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Aberdeen, Maberly Street, Broadford Works, Concrete Tower

Canvas Works (20th Century), Industrial Building (20th Century), Tower (20th Century)

Site Name Aberdeen, Maberly Street, Broadford Works, Concrete Tower

Classification Canvas Works (20th Century), Industrial Building (20th Century), Tower (20th Century)

Canmore ID 316652

Site Number NJ90NW 2686

NGR NJ 93628 06941

Datum OSGB36 - NGR

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/316652

Ordnance Survey licence number AC0000807262. All rights reserved.
Canmore Disclaimer. © Copyright and database right 2024.

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Administrative Areas

  • Council Aberdeen, City Of
  • Parish Aberdeen
  • Former Region Grampian
  • Former District City Of Aberdeen
  • Former County Aberdeenshire

Site Management (30 July 2008)

Tall cylindrical concrete tower with viewing platform, possibly connected with hose-pipe manufacture/ testing, part of large group of textile manufacturing and storage buildings, granite and brick-clad, of iron-framed or reinforced concrete construction, with setted streets between them. Slate or flat concrete roofs.

The oldest iron-framed mill in Scotland and the fourth oldest known to survive in the world (after others of 1796, 1804 and 1805, all inter- related). The adjoining South Mill may be the third iron framed building in Scotland.

Built for Scott Brown and Co (of Angus), 1808, bankrupt 1811 and sold to Sir John Maberly MP, entrepreneur, speculator and introducer of jute to the UK. Maberley rapidly developed Broadford Works, adopting the first gas lighting of an industrial complex in Scotland, by Boulton and Watt in 1814-15, and Scotland's second power loom linen weaving factory in Scotland in 1824. Maberly was himself bankrupt and in 1834 the works passed to Richards and Co, who had a bleachworks at Rubislaw and branches at Montrose, produced canvas tarpaulins and as a particular specialism, fire hoses. Latterly man- made fibres for carpet yarn etc has replaced flax. Employment peaked at 3,000, once the largest single employer in Aberdeen. (Historic Scotland).

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