Elce and Cottam
Elce & Cottam of Jersey Street, Ancoats, Manchester
This is the same establishment as J. Elce and Co
1841 Explosion of a boiler at the works, which resulted in the death of eight employees. A report [1] gives an interesting insight into the design and working of boilers of that era, and into the variety of opinions confidently expressed by those called in as expert witnesses. It also provides information on the machinery used in the works, all driven by one old high pressure steam engine, of 8" bore and 2 ft stroke. The equipment is described below.
A patternmaker at the works, Steward Sands, described the equipment driven by the engine: Ground floor: two grindstones, seven lathes, a drilling machine, a smith's bellows, and a boring apparatus for headstocks. Second floor: small grindstone, six lathes, a planing machine 4 ft long, a centering machine, and a wheel cutting machine. On the third floor there was a roving or jack frame of 72 spindles, which had started about a fortnight previously, and worked only at intervals. (It is not clear whether this was used for spinning or whether - more likely - it was being developed by the company). The witness considered that the engine, and more importantly the boiler, would have been overworked, necessitating overpressurising the boiler. He said that 'when the engine is not overweighted, it goes so freely that its motion is not heard, but when it is overweighted it goes stiffly, and makes a loud hissing noise'. He had told Mr Elce that the engine was overworked.
One of the deceased was Edward Allen, the foreman.
Witnesses called included John Lee of Manchester, machine maker, who was quick to absolve the company of any blame; George Branson of Manchester, Engineer, who proferred the bizarre explanantion that the water had come into contact with red hot plates, being thereby broken down into hydrogen and oxygen gas; Robert Armstrong of Salford, Engineer; Thomas Banks of Manchester, Engineer, who had fitted a Salter safety valve to the boiler, and noted that Mr Elce was always anxious to prevent accidents; Expert evidence was given jointly by George Watson Buck, William Fairbairn and Richard Roberts