The Unofficial
Website
Some of the Old Survivors
Over time things change: towns and villages that were once busy
centres of industry eg. the production of wool, spinning, weaving and the leather trade are now quiet much sought after residential backwaters. Conversely some sleepy towns and villages
become hives of industry. I'm not sure Rotherham fits into either of these scenarios. For a long time the town and indeed the area that makes up the borough of Rotherham were largely
agricultural with pockets of small scale industry.
In Roman times there is scant evidence of iron ore mining, smelting and glass manufacture. By the Middle Ages there was mining and iron production at Kimberworth. In this area the seams of iron ore and coal are found together and were mined from bell pits or shallow shafts. The ore was smelted using charcoal, but it seems likely that the coal was utilsed for heating purposes.
Coal Mining
The remains of bell pits can be found in many parts of the borough and by Tudor Times many homes in the borough were heated by coal. Later came shallow pits, adits, deep mines, huge opencast areas excavated by draglines. In the Twentyfirst Century the remains of all this activity still scar many parts of Rotherham with slag heaps and contaminated ponds, although there has been much work done opencasting and reclaiming some of these areas.
The last survivor of the coal mining trade in Rotherham is Maltby Colliery which is situated on the Tickhill Road just to the east of the township of Maltby, about 12 kilometers from Rotherham. The first shafts were sunk in 1907 and production began in 1911. The colliery was taken over by Hargreaves Services in 2007. Production is likely to cease by 2015.
Confectionery
Confectionery has been made in Rotherham since at least 1853. The present day survivor is the KP Nut factory on the Eastwood Trading Estate.
Flour Milling
A flour mill was first recorded in Rotherham in the Domesday Book in 1086 but is likely to have existed long before that time. The present day survivor is Rank Hovis Limited who produce all types of flour at the Town Mills.
The Glass Industry
From about 1751 John Wright was in business at Greasbrough in partnership with others in the manufacturing of glass. In 1783 the business was owned by William Beatson, and in various partnerships existed as a family business known latterly as Beatson, Clark and Co. Ltd, which became a public company in 1961. The family connection has now ceased and the company is presently part of the Newship Group.
The Iron & Steel Industry
The production of iron and steel, and the manufacture of goods using the metals has taken place in Rotherham since the Sixteenth Century. Though the Seventeenth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth and for much of the Twentieth Centuries the industry, despite occasional ups and downs, was constantly expanding and employed thousands of men. During the latter part of the Twentieth Century there were a variety of reasons but many of the iron and steel producers and manufacturers closed down. Steel Producers that remain in the Twentyfirst Century are Aldwarke Steel and Brinsworth Strip Mill both of which produce specialist steels. From 2007 these have become part of the Indian steel group Tata.
In addition to these there are Iron & Steel Merchants, Founders & Finishers, Metal Cutters & Shearers, Metal Stamping and Forging Companies, Pipes & Fittings Metal, Profile Cutting, Sheet Metal Work, Steel Erectors, Steel Fabricators and Steel Stockholders far too numerous to mention. A visit to Yell will put you in touch with them.
Short histories of the various trades and industries that once prospered in Rotherham can be read onsite at The History of Rotherham >> Other History Pages >> The History of Trade & Industry in Rotherham.
Please visit Business in Rotherham >> Rotherham Businesses on the Web for links to those old survivors which have a web presence.