Dear list,
Can anyone help me with what is probably a very elementary problem about
engine houses? If there are no visible signs of a stack or external boiler
house on an otherwise intact structure, can I assume that the boiler was
internal and some alternative system for disposing of fumes was used? The
buildings in question are at the Buckingham mines in Somerset and were built
c. 1820. Both are of the same design, the engine having been moved from one
to the other. The engine in question was a Boulton and Watt 47-inch
cylinder. Whether this was a genuine Boulton and Watt in which case I should
think it was second hand by that time or just following Boulton and Watt's
design is not clear. Other characteristic features are tall plug doors with
timber lintels, which must have considerably weakened the bob walls, and no
visible cylinder loading.
I have so far drawn a blank from the 'usual sources' and have been unable to
trace any previous work done on the site though someone must have looked at
them before.
Any help gratefully received.
Phil Newman
(English Heritage, Exeter)
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