REVIT Heritage Report.pdf

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Torfaen County Borough Council REVIT: A Review of the Conservation of Industrial Heritage Assets on Brownfield Sites 4.2.18 The coke ovens were built in the late 1840’s of red fire-bricks laid on a stone rubble foundation to replace the earlier open coke heaps. The coke ovens north-west of the ironworks were partly exposed and damaged by water action. 4.2.19 The impressive Big Arch bridge, which was built in 1879 of yellow brick with stone voussoirs, dominates the entrance to the site. It carried the Great Western Railway line over works entrance. A railway shed, which was constructed in 1926 as a railway wagon repair shop, still survives on the site. On the outskirts of the site is the Old Castle Farm (SO 2577 0417), an early post-medieval farmhouse, located to the north of the ironworks. Blaenavon Industrial Landscape World Heritage Site 4.2.20 The Blaenavon Ironworks forms the centre of the World Heritage Site encompassing over 33,000 square hectares. The landscape is a Registered Landscape of Outstanding Historic Interest (HLW (Gt) 1 and the historic sites are extensively protected by a number of statutory measures including listed building and Scheduled Monument status. There are also other ecological and landscape constraints, including four Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), which affect the area’s potential re-use. 4.2.21 The site, which is located adjacent to the Brecon Beacons National Park, is protected and managed by the Blaenavon Partnership, both as a historic landscape and as a series of individual sites which encompass the historic town. Blaenavon's historic landscape features have been actively conserved and interpreted by the Partnership which was formed from representatives from the main public bodies. These partners include Torfaen County Borough Council, Monmouthshire County Council, the Brecon Beacons National Park, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council, Blaenavon Town Council, the Countryside Council for Wales, the Welsh Development Agency, the Welsh Tourist Board, British Waterways, the National Trust and Cadw. By involving many partners the Trust aims to provide effective stewardship and conservation of the landscape and its sensitive regeneration in close consultation with local people. 4.2.22 The conservation approach to Blaenavon has largely been one of “museum process” which aims to retain the landscape in its current form as much as possible. This approach is regarded as the purest form of conservation and involves preservation and repair of sites like the Blaenavon Ironworks for interpretation, education and display. This approach is partly a function of the historic importance of the area and the number of sites and monuments which have statutory protection. 4.2.23 In total the Blaenavon WHS retains 17 Scheduled Ancient Monuments and 82 Listed Buildings. The main sites include: • Blaenavon, iron tramroad bridge ['Aaron Brute's Bridge’]; • Blaenavon Iron Works; • Blorenge Tunnel, Hill's Tramroad; • Big Pit Colliery; • Cwmbran Tunnel, M&B Canal; • Dyne Steel Incline Plane, BWHS; • Brake Engine on Hill's Pits tramroad incline; 0014021/JM/001 21
Torfaen County Borough Council REVIT: A Review of the Conservation of Industrial Heritage Assets on Brownfield Sites • Cairns on the Blorenge; • Capel Newydd, Blaenavon; • (site of ) Ecclesiastical and Wells; • Cairn-y-Defaid Round Cairns; • Engine Pit, Blaenavon; • Garn-Ddyrys Ironworks and adjacent tramway; • Hill's Tramroad Inclines, Llanfoist; • Iron and Coal Patching, Pen-Ffordd-goch, Blaenavon; • Limekilns and Quarries at Craig-y-Hafod; • Lower Rank; • Pwll-du Tramroad, Tunnel, Southern approach; • Tramroad bridge, Bailey's Tramroad, Govilon; • Pwll-du Limestone Quarry and Water Balance Lift; • Blaenavon Workmen’s Hall; • Cwmavon Forge Row • St. Peter’s Church; and • St Peters School. 4.2.24 The renovated St Peters School, of circa 1815, building will be used for the interpretation of industrial heritage and the building will become the focal point for the World Heritage site. The centre will utilise technology to explain the background of the area and will also have links to the other significant world heritage sites around the World. 4.2.25 Blaenavon World Heritage Site is considered one of the finest surviving examples in the world of late 18th and early 19 th century landscape created by coalmining and ironmaking. The decline of this industry left a significant void in the economic activity of the area. 4.2.26 The industrial landscape which grew up around the ironworks consisted of iron ore patches, coal mines, limestone quarries, iron forges, brickworks, tramroads, leats and reservoirs, chapels and workers’ houses. The main focus of the landscape is the Blaenavon Ironworks which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument in the care of Cadw. 4.2.27 Blaenavon Ironworks is one of the most complete ironworks of its type and period in the world, with remains of five blast furnaces of various evolutionary forms from the 1780s to the 1860s. The site also includes a hot blast stove, cast houses, ore calcining kilns, coke ovens, a water-balance lift of 1839, a square of workers’ housing, a drift mine, a foundry, rail yards, and remains of chimneys, mould drying kilns, a blowing engine house and other ancillary structures. Iron ore was smelted at the ironworks to produce pig iron until 1902. 0014021/JM/001 22
Page 1 and 2: REVIT revitalising industrial sites
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