Crucibles used for molten iron or steel. Courtesy Dr Peter Ottaway.

Archaeologists from York Archaeological Trust are working on the remains of an important Victorian iron foundry in York.

The team carrying out the excavation of the site hope to locate and record everything that remains of the Walker Iron Foundry before it is redeveloped into housing. The site had previously been covered up by a 1970s office block.

The Walker Iron Foundry at Walmgate was one of several in 19th century York, though the city is not known for its industrial heritage – unlike its neighbours Leeds and Bradford.

“We don’t do much industrial archaeology here in York,” said Dr Peter Ottaway, Head of Fieldwork at York Archaeological Trust, “so this is a unique opportunity to look at such a site. It’s very well preserved, too.”

View of the base of the wheel pit showing timber support rails. Courtesy Dr Peter Ottaway.

Set up in 1837 by ironmonger John Walker (1801-53), this foundry was particularly significant. “This is where the Walker family made their name,” explained Peter.

Initially, Walker took on local commissions such as street railings and York’s first gas lamps, but as his reputation grew, he was offered major national and international commissions.

Apart from creating vital jobs for local inhabitants, Walker could count among his achievements the gates of Kew Gardens (1845-1846), the gates and railings of the British Museum (1850 – his most famous work) and even the gates of the Botanic Gardens of Mauritius.

Excavations in progress on a brick-lined pit which once housed a wheel used in the founding process. Courtesy Dr Peter Ottaway.

In 1847 Walker was appointed the iron founder to Queen Victoria and he took on larger premises in the same area – the Victoria Foundry. The first foundry was kept in the family until 1856, when it was sold for £1000.

“There are all sorts of interesting structures turning up in the dig,” Peter told the 24 Hour Museum, “and we’ve got a lot of artefacts – things associated with the work and also many more personal effects, a lot of clay pipes and pieces of beer bottles. This gives us some idea of the people who worked there.”

So far, excavations have revealed brick walls that tally with the 1852 Ordnance Survey map, and several internal structures and artefacts. One of the structures uncovered has been identified as a brick-lined pit, which would have housed a steam engine-driven wheel that probably powered the foundry bellows.

The foundry site under excavation, looking north. This patch of land has undergone some drastic changes in the last century. Courtesy Dr Peter Ottaway.

Archaeologists hope yet to identify structures itemised in the building’s bill of sale, including the master’s house, smiths’ shops, warehouses and stables. Slag and debris will be studied to reveal what type of iron was used in the foundry and fieldworkers are looking for any other evidence of manufacturing techniques.

Pieces of fleur-de-lys railings that didn’t make it to the streets and large ceramic crucibles used for molten iron and steel have also been unearthed. One of the most interesting discoveries has been that the foundry was built in a somewhat dangerous position: on silty land reclaimed by a medieval dam. Precarious though it was, this site allowed easy access to raw materials and export routes via the River Foss.

Unfortunately for Walker, life on the riverside in this notorious slum area was not good for his family’s health and five of his children died. His son William Walker survived, and the business carried on in the family until it hit financial difficulties in 1923.