The Charles Taylor Foundry has been located in Commercial Road for many years . Using basic materials such as iron , steel , bronze ,wood , soil , bricks , sand , and a lot of skill , many Engineering masterpieces left this foundry . Sadly , the company ceased production in 2004 in its So Shields factory and moved it to South Korea .

The following article and photographs were kindly contributed by Harry Fitzimmons of South Shields

The work of an Admiralty Iron Founder Charles W Taylor ( 1890 – 1918 ) by Harry Fitzimmons

In 1890 Charles Taylor entered a partner ship with Nicholas J Wheetley. Wheetley , having traded for ten years previous as the Borough Foundry & Engineering . 1896 saw the company granted Admiralty Contractor status , the same year Charles Taylor was promoted to Managing Director .

By 1900 , Wheetley’s ill health forced him to retire , with Charles Taylor buying out his stock . The picture above shows the original works which consisted of one main shop with a smaller side shop . (From Harry – "The view is toward Commercial Rd and in the background looking a bit like a Church is the Jarrow Chemical Company , now the site of Ford’s Gaskets . The Foundry was originally part of the Chemical works and used to smelt copper - the yard crane is made of wood" ).Several ships propellers can be seen in the stock yard awaiting shipment with the two partners standing to the right of their main product .

At this time Marine engineering work was enjoying a boom time with the demand for Naval vessels from home and foreign Navies , ensuring a plentiful supply of orders . The picture on the left shows a Triple Expansion engine for Naval use , it consists of the three main cylinder casings , condenser , support columns and bed plate or crank case , all cast at the renamed Charles W. Taylor’s Templetown Foundry . The present site has four workshops and an offsite dressing and despatch shop , housing heat-treatment , NDT facilities , mark off and inspection area .The right hand picture shows a 14 ton medium pressure cylinder casing which was part of two engine sets for the HMS Coventry launched 1912 .

One third of the production area at the Templetown works was devoted to propeller production . The moulds were constructed on screw bogeys , these were cast plates on railway lines , which entered drying stoves , Six plates would be in varying stages of production at any time . Taylor’s cast two or four per week . The moulds , being constructed in loam and bricks , would need to be dried through three times during manufacture .

Picture 5

Picture 6

In picture 5 we can see the early stages of the mould building , note the shape of the screw plate on the ground , shaped so as to be able to clamp the completed mould together for casting .The craftsman has built the pattern with the use of a profile board , which when fitted to the centre pin , it will revolve to give a perfectly round and accurate form . The pitch gauge are set in place by the Patternmakers and once set , the first blade can be built , repeating till all four blades are complete . When all four are ready, the plate will spend its first night in the drying stove . In picture 6 , a propeller is near to completion , the top part will be lowered onto the mould , then the runner and securing bars will be bolted to the bogey and the casting will take place the same day as to eliminate the risk of condensation . The casting will cool for three days before the mould is dismantled . Picture 7 shows Charles Taylor on the right with Foundrymen and Naval officials , proudly standing by an 18 ft diameter propeller , one of two for the Japanese Cruiser " Iwate" , launched at Armstrong of Elswick in 1901 . Taylor’s propellers were fitted to many of the warships ordered for the new Navy of Japan , prior to the Naval war with Russia in 1904 .

Picture 7

An event in 1897 was to have a great impact on Taylor’s future , when Charles Parsons ship "Turbine" was seen at the Spithead Naval Review . A new engine capable of speeds of 35 knots , shocked an Admiralty steeped in tradition . A champion of the turbine was found when Admiral John Fisher was appointed 1^st Sea Lord in 1904 , having the confidence in the ability of the turbine engine , the Navy ordered the HMS Dreadnought , a revolutionary ship in every way . At the same time orders were placed for two luxury liners by Cunnard , one to be built on Tyneside , the RMV Mauritania , which was to be the fastest , most luxurious ship of its day powered by the largest turbine engines ever built . Orders for four sets of gear case castings were placed at Taylor’s , the lower case 18 tons and the upper case at 5 and 7 tons . Picture 8 shows the massive engines standing ready for despatch to the fitting out yard . Note the size of the men standing by each of the three stages .

Picture 8		Picture 9

Orders for exhaust cases for the next Dreadnought class battleship in 1905 , were the start of a production line that would run continuously to 1918 , including ships as HMS Royal Oak , Malaya , Warspite , Queen Elizabeth and Resolution .In the capital ship building programme , an arms "race" with Germany , Yards on the Tyne used all available space to meet the demand . In picture 9 we can see one of the two 35 ton Main engine gear wheels to be fitted to the Queen Elizabeth , cast in 1912 .Charles Taylor , having trained as a Naval architect , sent his son R. C . Taylor to the Naval academy , after which he served with distinction as an officer on HMS Royal Oak in the 1914-18 war . After Charles W Taylor’s death in 1918 , his son took over the company .During the War period , Taylor’s supplied 8 sets of Engines to Battleships , 19 sets of Turbine engines for Cruisers and 51 sets for Destroyers .

Queen Elizabeth Battleship 1915

End

The following is a potted history of some of the ships featured in this article - all great ships .

		HMS Dreadnought - the one that changed it all . Built in secrecy at Portsmouth in 1906 , on her launch ,she made all previous Battleships obsolete . This would not have been possible but for the invention of the Parsons Turbine , giving immense power ,smooth running and high speed . Her creation caused shock and consternation to all other nations . She displaced 21,850 tons , had 4 Parsons turbines developing 23,000 hp, giving her a top speed of 21 knots. Under the Washington Treaty , she was scrapped in 1922 .
		HMS Temaraire ( Bellerophon Class )- the first battleship fitted with one of CW Taylor's turbine sets. Built Devonport 1907 with 4 Parsons Turbines developing 23,000 HP, giving her a top speed of 20.5 knots .She was scrapped in 1922 .
		HMS Warspite -(Queen Elizabeth Class ) An old English name for Woodpecker. Built at Devonport in 1913( 31,000 tons )with Parsons turbines developing 75.000 hp giving a top speed of 25 knots.Fought in both World Wars. Scrapped in 1947 .
		HMS Royal Oak ( Revenge Class ) , - Built at Devonport in 1917 with turbines developing 40,000hp giving her a top speed of 21 knots . She fought in both World Wars and was sunk in Scapa Flow by U-47 with the loss of over 800 men . She is now a War grave .
		HMS Malaya ( Queen Elizabeth Class ) , built by Armstrongs in 1916 , 33,000 tons with Parsons turbines , developing 75,000 HP , giving her a top speed of 25 knots .She was scrapped in 1948 .
		HMS Queen Elizabeth (Queen Elizabeth Class) , Built Portsmouth in 1913 , 33,000 tons . fitted with 4 Parsons turbines developing 75,000 HP and giving her a top speed of 25 knots . Scrapped 1948 .
		HMS Resolution -(Revenge Class ) -built by Palmers of Jarrow in 1915 , 31,000 tons with Parsons turbines , developing 40,000 HP , giving her a top speed of 21knots . She served in both World Wars , bombed at Narvik (1940) and torpedoed at Dakar (1940). Sold for scrap in 1948 .
		RMV Mauritania on her last visit to the River Tyne in 1935 - she departed on the 3rd of July . She held the Blue Riband of the Atlantic between 1908 and 1929 .She was built in 1907 by Swan Hunter's at Wallsend , with a top speed of 27 knots .