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The Victorian and Edwardian buildings and landscapes of Stirling
are where most ironwork is to be found, around the Kings Park
and the Victorian graveyards below the castle. Industry was
important in Stirling however. We were the Empire's leading
perambulator specialists, aeronautical and agricultural engineers
for many years !
Our Millenium Award prompted us to focus on our local environment,
and we thought Stirling would be a good place for us to cut
our 'iron' teeth. We have been astounded to find a wealth
of ironwork which we had not been fully aware of, and it has
inspired us to look at other Scottish towns and cities. We
have stimulated much interest in this important aspect of
our built heritage with the good folk of Stirling and hope
we can build on this success elsewhere.
Whilst the Falkirk area enjoyed a proliferation of foundries
inspired by Carron, Stirling did not develop ironfounding
to anything like the same extent, despite having good sources
of coal.
According to 'Industries of Stirling District' in 1909,
the first iron foundry was situated in the 'hollow' of St
Ninians, worked by Mr Thomas Smith. His largest work was the
casting of the railings around the Kings Park (much of this
ironwork is actually wrought rather than cast).
The St Ninians Foundry was relatively small, supplying
items to the nail making trade which was undertaken on a large
scale here. John Christie, ironmonger in King Street had a
small foundry in Shore Road and manufactured railings and
other light castings for the local area. Another foundry was
situated at the Burnside beside MacDonald Fraser & Co's
auction Mart stood.
John Christie relocated his Shore Road foundry to
Orchard Place around 1885 and sold it in 1887 to Messrs Wylie,
Smith And Davie, Davie being a blacksmith, Wylie a millwright
and Smith a moulder, the owner of the St Ninians Foundry.
Smith retired a few years later, replaced by Bailie Brown
and Young, farmer at Taylorton. They also retired after a
few years, and Bailie Davie was joined by his two sons John
and James, who was to be the principal driving force of the
firm. Serving his apprenticeships with Foundries in Glasgow
and Hull and Manchester, returning to Stirling in 1873, James
developed the business with his father and brother. On his
fathers death in 1885 James Davie worked the business for
seventeen years, taking his two sons into the firm in 1902.
Five generations of the family were therefore involved in
the business.
James Davie & Sons developed a reputation for structural
castings, particularly columns, also supplying structural
steelwork. The report of 1902 describes plant owned by the
firm , and that a machine was now employed for cutting beams,
wondering 'one wonders how people had the patience to do the
cutting (by hand)'. The steel beams were Scottish bought rather
than imported (even thought they were more expensive, and
the firm enjoyed a reputation for good quality materials.
The company were operating on fairly major projects from
their Goosecroft Road premises, projects including:
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