Thanks to Ray Appleton for text and photo.
A clear day in Warrington and in the foreground Howley Power Station, (coal fired chain grate), standing by the usually "pinkish" foaming River Mersey,
(must be a washing day!) If you look towards the base of the nearest chimney you can see what appears to be several greenhouse type buildings.
These large sheds and the buildings below them formed the manual worker base for Manweb Warrington.
(Contracting, Appliance Repair, Deliveries, Fitting, Jointing, Stores and Street lighting).
The Offices for some of the Engineers and Clerical staff was on other CEGB land at the far side of the power station, just by the bridge by the furthest chimney.
Management and some engineering staff were also based in offices above the Manweb Shop in Buttermarket Street.
The Bridge etc, not a bridge really but part of an enclosed conveyor belt system which carried coal from the railway on the far LHS under the houses and Knutsford Road then over the Mersey and up again to the bunkers at the top of power station. The power station utilised the Mersey water for cooling instead cooling towers. As the station used coal on a moving “chain grate” it produced tons of red hot ash and clinker, which every now and then was discharged into an ash lagoon full of water.
The metal structure on the right of the power station is the steelwork for a grab crane that picked up the submerged ashes from the lagoon and loaded lorries for ash disposal.
The lagoon was always a problem to get the ball back if we played football at lunchtime.
Happy Days.
The complete Manweb Depot was moved to the Palatine Works in Central Road Wilderspool Causeway Warrington in the late 1960's
(At present picture copyright unknown, if it is yours please let me know.)
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