Darlington Forge Company Limited

The Darlington Forge Company Limited was established in 1854 by Cowans, Sheldon & Co of Carlisle. Together with other manufacturers including the Whessoe Foundry Company Limited, the Darlington Forge went on to help the town develop a world class reputation for heavy engineering.

Below are a selection of photographs which were used to promote some of the engineering achievements of the Darlington Forge Company produced at their Albert Hill works.


Advertisement from Jane's Fighting Ships, 1941		Forged-steel built-up rudder with a 15 inch diameter post


Steel building covering hydraulic presses, 650 ft long, 100 ft wide		Forged-steel gun jacket for new naval gun, 46 tons forged from 90-ton ingot


Cast steel stem for HMS Prince of Wales -weight of finished casting 27 tons		Cast steel mill gearing


Hydraulic pressed steel shaft, 55 feet long, 22 inches in diameter, forged from a 60-ton ingot for HM first-class cruiser Roxburgh		Forged-steel lower part of the sternframe for SS LA Gascogne - weight of forging 27 tons, made from 50-ton ingot


Group of crankshafts, large - 17 & 1/8th diameter, 40 feett 5 inches long, for a P&O first-class mail boat - finished weight 34 & 1/4 tons		Cast-steel mooring anchors for Admiralty Harbour extensions, Gibraltar


Cast-steel sternframe from SS Heighington, removed when aground and used to test the soundness of a welded repair		Weldless steel tubes, forged and expanded under 4000-ton press


Special train load of cast-steel sternframes, propeller brackets and a rudder		Group of cast-steel roll housings, mill pinions, couplings, etc, forged-steel rolls


Mild-steel sternframe and brackets, for 25-knot Cunard turbine mail boats Mauretania and Lusitania - weight for each ship over 100 tons		12-ton double-acting steam hammer, 90 lbs steam, cast-steel standards, entablature, etc, built by the Darlington Forge Company Limited


. Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		Photograph provided by Diane Kidd


. Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		Photograph provided by Diane Kidd


Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		Photograph provided by Diane Kidd


Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		Photograph provided by Diane Kidd


Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		Photograph provided by Diane Kidd


Note the man standing in centre of the picture for scale. Photograph provided by Diane Kidd		1959 Structural Steel castings Advertisement

If you have anything that you would like to share with others with a similar interest in this section please contact history@aboutdarlington.co.uk. Equally, if you have found the photographs interesting or have any information that could be added, your comments would be very welcome.