RESTORATION work is to take place at a
world famous piece of South Yorkshire’s industrial heritage – after
the project received £425,000 of National Lottery funding.
The Newcomen Beam Engine at Elsecar is
viewed as one of the most important inventions of the industrial revolution,
heralding a breakthrough in the creation of mechanical power from steam.
The two-year restoration project, to be
run by Barnsley Council, will see the world-famous beam engine, shaft and
engine house restored to full working order.
Fiona Spiers, head of the Heritage
Lottery Fund for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “Currently, Elsecar
Heritage Centre attracts 225,000 people a year and the importance of its unique
industrial heritage is not as widely understood or as accessible to the public
as it could be.
“This project, in addition to
saving the Newcomen engine for future generations, will see greatly improved
interpretation at the site and activities for visitors in addition to training
and volunteer opportunities for people so they can get involved in protecting
this wonderful place.”
The engine, which pumped water out of
the Elsecar New Colliery from 1795 to 1923 and remained in working order until
the 1950s, is one of the top 10 key industrial sites on English
Heritage’s Heritage at Risk Register due to its ‘outstanding
importance to England’s industrial past’.
Barnsley Council leader Coun Stephen
Houghton said: “This is fantastic news for Elsecar and for Barnsley.
“We are proud of our rich
industrial heritage, of iron and coal production going back centuries. Elsecar,
with its ironworks, canal, railway and this important beam engine, has the
potential to be a first class visitor attraction.”
From: http://www.thestar.co.uk/community/industrial-heritage-saved-by-lotto-cash-1-4361330
South Yorkshire,
industrial heritage, Elsecar, Newcomen Beam Engine, Barnsley Council, Elsecar
New Colliery, Elsecar Heritage Centre, English Heritage, Heritage at Risk,
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