America, however, I think the greatest effect is produced by the proper combustion of the gas or smoke in a welding furnace. I visited the "Reading Steam Forge," in Pennsylvania, in 1857 , at which place the main shaft for the Adriatic had just been made: my informant stated it weighed 32 tons. The furnace in which this mass of iron had been welded was, when I saw it, heating an immense crank. Blast was supplied to the fire by large fan,....
JOHN PLAYER, Blast-furnace Manager.
Tees Side Iron Works, Milldlesbro'-on-Tees'

1862 John Player, Engineer, Norton, near Stockton-on-Tees.

1867/9 'In 1867 or 1868 John Player, of England, introduced his iron hot-blast stove into the United States. Mr. Player personally supervised the erection of the first of his stoves in this country at the anthracite furnace of J. B Moorhead & Co., at West Conshohocken, Pa.'

---

1871 Obituary

JOHN PLAYER was born at Elberton in Gloucestershire in 1808, and was educated at a private school in Wiltshire.

His first work as an engineer was the erection of the Gwendraeth Iron Works in Carmarthenshire, of which he was appointed manager in 1838. About this time he turned his attention to the introduction of anthracite coal into more general use as a fuel for blast furnaces and steam boilers ; and the furnace at the Gwendraeth Works was built in accordance with his plan for making iron with anthracite coal and cold blast. He also designed a steam boiler and blacksmith's forge for using the same fuel, both of which were in successful operation at the Gwendraeth Works.

In 1839 a steamer called the "Anthracite" was built and fitted with boilers on the same plan, and ran for some time on the Thames below London Bridge, attracting much notice in consequence of the absence of smoke.

In 1841 he was engaged to erect an ironworks at Hachenberg in the duchy of Nassau.

In 1846 he returned to England, and was engaged soon afterwards for a short time at the Bryn Amman Iron Works in Carmarthenshire. Subsequently he went to America and visited the ironworks in Pennsylvania ; and on his return he was engaged in building blast furnaces in the Middlesbrough district.

In 1866 he introduced some improvements in hot-blast stoves, in connection with which he was induced to go again to America, where the improved stoves have been very extensively adopted. He settled at Philadelphia in 1868, and at the time of his death was engaged in erecting iron furnaces in different parts of the United States.

His last invention was for the manufacture of a substance which he termed "mineral wool" from iron slag; it has the appearance of wool, and being incombustible and a non-conductor, is intended for casing high- pressure steam pipes and locomotive boilers, instead of hair felt. He died at Philadelphia of typhoid fever after a few days' illness on the 11th March 1870 at the age of sixty-two.

He became a Member of the Institution in 1862.

---

See Also

Loading...