New Basford National Ordnance Factory |
| Hob Uid: 1572889 | |
Location :
City of Nottingham
Non Civil Parish
|
| Grid Ref : SK5598042130 |
| Summary : New Basford National Ordnance Factory was established after a lace factory was taken over under the Defence of the Realm Act in December 1917. It was set up to produce a new type of gun for the battlegrounds of the First World War; the 37mm (1.5 pounder) required by the Air Force. This was initially developed by the Coventry Ordnance Works but manufacture on a large scale required additional premises. A lace factory was taken over at New Basford, which occupied a floor space of 40,000 feet. It was strongly built but old, poorly lit and badly ventilated. Considerable alterations were required. The work of dismantling the equipment in the old factory began at the end of 1917, new plant was installed in February 1918, and manufacture began in May. The first two guns were not completed until mid October so the factory had hardly got under way by the time the Armistice was signed in November. The chief difficulty had been a lack of skilled labour and a prolonged development period as a result. Nonetheless manufacture continued until 31st March 1919. At the end of 1918 the factory employed 400 people of whom 160 were women. The capital expenditure by the government was £199,000. |
More information : New Basford National Ordnance Factory was established after a lace factory was taken over under the Defence of the Realm Act in December 1917. It was set up to produce a new type of gun for the battlegrounds of the First World War; the 37mm (1.5 pounder) required by the Air Force. This was initially developed by the Coventry Ordnance Works but manufacture on a large scale required additional premises. A lace factory was taken over at New Basford, which occupied a floor space of 40,000 feet. It was strongly built but old, poorly lit and badly ventilated. Considerable alterations were required. The work of dismantling the equipment in the old factory began at the end of 1917, new plant was installed in February 1918, and manufacture began in May. The first two guns were not completed until mid October so the factory had hardly got under way by the time the Armistice was signed in November. The chief difficulty had been a lack of skilled labour and a prolonged development period as a result. Nonetheless manufacture continued until 31st March 1919. At the end of 1918 the factory employed 400 people of whom 160 were women. The capital expenditure by the government was £199,000. [1]
The lace factory is shown on the 1882 OS Map (1:2500) at SK55984213 and must have been built before that date. The footprint of the buildings to each side of High Church Street on the modern OS map (1:2500, 2012) closely match those on the 1882 map indicating that the original factory buildings are still extant. [2-3] |