Debk Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Hi there I wonder if anyone on SF can help with a project for Gripple Ltd. We have just purchased a building at the bottom of Hawke Street (left hand side going down, with the entrance and offices off what is now Alfred Road). It lies behind the ROM building on Brightside Lane. We think it may have belonged to the English Steel Corporation and was once their West Machine Shop - it once extended from the boundary on Hawke Street back as far as Don Road, but around 1993 the front end was demolished and the whole building reclad in blue and re-roofed. The building is not shown on the OS map from 1905 - around that area was all housing at that time with a pub on the corner called the River Don Inn which opened in 1857 and closed in 1951. This map also shows that Alfred Road was originally below the building in question, but is now above it. Our problem is to try and find pictures of the outside of the original building as we would like to restore the building as original as possible. Pictures of the inside we have found on Picture Sheffield. Work is now starting on the renovation and therefore time is quite short. Many thanks and we look forward to hearing from you and whether anyone can help us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnpm Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I gave an answer to this question a few months ago either on this site or another Sheffield site. I showed a map on which was marked the site of the old ESC Hawke St Planer shop ( probably alternatively called West Machine Shop)which was entered from Hawke Street. ON the map below Hawke St Planer is teh roughly oblong building along Hawke St. I also mentioned another ESC building that ran parallel to Brightside Lane which I think ( but may be wrong) had steel coil stored at teh east end of it where a large door was. As far as I remember that had a brick base to its walls and then had opaque glazing around it from the middle of teh walls upwards. It was a more recent build that Hawke St Planer. I think This building is the much narrower one running along Alfred Road although I have to admit my recollection is that it didn't extend right up to Hawke St Was it you I reponded to? John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debk Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 Hi It was probably my colleague you replied to thank you. We do have some pics (not sure if they were the ones you sent I will check) and they will be most useful. That post was probably on Sheffield History forum. As I am a member of SF, I said I would post on here as most folk are usually really helpful. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepstox Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 Where to start. Okay, http://twitpic.com/1s8xxx/full will give you a map. This shows the bits of BSC that I worked in, BSC Hawke St. We called it the Black Hole of Calcutta. The weighbridge was 90t max but once the weighbridge broke at River Don works so they brought a 175t propellor blade casting over and it collapsed the whole weighbridge. The offices were small and pokey but suffice. Behind the export bay, where I ended up, was the dusty stockyard where we played cricket. All this political correctness crap today; the Pakistanis used to chalk up "PAKIS v ROW" on an ingot and we'd play a 5 day test match each week. The white lads were Rest of the World only because we had Radiac Roy from the Caribbean (Pye Bank actually). We'd paint the ball white but after an over it was rusty brown like everything else. We were deadly serious about cricket, the white guys played footy as well in the winter. There was fantastic comaradie. We all got on really well. Workwise: we skimmed and ground round bar of various sizes for Ford Halewood and Basildon amongst others. Even weight training bar for Entwistles of Oldham. We did a lot of export for the Klockner agency which bought steel for East Germany. Our main Haulier was Bonsalls and I became a good mate of George Bonsall R.I.P. My best mate down there was Brian Hicks, took his money and bought the Six Ringers in Leverington, then moved to Bradford to a pub and it is the last I heard of him. Help anybody??? I hope the map, crude as it is, helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnpm Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 From the view zepstox has shown, it looks as though the Hawke St Planer I knew ( West Machine shop) which was shown on the map I attached has been demolished & replaced by a series of narrow buildings parallel to Hawke St. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidorry Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Are these any help?(if it works)http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnpm Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Are these any help?(if it works)http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl Sorry - it doesn't work - asks for password etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepstox Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Are these any help?(if it works)http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl No, like John says. Or send 'em email to me and I'll do it. zepstox@gmail.com Put 'em on Twitpics or Photobucket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kidorry Posted May 30, 2010 Share Posted May 30, 2010 Maybe this one will work.http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=picturesheffield&keyval=sheff.refno=c01170 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debk Posted June 2, 2010 Author Share Posted June 2, 2010 The building Gripple have bought used to be Macalls Special Products before that English steel. Thanks for your input Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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