The Repair of Wrought and Cast Iron Work - Dublin City Council

More documents

Recommendations

Info

IRON THE REPAIR OF WROUGHT AND CAST IRONWORK Gates made by J & C McGloughlin Ltd are often easily recognisable by their distinctive gate latch Blacksmiths often stamped their name on the flat slam bar (or cover plate) of gates The Perrott Hive Foundry in Cork was one of the largest in the city in the late nineteenth century The number of iron foundries listed in post office directories began to decline after 1860. The construction of the railways and the great building boom were winding down. Enormous companies, such as the Scottish firm Walter Macfarlane & Co., were thriving at this time and exporting their products throughout the world. It is likely that the competition from such companies, which were highly adept at marketing, helped to put many Irish foundries out of business. Also, although cast iron was still used extensively for architectural castings, iron was being steadily replaced in popularity by steel. Henry Bessemer had patented a method of mass-producing steel in 1856 and mild steel, which was stronger than wrought iron, had almost completely replaced the use of wrought iron in building construction by the end of the nineteenth century. The fashion and demand for decorative ironwork continued to wane after the First World War, and dwindled almost completely after the Second World War. Foundries were forced to change their focus from decorative castings. Many turned to the production of fire escapes, building façades, windows, and other such products in order to stay afloat. The period between the wars also saw the growing use of modern welding techniques, which gradually superseded the more traditional blacksmithing. The remainder of the twentieth century witnessed a continuing decline in the production of architectural ironwork, which by this time had become unfashionable. The 1980s in particular were a very bad decade for foundries and saw the closure of numerous Dublin firms, many of which had been operating for a century or more. 9
IRON THE REPAIR OF WROUGHT AND CAST IRONWORK The use of ironwork From the eighteenth century onwards, as iron became more plentiful and affordable, it rapidly grew in popularity and came to be widely used in architectural decoration and embellishment. Its strength, versatility and durability made it the new building material of choice. These qualities would eventually change the face of architecture and engineering by enabling structures to be designed in previously impossible ways. As the concept of urban design became increasingly popular, newly developed streets and squares came to be bounded, enclosed, and demarcated by iron railings. In the eighteenth century, such railings were generally made entirely of wrought iron and were quite plain, complementing the Georgian architecture they adjoined. Very early wrought iron railings, dating to the first half of the eighteenth century, can be seen lining many of the houses along Henrietta Street, Dublin, and slightly later ones (1760s) on Parnell Square in Dublin and North Mall in Cork. These wrought iron railings were often complemented by decorative details such as cast urns, wrought iron lamp arches, or pillars decorated with fine scrollwork. Early nineteenth-century railings incorporating fashionable Neo-Classical decoration such as cast iron collars, husks, and anthemion (honeysuckle) finials Early eighteenth-century wrought iron railings, Henrietta Street, Dublin. The large-scale development of squares and terraces from the 1700s onwards fuelled a rising demand for iron railings In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, cast iron was increasingly incorporated into ornamental ironwork. For example, a gate frame made of wrought iron would be embellished by ornate cast iron infill panels, husks, finials, and collars. Railings with wrought iron bars topped by a diverse range of ornamental cast iron finials also became widespread. Wrought iron railings and gates embellished with cast iron details can be found in virtually every town and city across Ireland. Mid nineteenth-century railings with wrought iron bars and rails, and decorative cast iron finials and husks By the 1890s and early 1900s, entire railing panels cast in iron were becoming increasingly widespread. Cork, Dublin, Dundalk and Limerick have some superb examples. While much of this cast ironwork was made by local foundries, a significant proportion was also imported from England and Scotland. The production of cast ironwork had developed into a booming industry there and manufacturers, many of whom had offices in Ireland as well, produced extensive catalogues displaying an enormous variety of designs for railings, gates, rainwater goods, doorcases, balconies, lamp standards and other architectural components. 10
Page 1 and 2: advice series iron THE REPAIR OF WR
Page 3 and 4: DUBLIN PUBLISHED BY THE STATIONERY
Page 5 and 6: IRON THE REPAIR OF WROUGHT AND CAST
Page 9: IRON THE REPAIR OF WROUGHT AND CAST

The Repair of Wrought and Cast Iron Work - Dublin City Council

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?