127 

 CHEMICAL MANUFACTURES ON THE TYNE * 



BY MESSRS. J. C. STEVENSON, R. C. CLAPHAJ1, AND T. RICHARDSON. 



Salt. — Salt works were formerly very numerous in this district, 

 establishments having been formed at Howden Pans, Hartley Pans, 

 Jarrow, North and South Shields and other localities. This trade was 

 carried on by several of the most wealthy families in the neighbour- 

 hood, in the beginning of the last century, and about 200 pans were 

 employed in producing salt, which was extracted from sea- water and 

 brine springs. Shields salt was the most celebrated salt in the kingdom, 

 and was, produced in such quantities at South Shields as to give a 

 character, and even a nomenclature to this town, which to this day is 

 divided into East Pan and West Pan Wards. The remains of a large 

 hill are still to be seen, formed from the ash of the salt paus. After a 

 time these ashes took fire, and Mr. JR. W. Swinburne — to whom we are in- 

 debted for this information — states that the Chapter of Durham are in 

 possession of a picture representing the burning hills of South Shields. 

 The production of salt from sea-water in this locality has given place to 

 that obtained from the brine-springs and rock-salt of Cheshire, and 

 illustrates what great changes took place in altering the locales of manu- 

 factures. A considerable quantity of white salt is still made on the 

 Tyne from sea-water, in which rock salt from Cheshire and Ireland is 

 dissolved, in order to diminish the cost of evaporation. Two improve- 

 ments have been successfully introduced in making white salt, which 

 have the saving of fuel as tlieir object. Mr. Wilkinson employs the 

 waste heat of coke ovens for this purpose, and Mr. Fryer dries whitening 

 with the heat which escapes from his salt pans. 



Alkali (for this and the last century). — Two gentlemen, Mr. W. Losh 

 and Mr. Thomas Doubleday, were engaged, unknown to each other, 

 with a series of experiments on the best plan of converting common salt 

 into carbonate of soda. Each of these chemists appears to have used 

 very similar processes, and when the late Lord Dundonald came to reside 

 in the neighbourhood, he was soon on intimate terms with both parties. 

 Both Mr. Losh and Mr. Doubleday tried numerous plans at his lord- 

 ship's suggestion ; but after spending upwards ot 1,000?., Mr. Doubleday 

 would seem to have tired of making an outlay which promised little or 

 no result. The first plan tried was to effect the decomposition of 

 common salt by means of oxide of lead, and to carbonate the caustic 

 soda, while the insoluble chloride of lead was heated to form a yellow 

 pigment, long known as Turner's yellow. Another process consisted in 

 decomposing common salt by sulphate of iron. The resulting sulphate 

 of soda was fluxed with coal, and the sulphide of sodium which was 

 formed was carbonated with sawdust. This plan was also worked some 

 time afterwards at an alkali manufactory situated near Blyth. Another 



* Read before the meeting of the British Assoeiation. 



