Materials and Handling

Photo taken from the mill roof looking east. Kiln sheds and mill race on the left, police station center and backbarrow farm on the right 1962

Ultramarine blue consists of Sodium Carbonate or Soda Ash as it is known, Sulphur which was imported from Italy, Carbon in the form of Pitch, Silica and Alumins. The silica and alumina are obtained by using China Clay and powdered silica is added to achieve a better product. The ingredients were delivered to Haverthwaite railway station in bulk and transferred the remaining mile to the mill by lorries. My maternal Grandfather Joseph Robinson held the haulage contract until his death in 1951. prior to world war two he used horses and mules to transport the raw material from the station, and to deliver finished product to the station.  Joseph’s sons were employed in the business until three of the four were called up during world war two, for the rest of the war Joseph and his remaining Son ran the business on their own with casual help when any was available. In 1942 Joseph “Josie as he was known” bought a second hand Ford one ton tipper lorry from Mr Dan Lowther a dealer in Ulverston.

Josie Robinson (driving) with his best man on the way to his wedding 1890.

Tipping was achieved by manually cranking a worm and screw gear mechanism which slowly raised the load tipping it out of the rear of the truck, this tipping was extremely hard work.  Sulphur, Pitch, Soda Ash, and China Clay arrived at the railway station in sheeted wagons, steam coal arrived in open wagons, these raw materials had to be manually shoveled from the railway wagons onto the tipper truck by hand in all weather without any cover from snow or rain. Sulphur was stored at the east end of the kiln sheds in a designated building, however if the market price was low sulphur was bought in large quantities and what could not be stored inside was simply tipped on the piece of waste ground that doubled as a football pitch for lunch time sport. Pitch also arrived loose and was shoveled from the railway wagons, in hot weather the pitch dust burned the eys and skins making the off loading very unpleasant, it was also stored outdoors in the open. Soda Ash came in hessian sacks each weighing 100kg “No health and safety then”. The sacks were moved using a two wheel sack truck and taken to the Kiln Shed and lifted from the Lorry using a chain hoist and stored on the upper floor of the dry ball mill building, China Clay was also transported and stored in the same way.

Blue mill workers in the boiler house which was located on the ground floor on the river bank now the hotel patio. 1955.

 Steam coal arrived loos in the railway wagons and was also shoveled onto the lorry and either delivered direct to the kilns or stored in the mill yard oposite the main office, the storage area often held several hundred tons.  Ultramarine pigment was shipped to customers in various sized wooden containers up to 1955,  Wooden barrels made on site by Curwens Coopers were used to ship wet paste blue weighing three hundred weight ” 150 kg”. Plywood kegs bought in were used for dry pigment shipment weighing 50 kg and very finely woven linensacks also of 50 kg, small hand wrapped cartons of blue pigment of various sizes were shipped in wooden boxes , these cartons were  one ounce, one and one eighth ounce 30 grams and various sizes up to one Kg, these cartons had brand names of Robin, Sea Gull, Detree and Crown “Destree was for French speaking countries”, these cartons were packed and wraped in the Kendal Road carton filling and dispatch department, after 1955/6 steel drums were being used for quantities of 50 kg and 125 kg and also five ply paper sacks of 25 kg.