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How can understandings of work practices in the late 19th and early 20th centuries contribute to understandings of work in contemporary society? Both Lithgow Blast Furnace and Eveleigh Railway Workshops – through the development of their industrial and technological parks, respectively – are places where change and continuity in work and technology can be traced from the past through to the present.
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Iron smelting and locomotive construction were major early 20th century developments undertaken at the Furnace and the Workshops. Both places were ‘cutting edge’ facilities of the period. Iron smelting commenced in Lithgow at the Eskbank Colliery in 1875. The Lithgow Blast Furnace – started in 1906 and completed in 1907 – was the sole producer of iron in Australia during the first seven years of its operation, and remained a major producer for the next thirteen. |
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When Eveleigh Railway Workshops opened in 1887, the site featured state-of-the-art technology in operational systems for the repair and maintenance of steam trains. In 1907 – with the construction of the New Locomotive Shop – Eveleigh Workshops became the only facility involved in locomotive construction in New South Wales.
In 1928 the Lithgow Steel Works was abandoned and operations moved to Port Kembla where the natural resources and transport network were more advantageous to developing the industry. The Eveleigh Railway Workshops became increasingly obsolete when it was decided to replace steam locomotives with diesel trains. The changeover to diesel was complete by 1965 – and the workshops finally closed in 1988.
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