A former rope works building interesting not only as a vestige of the rope industry on Tyneside but also for the use of ferro concrete in the early 20th century extension to the building. A 376ft long building was added to the site for Messrs. T & W Smith Ltd, the roof of which comprises 33 ferro-concrete trusses. The St Lawrence Ropery was established in the 18th century. The earliest extant documentary reference to the rope-walk at St Lawrence dates from 1724. In 1782 the shipbuilding and ropemaking company and T & W Smith started work at the ropery. This ropery appears to have been extended over the sites of the middle and high glasshouses (SMR 1913-1915) in the early C19. Further minor alterations took place before the construction of a ferro-concrete ropery shed before 1913. The site was acquired by J. Porter in the early 1930s and converted to a joinery shop, in which use it remains. the 19th century ropery buildings to the south east and north west of the site were demolished in the 1940s and 1990s respectively.

Now converted to form rooms for the adjacent public house and hotel the early 19th century single storey smithy building retains a number of internal features, principally two hearths {1}.

A major local brick industry developed north of Rowlands Gill, originally using the glacial clay dug to make the 60ft deep Lockhaugh cutting for the railway. The Priestman Colliery Company built coke ovens at the Lilley Drift Mine around 1883. Brick production reached a peak in 1955 at about 150,000 bricks per week, mostly for use at local pits. After 1964, high quality facing bricks were produced and were widely used in the North East, as for example at the Airport Hotel Ponteland and the Nuffield hospital, Jesmond. The brickworks closed in 1976, and the site reclaimed for agriculture. The office building can be seen from the A694 in Rowlands Gill {1}. An office building from the Lilley Brickworks stands on the A694, a plaque identifying its previous existence upon its wall {2}. At the brickworks site, where a siding linked the works with the main line (Derwent Railway SMR 1019), a platform can still be seen adjacent to the pond. The derelict engine sheds are still standing adjacent to the Derwent Walk. Lily brickworks, 1901-1975. The brickyard was established in about 1901, when Priestman Collieries Ltd took over the Lily Drift. Lily bricks were used in a lot of the building work at the company’s collieries and cokeworks at Highfield, Blaydon Burn, and Watergate near Whickham. In 1922, a battery of beehive coke ovens standing next to the brickworks was demolished and a 32-chamber Belgian-type continuous kiln was built on the site by W Jones & Son. The old chimney, formerly belonging to the coke ovens, was heightened and connected to the new kiln. An electric fan was installed some time later to improve the draught in the kiln. Each chamber in the kiln held some 6000-6500 bricks.
The Newcastle kilns in the old yard became disused. However, in 1939 four Newcastle kilns were built at the east end of the new yard by Mr Gibson of Blaydon, each holding up to 18,000 bricks. The shale came from Rowlands Gill colliery. The bricks were made by the Stiff Plastic Process. The shale was ground to a dry powder by a pair of stone rollers, fell through a meshed bed-plate into a well, which lay 20ft below the pan mill. Clay was lifted from the well with a multi-bucket excavator into a hopper, fed through a chute and into the mixer. The clay paste was pugged in a barrel and forced down onto a circular table fitted with 24 moulds. A Bradley and craven twin press formed the bricks, and could make 2100 bricks per hour. Materials and goods were transported by rail until 1962, when the Derwent Valley railway closed; they were then transported by lorry. In the late 1960s, the yard made rustic facing bricks, sold under the name of ‘Mitford Ressets’. Closed in 1977.
(Source: Davison, P J, 1986. Brickworks of the North East, 171 site 22, 174) Locally listed building - Built as offices for the Lilley Drift Colliery, this single storey (9’ 6” high) premises is constructed in the characteristic buff brick produced on site. It is small scale and simple but a little domestic in appearance, and clearly representative both of the distinctive industry in the area and the attractive approach to site buildings taken by Priestman Collieries. Other examples can be seen at Swalwell and elsewhere, where the important common themes are the buff Lilley brick, simple but decorative detailing and a low profile. The building was constructed on a concrete foundation with sandstone sills and lintels, pointed in haired mortar. The 16” x 10” Blue slate roof has terracotta ridge tiles, and the 3 chimneys, at intervals along the ridge, are also of brick with cornice detailing. To each gable is a white-painted bargeboard decorated with curved detailing, and a central carved finial. The front elevation has a strong horizontal emphasis with 7 windows and a door, with 2 windows to the side elevation. Unfortunately all the windows are plastic replacements, as are the rainwater goods. An alarm box has been fitted to the south-west gable.
MATERIALS Buff Lilley Brick (14” & 9” thick walls)
ARCHITECT Arthur Morton Hedley (Mining Engineer)
DATES 1909 (plans)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION DPC Callendar’s Bitumen laid 6” below floor level. Timbers T. B. 7” x 3”, spars 3 ½ “ x 3”, purlins 7” x 2 ½ “.Boundary hedged. The Lilley Drift Institute was used as an emergency feeding centre during WWII.

An infilled shaft can be identified on the Little Moor reflecting the mining of coal which took place in the Town Moor area from at least the C17 {1}. A very much abraded ring-bank, measuring 19.2m in diameter and up to 0.3m high, surrounds a central hollow; in this case the ridge-and-furrow seems to respect the boundaries of the feature {2}.

Stone lined well discovered by workmen in September 2002 during the construction of a new hospital carpark. Well made in dressed blocks of sandstone. Top of well was circa 2m below present ground surface. Diameter of well is circa 5ft and depth circa 80ft. The well is thought to be industrial rather than domestic in nature, probably providing water for the glebe engine (SMR 2851) which worked the Lambton Wagonway (SMR 2833). The well is of early 19th century date.

Stone-built spring head with pitched roof and substantial stone walls attached. Trough into which water ran must be buried. Eighton medieval chapel and hermitage (SMR 658 and 9) were situated near to the stream descending from a spring called Scotteswell. In 1387 the land was granted to Robert Lamb, hermit, for the building of the chapel and cell in honour of the Holy Trinity. The chapel and hermitage lay towards the northern end of Eighton vill (SMR 661). The spring was obviously in use in the medieval period but the existing stone structure is post medieval in date. The culvert through which the stream would have originally ran probably runs under Rockcliffe Way and into the former quarry site beyond. Water was said to have still flown through the well until the quarry was filled in.

Work commenced in 1912 by Teams By-product and Coke Co. Ltd. There were 120 Otto by-product coke ovens coking 300,000 tons pa and producing 225,000 tons of coke. Tar, benzole, sulphate of ammonia and gas were produced as by products. There was also a tar distillery producing a range of products. The works were connected to the NER Tanfield Branch Railway and the Pelaw Main Collieries Railway Dunston Branch. In May 1930 it was taken over by Priestman Collieries Ltd, who owned Watergate Colliery at Lobley Hill which produced much of the coal for the ovens. The plant was nationalised in 1947 and the original ovens were replaced by 66 Simon Carves ovens with increased capacity. In 1957 295 men were employed here including the coal washery and tar distillery. Watergate Colliery closed in 1964 and the ovens were then supplied from the various collieries feeding the Morrison Busty washery at Tanfield Plain and the Derwenthaugh washery at Winlaton Mill. Closure of local coking coal collieries and a decline in the demand for foundry coke led to the closure of the coke ovens on 20 May 1980 although coke stocking from other plants continued until 1984. The last stocks were removed in 1985 and the rail link removed. The tar distillery continued in operation until December 1986 utilising tar from other coking plants in the region {1}.

Brick and slate hall. Arched windows glazed. West gable corrugated metal sheeting (original) for installation of large pieces of equipment. South side complicated by later additions for further capacity in 1920s. Interior unseen.

Brick and slate sub station, windows glazed (possibly opened later). Now used as warehouse.

Brick and slate with bricked-up arched windows. Original sliding doors replaced. Interior - contains elevated area for switch board etc. Most tiling in place and wrought iron and wooden banister rails survive. Was what was termed a 'running' sub station by Northern Electric - i.e.. contained moving conversion gear as well as stationary transformers.