29:
493:
249:, rather than distributing money to shareholders. As a result it relied less on loans to survive business cycles and had lower interest rates when it did borrow. He also provided workers with schools, churches, a park, hospital, and other facilities. He died in 1895. The company's share of the British steel market reached a peak of 7.1% in 1894, falling to 4.2% by 1910. Business historians H.W. Richardson and J.M. Bass praised Jenkins's business judgement and choice of managers.
1161:
484:, at a time when iron, coal and shipbuilding were all in steady decline in Britain. By this time British Steel had grown complacent, was running below capacity and was using obsolete technology. Raw material costs for coal and oil were rising and it lacked capital for new manufacturing equipment. Government policy to keep employment artificially high increased the organisation's difficulties.
237:
1267:
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244:
William
Jenkins was Consett Iron Company's general manager from 1869 to 1894. Under his leadership, the company experienced sustained profit for the first time, despite severe fluctuations in market conditions, such as the industrial depression that took place from the late 1870s to the early 1890s.
429:
William
Jenkins was succeeded by the manager under him, George Ainsworth, who served as general manager from 1851 until his death in 1894. The company initially remained in profit, but its equipment and technology was not updated due to the lack of available space at Consett; a move was considered
207:
almost a million pounds. It was put up for sale, but an attempted sale to the newly formed
Derwent and Consett Iron Company fell through. On 4 April 1864, after operating for several years under the threat of bankruptcy, a new Consett Iron Company Ltd was formed with capital of £400,000. This was
416:
capable of making around 12,000 bricks per week. The estate had grown to roughly 2,700 workers' cottages. The company ran a 16-bed infirmary to treat injured workers. The 6,000 workers were paid an average of £5.33 a month. The company continually invested in modern equipment, such as a
384:, for rails. As a result, production at Consett fell by a third. The company switched production to iron plates, demand for which was rising rapidly for shipbuilding. In 1882, Consett Iron Company began to switch production again, this time to steel plates for
503:
Amidst intense debate and large demonstrations by workers and sympathizers, Consett Steel Works was closed in 1980. Around 3,000 to 4,000 workers lost their jobs, resulting in an unemployment rate of 35% in
Consett, twice the national average at the time.
396:
to convert pig iron to steel by burning off excess carbon. The first
Siemens furnaces at Consett came into production in 1883. In 1887 the company began to produce steel in a variety of cross-sections, such as angle (L-section) steel, rolled joists and
433:
By 1924, the company had share capital of £3,500,000 (£185 million in 2013 terms); it had also issued £1,500,000 (£74 million in 2013 terms) in debenture stock in May 1922. In 1938, the company helped to finance the founding of the New
28:
473:, along with all of Britain's steelworks. The Consett steelworks was privatised in 1955, and a new steel plate mill was opened in 1961 to supply the shipbuilding industry. About 6,000 workers were employed at the works at that time.
1370:
492:
1330:
570:, the Derwent Iron Company submitted the plans to the S&DR, who agreed to the extension as long as the Derwent Iron Company leased the entire southern section of the former S&TR to them. The
1345:
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507:
The sky over
Consett, which had long been famous for its thick haze of red iron oxide dust thrown up by the steelworks, cleared as did the cloud of steam typically found around the tall
1355:
933:
566:
station, to provide a southern shipping route for their lime and iron products, and to give access to more ironstone. Having obtained an extension of their right of way from the
1350:
1004:
184:
around the town. The best local ironstone (with the highest iron content) was exhausted soon after, so the company arranged for extensions to the local railways, such as the
1380:
522:, made with materials from the site, recall past industry. Employment gradually returned to the area in the following decade, with a more diversified industrial base.
692:
Cleveland ironstone. Outline of the main or thick stratified bed, its discovery, application, and results, in connection with the iron-works in the north of
England
137:
in the United
Kingdom. The company owned coal mines and limestone quarries, and manufactured iron and steel. It was registered on 4 April 1864 as successor to the
1385:
1325:
574:
to
Carrhouse section passed into the possession of the S&DR on 1 January 1845, with the completed 10 miles (16 km) Weardale Extension Railway from the
1320:
470:
153:
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for shipbuilding. For this purpose it created the Angle Mills on a sixteen-acre site, able to produce 1,500 tons of angles, bars and girders per week.
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236:
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562:. As a result, the Derwent Iron Company proposed an extension from Crook to the foot of the Meeting Slacks incline, which latter became
152:, when British coal companies were nationalised in 1947. The Consett Iron Company itself was nationalised in 1951, becoming part of the
404:
By 1889, the Angle Mills site was the largest steel plate factory in the world. In 1892, in addition to steelmaking, the company had a
1340:
880:
213:
551:
185:
217:
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189:
904:
1087:
770:
156:. It was denationalised shortly afterwards, then renationalised in 1967. The Consett Iron Company was absorbed into
555:
563:
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481:
157:
97:
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but rejected. The company did not switch to electrical power as others had and its technology became obsolete.
1116:
172:
In 1840 a group of local businessmen led by
Jonathan Richardson set up the first of several iron companies in
228:
and 50,000 tons of finished iron per year. It also owned a thousand workers' cottages and 500 acres of land.
571:
695:
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divided into 40,000 shares priced initially at £10 each, with J. Priestman as managing director. Two local
389:
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188:. These allowed it to access new sources of ironstone, including, from 1851 onwards, ore from the
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Deviating from the Path of Safety: The Rise and Fall of a Nineteenth Century Quaker Meeting
1229:
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1162:"First they shut the Consett works and then came recession but ... The steel remains"
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454:
1213:. Business History, Vol. 7, Issue 2, 1965. Pages 71–93. DOI: 10.1080/00076797400000015.
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The company's seven collieries and various coke ovens came into the ownership of the
134:
67:
959:
Blair, Alasdair M. (Winter 1997). "The British iron and steel industry since 1945".
447:
443:
418:
385:
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413:
83:
694:. North of England Institute of Mining Engineers. p. 168. Archived from
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using lower quality iron ore. It employed about 12,000 workers at that time.
1230:
The Consett Iron Company Limited: a case study in Victorian business history
579:
542:
from the company to enable it to access new sources of ironstone. After the
409:
181:
1243:
Garside, W. R. "Consett Iron, 1840–1980: a Study in Industrial Location";
499:
Stainless steel sculpture beside the coast-to-coast (C2C) path at Consett.
745:
591:
This corresponds to a purchasing power of £98 million in 2013, using the
558:
to Crook, which opened on 8 November 1843, from a junction on its leased
225:
118:
514:
Almost all traces of the Consett steelworks have been removed. Only the
405:
398:
173:
130:
63:
511:
and chimneys. Some Consett steel workers took part in the demolition.
380:
Around 1876, railways around the world began to use steel, instead of
435:
461:. In 1951, the rest of the Consett Iron Company was nationalised by
1200:. Mawson, Swan and Morgan, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1892. Reprinted as
920:
Buried 21 January 1920, Blackhill Cemetery, Consett, County Durham.
491:
446:
of 1936. The Consett Iron Company continued production during the
235:
193:
676:
Page nos refer to online pages e.g. '2' means 'Early History'.
538:
In 1842 the company bought the southern section of the former
412:) capable of making 150 tons of iron castings per week, and a
240:
William Jenkins (1825–1895), general manager from 1869 to 1894
905:"National Burial Index for England & Wales Transcription"
476:
Consett Steel Works was renationalised in 1967, this time by
245:
The company retained what at the time were large amounts of
224:. The company had the capacity to produce 80,000 tons of
1371:
Companies formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange
453:
In 1947 all of Consett Iron Company's coal mines were
220:, were among the directors. It became the owner of 18
1331:
Defunct manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom
1210:
The Profitability of Consett Iron Company Before 1914
251:
1346:
Former nationalised industries of the United Kingdom
114:
104:
93:
81:
73:
59:
51:
43:
35:
164:. British Steel Consett Works was closed in 1980.
982:"Nation on Film: Steel Towns – from Boom to Bust"
421:(a powerful air pump) that was acquired in 1893.
180:), the Derwent Iron Company, to quarry and smelt
928:
926:
674:. Newcastle on Tyne: Mawson, Swan, & Morgan.
1356:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1980
253:Varying profitability at Consett Iron Company
203:By 1857, Consett Iron Company owed the failed
160:in 1967, and the location became known as the
1294:– The National Archives, 1951–53, Ref BE 2/61
1088:"Local History: Consett heritage in pictures"
1005:"Consett remembers closure of its steelworks"
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1066:Focus on Consett meltdown as steelworks shut
442:which had collapsed in 1933, leading to the
21:
1351:Manufacturing companies established in 1864
471:Iron and Steel Corporation of Great Britain
154:Iron and Steel Corporation of Great Britain
141:Ltd. This in turn was the successor to the
552:Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR)
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934:"Bank of England's inflation calculator"
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129:was an industrial business based in the
1288:– Science & Society Picture Library
608:
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205:Northumberland and Durham District Bank
1305:Timeline History of Consett Iron Works
1254:. Quaker Studies. 8:1, p. 68-88 .
1233:, PhD rhesis, Durham University, 1973.
976:
974:
593:Bank of England's inflation calculator
119:http://www.dmm.org.uk/company/c002.htm
1386:British companies established in 1864
1326:Steel companies of the United Kingdom
1197:Description of the Consett Iron Works
740:
738:
671:Description of the Consett Iron Works
440:Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company
7:
961:Journal of European Economic History
16:Industrial business based in England
1321:Ironworks and steelworks in England
1219:Business History: Selected Readings
457:, coming under the control of the
139:Derwent & Consett Iron Company
14:
1366:1980 disestablishments in England
1336:Companies based in County Durham
1265:
1160:Bowen, David (16 January 1994).
1039:. Faber and Faber. p. 192.
1003:Wood, Kerry (19 February 2010).
469:government into the short-lived
1207:Richardson, H. W., Bass, J. M.
1115:. NorthEastLife. Archived from
688:"NEIMME Transactions, Volume 5"
186:Stockton and Darlington Railway
1361:1864 establishments in England
1060:Marshall, Ray (17 June 2009).
859:Richardson and Bass, page 157.
1:
1250:O'Donnell, Elizabeth (2003).
875:. Ad Publishing. p. 77.
823:"William Jenkins (1825-1895)"
232:Success under William Jenkins
190:Cleveland Ironstone Formation
1037:County Durham (Shell Guides)
127:The Consett Iron Company Ltd
721:"Stanhope and Tyne Railway"
632:. Grace's Guide. 4 May 2012
438:Steel Company from the old
1402:
1202:Consett Iron Works in 1893
872:Consett Iron Works in 1893
556:Weardale Extension Railway
554:began construction of the
869:Jenkins, William (2008).
668:Jenkins, William (1892).
540:Stanhope and Tyne Railway
482:British Steel Corporation
264:Profit on Capital %
158:British Steel Corporation
98:British Steel Corporation
26:
1341:History of County Durham
1292:Consett Iron Company Ltd
1139:"Photographs of Consett"
1113:"Consett, County Durham"
1025:. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
480:'s government, into the
408:(a mile from Consett at
1062:"Remember When Stories"
1035:Thorold, Henry (1980).
777:. The National Archives
582:opening on 16 May 1845.
1216:in Tucker, Kenneth A.
1204:. Ad Publishing, 2008.
746:"Consett Iron Co. Ltd"
546:constructed a line to
500:
390:Siemens-Martin process
241:
1307:– Challenging History
812:Kenneth Tucker, 1977.
808:Bass and Richardson,
771:"Consett Iron Co Ltd"
686:Marley, John (1856).
495:
239:
210:members of parliament
750:Durham Mining Museum
576:Wear Valley Junction
394:open hearth furnaces
143:Derwent Iron Company
22:Consett Iron Company
1068:. Evening Chronicle
1023:Consett Steel Works
1009:chroniclelive.co.uk
903:Ainsworth, George.
544:West Durham Railway
459:National Coal Board
254:
162:Consett Steel Works
150:National Coal Board
145:, founded in 1840.
106:Number of employees
89:£673 million (1900)
23:
1222:, Routledge, 1977.
1194:Jenkins, William.
1119:on 24 January 2013
723:. Disused Stations
501:
252:
242:
1247:; 1 October 1991.
1090:. BBC. March 2008
1046:978-0-571-11640-9
984:. BBC. April 2004
940:on 6 October 2014
630:"Consett Iron Co"
425:Twentieth century
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261:Net Profit £'000s
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967:(3): 571–81.
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587:
534:
519:
515:
513:
506:
502:
496:
475:
455:nationalised
452:
444:Jarrow March
432:
428:
419:Roots blower
403:
392:. This uses
386:shipbuilding
379:
243:
202:
171:
161:
147:
142:
138:
126:
125:
60:Headquarters
18:
518:sculptures
110:6000 (1892)
1315:Categories
1299:Children's
1141:. Railscot
944:17 October
914:20 October
781:13 October
755:13 October
603:References
520:(pictured)
414:brickworks
388:using the
84:Net income
39:Ironmaking
1176:26 August
829:5 January
775:Discovery
580:Waskerley
564:Waskerley
410:Crookhall
198:Cleveland
182:ironstone
727:18 March
572:Stanhope
226:pig iron
133:area of
74:Products
36:Industry
1376:Consett
1280:General
1189:Sources
888:2 April
488:Closure
406:foundry
399:girders
247:capital
174:Consett
131:Consett
115:Website
64:Consett
52:Defunct
44:Founded
1145:14 May
1123:15 May
1094:14 May
1072:15 May
1043:
988:14 May
879:
702:14 May
636:14 May
550:, the
467:Labour
436:Jarrow
100:(1967)
548:Crook
526:Notes
374:12.4
363:13.6
352:38.7
330:38.6
308:15.6
297:33.7
286:24.5
194:Eston
192:near
94:Owner
1178:2017
1147:2012
1125:2012
1096:2012
1074:2012
1041:ISBN
990:2012
946:2014
916:2014
890:2012
877:ISBN
831:2021
783:2014
757:2014
729:2013
704:2012
638:2012
368:1910
357:1905
346:1900
341:8.6
335:1895
324:1890
319:8.6
313:1885
302:1880
291:1875
280:1870
269:1865
258:Year
216:and
55:1980
47:1864
578:to
465:'s
371:221
360:245
349:673
338:115
327:366
305:104
294:215
283:102
275:12
1317::
1164:.
1104:^
1064:.
1007:.
973:^
965:26
963:.
925:^
907:.
839:^
810:in
791:^
773:.
748:.
737:^
712:^
690:.
646:^
611:^
316:60
272:39
212:,
200:.
196:,
66:,
1180:.
1149:.
1127:.
1098:.
1076:.
1049:.
1011:.
992:.
948:.
918:.
892:.
833:.
785:.
759:.
731:.
706:.
640:.
595:.
176:(
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