No. 2 Blast Furnace at former Neath Abbey Ironworks

Cadw's description

Location

On the W side of the River Clydach in Neath Abbey some 140m N of the junction of Neath Abbey Road and Monastery Road.

History

One of two very large late C18 blast furnaces built for the Neath Abbey Ironworks. They were built in 1793, designed by Peter Price who had experience of furnaces in Great Britain and America. The Neath Abbey Ironworks were developed by two Quaker families, the Foxes of Falmouth from 1792 and Joseph Tregelles Price from 1817. Under Price the works became famous for high-quality engineering products including locomotives, stationary engines and steamships. The works closed in 1886.

Exterior

Blast furnace, very tall rubble Pennant sandstone, square-plan, tapering, built against a rock face for ease of charging. Furnace is some 19.8m high with base approximately 11.6m square. Base is overgrown but has large barrel vault on E side with semicircular arch with double ring of dressed stone voussoirs. Interior is supported by massive cast iron beams and has the remains of a slag notch. At the top of the furnace is the remains of a loading arch.

Interior

The rear of the furnace has a recess and a large chamber, hewn out of the rock wall, for the tuyere or blast pipes.

Reason for designation

Graded II* as one of two blast furnaces at the former Neath Abbey Ironworks which are important monuments to the development of the iron industry in Wales. They are two of the highest masonry blast furnaces ever built and part of the Scheduled Ancient Monument at Neath Abbey Ironworks (GM389).