Portland Works, Sheffield - a Grade II* Listed Building

By Andrew Calow    July 2024

At the time of writing there is a new exhibition at the Millennium Gallery entitled “Show your Metal” – an exhibition showcasing over a hundred objects which portray Sheffield’s link (pun intended) with metalworking over the years.

On the corner of Hill Street and Randall Street, literally a goal kick from Bramall Lane is a purpose built Victorian factory complex first opened in 1879. It was constructed for the cutlery trade and now houses a number of small businesses involved in productions of various sorts not just metal. The site today is dominated by a tall octagonal factory chimney which owing to years of neglect once housed Buddleia growing at the top.

Image c. Andrew Calow

Portland Works was an important location for Sheffield’s Cutlery trade; its two main advantages being that by having all processes in the stages of knife making in one location, as each stage was complete production could be passed to the next worker for the next step, thus saving time in transport, and by having steam powered machinery there was no need to locate at riverside properties where water wheels could be positioned.

It was Robert Fead Mosley who was the founding father behind the works. He moved his works here in 1877. By 1881, according to the Census, he was employing 200 men, 20 boys and 20 girls at Portland Works, plus four other female domestic servants at his home.

Production of cutlery took place at Portland Works, manufacturing from shear steel and also silver plating cutlery. It was said that the electro plating facility could plate a lamp post. His silver plated collections were sold in wooden boxes, lined with silk and velvet.

However in the Summer of 1914 a local metallurgist went to Portland Works wanting to experiment with a  new alloy of steel. The alloy was stainless steel and the metallurgist was Harry Brearley. A trial run of producing stainless steel blades was enough for Mosley’s to predict a great future for stainless steel in the cutlery industry. It is no exaggeration to say that this location was the birthplace of stainless steel cutlery.

Image: c. Andrew Calow

(Harry Brearley was born in Burngreave and nowadays there are two stainless steel artworks to be seen by passers-by.  The largest of these, is called “Knotted String” and comprises of a loop of metal. Harry Brearley’s autobiography is called “Knotted String” – there’s a signed copy in the little museum at Portland Works.)

By 1915, stainless steel knives were being exported to Australia, marked with the brand name “Rusnorstain”, some years before this name was registered in England.

But it would be wrong to assume that this site, so busy in the past, was now a derelict place. If anything, it is now as busy as ever producing different products. Each month tours are arranged where visitors visit the hub and see just some of the active producers at work.

One of these is the violin maker and restorer Emma Hardy who works from a small workshop over the entrance gateway. In the window overlooking Randall Street can be seen the unmistakeable shape of a violin. Emma counts herself lucky to have found an ideal location for her business; she is often visited by families with children and this would not be advisable in a factory environment.

Violin restoration is her main activity; one might say that this is her bread and butter with violin making the jam on the bread. Making a violin from scratch is a painstaking process which can take around 250 hours and that comes after a three year training course. Occasionally Emma will meet up with other violin makers offering mutual support. Inside the door to the workshop a row of finished violins hang and I noticed a few violin bows hanging as well. Although most violins are four stringed, Emma was also working on a five stringed instrument. Next time you see a folk musician playing a violin it might be one that has passed through this workshop.

Image: c. Andrew Calow

Emma Hardy in her workshop

In the heart of the works is the original forge where tool making is still a process carried out. When I visited Andy Cole Tools, he was busy producing wood turning chisels for the US market, stamping red hot metal into shape. The Americans are an appreciative market for the craftsmanship of the quality goods produced here. The machinery in this workshop was certainly built to last; it dates from the late 19th Century. In front of the spring hammer is a seat suspended from the ceiling. Andy has hammer rights, meaning he is allowed to make noise at a certain level with no-one able to complain. Andy admits to having worked here for 48 years and has seen a lot of changes, fortunately the major change he was dreading, the conversion of the complex into student bedsits, never materialised.

Image: c. Andrew Calow

Andy Cole's chisel forging business

In another part of the works is another metal working business where the business owner, Mark Jackson, makes a unique design of coat racks for primary schools. (www.squarepegs.co.uk) Like most genius ideas, it’s very simple, the coat pegs are brought off the wall and then turned sideways to allow coats to hang back-to-back and face to face with each other. Think back to the traditional rows of pegs at a child’s head height and the safety benefits of Mark’s patented design are clear to see. What is interesting about Mark’s workshop is that it is on the ground floor of a building where there was heavy machinery on an upstairs floor. As a result the ceiling is vaulted to provide the necessary strength to take the weight.

Image: c. Andrew Calow

Mark Jackson demonstrating his Screw Press used to bend metal rods into shape

Image: c. Andrew Calow

Going up an outside stone staircase brings the visitor to the beating heart of Locksley Distilling where a multitude of flavoured gins and other spirits is distilled. Here one of the team is often called upon to show the visitor the tall still used and the range of flavourings. This is the home of Sir Robin of Locksley Gin which is described as the centrepieceof the core range. As well as gin,rums, vodkas and liqueurs are also made. Another unit houses the stock, divided into two areas reflecting the status of the Excise Duty these products attract. It is possible to book a tasting visit which also includes the opportunity to purchase products at discounted prices.

A few weeks ago  there was an opportunity for the Friends of Portland Works to visit some of the tenants in their workshops and studios on the first floor. It was a chance to meet the award winning artist Mary Sewell in her well lit studio in the lantern room. Here she works with clay producing figurines suggestive of ancient cultures including Greece and India. These are fired in her own kiln and some left in an unglazed finish. Mary offers small group workshops for those wishing to produce ceramic figurines.

Image: c. Andrew Calow

In another studio silver jewellery courses are on offer under the expert supervision of Emmie of Emily Alice Jewellery. Catering for all levels of expertise (beginners are welcome!) Emmie has over two decades of experience teaching the necessary skills. Some of Emmie’s own creations show an unusual inspiration, both unfamiliar and at the same time familiar, since the source of inspiration is the molecules of compounds which are re-created in sterling silver, gold vermeil and rose gold vermeil – that’s gold plating over sterling silver.  The theobromine molecule is found in chocolate but how many would recognise this as the source for a particular eye-catching piece of jewellery?

Image:  c. Emily Alice Jewellery

Theobromine molecule - the inspiration for (chocolate lovers' ?) jewellery

For the past eighteen months the works have been under the eye of General Manager Ayesha Heaton who is certainly someone in love with her work. 'Every day is different." says Ayesha. On one of my recent visits her duties included supporting the volunteer tour guide with a group of visitors, reading the meters, welcoming a new tenant and sorting out one of the many utility contracts. Regular trips to Wickes and Screwfix have almost made her eligible for "frequent flyer" status.

Image:  c. Andrew Calow

Portland Works' General Manager, Ayesha Heaton

Although there are a dozen or so new volunteers starting this month, more are always welcome; the extensive list of jobs I saw included pointing brickwork in two buildings, as well as working on windows in jobs ranging from preparation, painting and reglazing.

I’ve mentioned only a half dozen of the tenants in the thirty workshops on the site. There are many more 21st Century “Little Mesters” beavering away in the works. There is an Open Day on 31st August and, as part of the Heritage Open Days, there will be organised tours on Saturday 07 September at 10-30, Tuesday 10 September at 14-00 and on Wednesday 11 September at 17-30.

The Friends of Portland Works is a registered charity committed to supporting the on-going efforts to protect and renovate this historic Sheffield building. The Friends raise funds for the extensive renovation needed to ensure the future of the building as a place of work and educational resource. Monthly meetings are held upstairs in the Makers Space where talks on a range of topics are enjoyed.
Over a hundred years ago these buildings witnessed the birth of the idea of stainless steel cutlery, a concept that has gone round the world. And even today cutlery plated in one of the units here is carried round the world on certain cruise ships.

Websites
https://www.portlandworks.co.uk/
https://hardyviolins.co.uk/
andycoletools@portlandworks.co.uk
https://www.squarepegs.co.uk/
https://www.locksleydistilling.com/
https://marysewell.co.uk/
https://emily-alice.com/
https://friendsofportlandworks.org/