Trent Iron Works

of Frodingham, near Scunthorpe

1859 William Henry and George Dawes, ironmasters, needed ore for their works at Milton and Elsecar, near Barnsley, and took trial quantities of the newly discovered Frodingham ironstone. The Dawes made an agreement with Rowland Winn of Appleby Hall to lease land at Appleby.

The Dawes built 3 furnaces for processing the ore on land east of Scunthorpe, the Trent Iron Works. These were the first processing operations in the area in modern times, soon followed by Frodingham Iron Co, Lincolnshire Iron Smelting Co, North Lincolnshire Iron Works and Redbourn Hill Iron and Coal Co.

1864 The initial charging of the forty foot high furnaces began on 20 January and continued until the 19 February. Precisely when the first iron was cast is not known as the entries in the furnace records are confused but by 25 March over 175 tons had been made, and by the middle of April regular shipments were being sent down to the Trent. The furnace drove badly and it was blown-out on 16 December 1864. Trent No. 3 furnace had been put to work in October; No. 2 was not put in until 1867.

1866 Made a steam hoist (without engine) for the Newark Castle Wharf. Invented by Mr. Nicholson

1869 Raw coal was used at the Trent Works at first although by 1869 they were using equal proportions of coal and coke.

1875 Two more furnaces were constructed, larger than the first three, being sixty feet high by eighteen feet in diameter. Like the earlier ones they were iron-cased and open-topped. They were blown-in about 1875, although precise dates are not available.

1878 William Henry Dawes died, leaving his estate to his widow Elizabeth. Investments made in building 2 furnaces at Frodingham.

1887 Elizabeth Dawes, carrying on business as Trent Iron Co, pig iron maker, at Trent Iron Works, Frodingham, Lincs, was in the Court of Bankruptcy; the estate was bankrupt, even though some creditors had proposed reconstruction

1887 Dawes became bankrupt; the Trent Iron Works passed to a Leeds solicitor

Later owners were Firth Brown and John Lysaght

1936 Appleby-Frodingham Steel Co absorbed the Trent Iron Works and demolished the plant.

See Also

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Sources of Information

• The Engineer of 16th March 1866 p208
• [1] History of Scunthorpe's iron extraction and refining.