Old Robey works, Lincoln from old railway bed off Canwick Road

Image: © Jo and Steve Turner Taken: 16 Nov 1989

Along the southern edge of Jackson’s site (and Robey’s after the railway cut it off) are a row of twelve gable ends. All are apparently shown on the 1886-1889 OS map and all probably existed by 1882. The first bay on the Canwick road side is parallel to the road and shows indications of being raised in height by 8 or 10 brick courses (2ft?). The southern end of this bay for the reasons about to be explained has probably been truncated and rebuilt to align with the eleven remaining bays that align to the southern boundary. The 6.75 acres previously part of the Cow Paddle inside the Lincoln and Honington Branch Line was almost certainly purchased by Robey’s in 1869-70 but they will have known that it was to be cut off by the avoiding line from 1879 if not before. I suspect therefore the Canwick Road end bay was probably early 1856-64 date and the remaining bays 1879 to 1886. A planning application exists for ‘extensions’ in 1881. The second bay from the west, due to the differing alignment tapers off into the western most bay. Aside from the five eastern bays that abut the larger east/west bays all the gable walls to the north also appear largely original. The last five bays were truncated by the east/west bay built 1918-1948. All fenestration appears to have been modified or bricked up. A 1916 picture of aircraft wing production shows a bay with monitor roof as two of the bays in the centre of this collection.

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