Reyrolles Works

The engineering firm of Reyrolles was established at Hebburn in 1906 and was a major employer for many decades. The firm held a highly important position in the economic and social life of the area. The huge sheds sprawl over a considerable stretch of land which also contains its own rail link. The site covers a total area of 18.38 acres and provided a total gross internal floor area of approx 600,000 square feet. At its greatest extent, 1960-1986, the Reyrolles site comprised of two separate sites, the Newtown Works (NZ 3044 6397) on the eastern side of the Newcastle-South Shields Railway and the Hebburn Works (NZ 3035 6437) on the western side. Some of the buildings at Hebburn buildings survived up to at least 2003, but the site was at that time up for development.