STEAM SURVIVES IN STAFFORDSHIRE

PART 2

etween the two engine houses stands the boiler house which originally contained five boilers supplied by Stevenson of Preston. These were replaced with five identical Lancashire boilers with two firetubes which continue to provide the steam at the pumping station to this day. The hot gasses from the fire passes through the boiler in the two tubes, and then through a chamber under the boiler before returning along both sides in the side tubes, with the hot gasses being used three times. They were built by John Thompson of Wolverhampton and fitted in 1936/7, the boilers were replaced in rotation so ensuring that a constant supply of steam was maintained. The original boilers were hand-fired, but Bennis stokers powered by an overhead line were fitted in 1902, which in turn were replaced in 1919 by the Meldrum’s mechanical stokers