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Derwentcote steel cementation furnace is a rare surviving structure documenting the evolution of English steel production in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The furnace, constructed around 1678, represents an important phase in metallurgical innovation when the cementation process—heating iron and charcoal in sealed vessels to produce steel—was undertaken at larger scales and with greater efficiency than previously achieved. The site also encompasses an iron finery forge and drift coal mine, reflecting the integrated industrial operations required to sustain steel manufacture. The monument stands as a significant example of proto-industrial organisation and the technological developments that would eventually establish the north of England as a centre of iron and steel production.
Derwentcote steel cementation furnace, iron finery forge and drift coal mine is a scheduled monument protected by Historic England under reference 1015522. View the official record →
Derwentcote steel cementation furnace is a rare surviving structure documenting the evolution of English steel production in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic England (NHLE) under reference 1015522.
Derwentcote steel cementation furnace, iron finery forge and drift coal mine is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic England (NHLE) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in England. The official designation reference is 1015522.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Whinfield coking ovens, 850m south east of Low Spen Farm (2.6 km), Ebchester (Vindomora) Roman station (2.9 km), Collierley Chapel (3 km).
Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any address in the UK — drawing on scheduled monument data, Domesday records, Roman heritage, PAS finds and medieval history to reveal the complete story of a landscape.
Research the area around Derwentcote steel cementation furnace, iron finery forge and drift coal mine