OLD DEVONPORT . UK
www.olddevonport.uk
 

ROYAL DOCKYARD  |  KEYHAM STEAM YARD

THE QUADRANGLE

The largest and most significant building within the Keyham Steam Yard was The Quadrangle.  Dating from the 1850s, the Quadrangle was designed by Mr Charles Barry and on its own covered about 10 acres.  It measures 780 feet long by 354 feet broad.  It is covered by a vast glass roof containing upwards of 20,000 panes supported on iron girders resting on iron columns.  Sometimes the Quadrangle was referred to as "The Factory".

The Quadrangle or Foundry in North Yard, which is now an Ancient Monument.
©  Property Services Agency, Department of the Environment.

The Quadrangle was divided into various shops.   On the south side were the Turnery, with a Fitting Shop above; a Heavy Turnery; and the Erecting Shop.  On the western side were Number 1 Store, at the southern end, offices over the central entrance, and Number 2 Store, with Sail Loft over, at the northern end.  A Boiler Shop and Boiler Machine Shop occupied the north side and an Iron Foundry the east side, the two chimneys of which remain a landmark even today.  Also in the complex were shops for the coppersmiths, blacksmiths, erecting, clipping, punching, and drilling and a smithy run in connection with the foundry.  There were a number of Nasmyth's steam hammers in the foundry, including one named "Thor", which weighed five tons.  It could hit with a stroke of one hundred tons or just the force to crack a nut.  The Quadrangle was filled with boilers of all shapes and dimensions, each baring the name of a ship, as they were duplicates of those in use in the ships whose names they carried and could thus be used to quickly replace boilers in the event of accidents.

Another side of the Quadrangle in North Yard.
©  Property Services Agency, Department of the Environment.

To the rear, or east, of the Quadrangle is the Iron Foundry, with its two massive chimneys.

The Quadrangle is a registered Ancient Monument.  It is considered to be the finest and most complete group of Victorian dockyard development to have survived relatively unaltered, its most important features being the north, west and south frontages.