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Bell Lane, ST. HELENS, WA9 4BD

Follow the track to Dream

This cross compound steam engine driving an air compressor was built by Walker Brothers of Wigan in 1912 and was good for 5000 cu feet per minute. Through the archway is the running 10,000 cu feet per minute compressor by the same firm in 1943. This latter was heavily loaded and was to suffer a catastrophic failure a few months later. This smaller engine is now languishing in the long since closed Chatterley Whitfield mining museum and is a unique survivor that is no longer on public view. Sutton Manor was a fantastic and very friendly site back in the 1980s and was home to the last working steam winder in the UK that was stopped in 1991.

Compressed air was safe to use underground and many collieries once had big compressor plants. Sutton Manor was one such colliery and in 1980 had two reciprocating steam compressors and a motor driven compressor. This huge machine was the mainstay of the compressor plant and was most impressive despite the enclosed crosshead guides and crank cases. It was built by Walker Bros, Wigan in 1943. The cylinders were 27" & 53" bores x 48" stroke and it was 520 horsepower. Unfortunately, later that year it suffered a catastrophic failure one Saturday evening and never worked again. Fortunately, nobody was injured or worse. Here is some of the wreckage Image

Compressed air was safe to use underground and many collieries once had big compressor plants. Sutton Manor was one such colliery and in 1980 had two reciprocating steam compressors and a motor driven compressor. This huge machine was the mainstay of the compressor plant and was most impressive despite the enclosed crosshead guides and crank cases. It was built by Walker Bros, Wigan in 1943. The cylinders were 27" & 53" bores x 48" stroke and it was 520 horsepower. Unfortunately, later that year it suffered a catastrophic failure one Saturday evening and never worked again. Fortunately, nobody was injured or worse.

This is a Fraser & Chalmers horizontal cross compound winding engine built in 1907, stopped in 1986 and removed to Australia for preservation in 1988. It was quite a large example and relatively rare as a cross compound. The high pressure is on the right and the low pressure on the left. The big 'drum' on top of the cylinder contains a throttle valve. The valve gear is Corliss. The vertical object in front of the drum is the reversing engine.

This was the standby ventilating plant and consisted of a Walker 'Indestructible Fan' Image and this rope drive horizontal cross compound steam engine by Walker Bros of Wigan. It was built in 1910 and retired in 1986, being removed to Trencherfield Mill, Wigan. It is currently in store and no longer on display. It was good for up to 520 horsepower at 102 rpm. The flywheel was 16' diameter. I was fortunate to see this running one weekend when the main fan was down for maintenance.

This was the smaller of the two compressors, being rated at 5000 cubic feet per minute and built by Walker Brothers of Wigan in 1912. It was later re-erected at the now closed Chatterley Whitfield Mining Museum.

This is a photograph of some of the pieces of the dismantled '10,000' compressor after it had suffered a catastrophic failure. A crosshead cotter fell out and the steam and air pistons on the high pressure side came out of the rear covers. Nobody was hurt, fortunately. The machine in happier days is seen here - Image The building behind it houses the water tube boiler of the slurry utilisation plant. This more modern boiler was demolished before the pit closed.

On Jubits Lane.