Introduction
I’m aware this has been visited and posted numerous times on the forum, but this is a much-loved site amongst the community so I thought it would be worth sharing my stance on the place, albeit a bit late to the party.
History
Founded in 1836, George Barnsley & Sons Ltd manufactured forged filing and cutting tools for leather workers and shoemakers. An old listing in the Sheffield directory from 1837 describes GB's as a file manufacturer situated on Wheeldon Street. Later, the works later moved to Cornish Street. The new, presumably larger site, enabled George Barnsley’s to expand its product range, introducing butcher knives in addition to steel and shoe files.
The business was converted to a limited company around a decade prior to Barnsley's death and the works closed in 2004. The site also has a bit of history, it suffered from damage during WW2, and three men died from trying to loosen up a cable on the site causing a chimney to collapse.
The closure of the works was inevitable thanks to a number of technological advancements in the industry that we're able to replicate operations at a considerably more efficient rate, which brought trouble for George Barnsley’s.
I found so much history on this place and I could write for hours, but it's been covered hundreds of times on 28DL and other forums so I won't expand further. For more information, it’s well worth a Google or a look at other reports here as it was really interesting to learn about the business.
The Explore
This was easily one of my favourite places I've explored in my 8 years of Urbex. As other members have mentioned, it really is a time-warp and the retro style of the place easily made for some excellent photos and an interesting visit. The entry itself was easy, and it was very chilled out with no trouble. We did hear some people upstairs whilst we were on the ground floor but we didn't actually see them.
Entry comes and goes for this place so I'm told, but I'd highly recommend giving it a go, as there aren't many places like this left now!
As it is a fairly substantial site, I'll be including more than the recommended max of 15 photos for this one, but I think it is justified. Thanks for reading and enjoy the photos!
Oh - and thanks to @Mikeymutt for providing some tips for entrance etc - even though myself and @V50jake didn’t follow them properly the first time and got confused haha.
I’m aware this has been visited and posted numerous times on the forum, but this is a much-loved site amongst the community so I thought it would be worth sharing my stance on the place, albeit a bit late to the party.
History
Founded in 1836, George Barnsley & Sons Ltd manufactured forged filing and cutting tools for leather workers and shoemakers. An old listing in the Sheffield directory from 1837 describes GB's as a file manufacturer situated on Wheeldon Street. Later, the works later moved to Cornish Street. The new, presumably larger site, enabled George Barnsley’s to expand its product range, introducing butcher knives in addition to steel and shoe files.
The business was converted to a limited company around a decade prior to Barnsley's death and the works closed in 2004. The site also has a bit of history, it suffered from damage during WW2, and three men died from trying to loosen up a cable on the site causing a chimney to collapse.
The closure of the works was inevitable thanks to a number of technological advancements in the industry that we're able to replicate operations at a considerably more efficient rate, which brought trouble for George Barnsley’s.
I found so much history on this place and I could write for hours, but it's been covered hundreds of times on 28DL and other forums so I won't expand further. For more information, it’s well worth a Google or a look at other reports here as it was really interesting to learn about the business.
The Explore
This was easily one of my favourite places I've explored in my 8 years of Urbex. As other members have mentioned, it really is a time-warp and the retro style of the place easily made for some excellent photos and an interesting visit. The entry itself was easy, and it was very chilled out with no trouble. We did hear some people upstairs whilst we were on the ground floor but we didn't actually see them.
Entry comes and goes for this place so I'm told, but I'd highly recommend giving it a go, as there aren't many places like this left now!
As it is a fairly substantial site, I'll be including more than the recommended max of 15 photos for this one, but I think it is justified. Thanks for reading and enjoy the photos!
Oh - and thanks to @Mikeymutt for providing some tips for entrance etc - even though myself and @V50jake didn’t follow them properly the first time and got confused haha.
