The key dates are taken from A History Of The Doncaster Plant Works From 1853 To The Present Day By J.E. Day, Doncaster 1953. The document is available from Doncaster Library Refce. L 625.2 DAY (outsize)
1853
- Main building with the Lower and Upper Turning Shops (requiring hoist connection for material to the upper level)
- Carriage Shop, Grinding Shop, Boiler House, Engine Room, Stores, Admin offices, e.g. Loco Engr, Works Mgr, Drawing Office, Timekeeper, Committee Room, Waiting Room, Baths for workmen.
- Boiler Shop, Coppersmith’s Shop, Brass Foundry (with 4 crucible hearths).
- Engine Erecting Shop with 3 bays, centre bay with pit for movements into and out of the Shop, two side bays each with 15 pits for the repair of 30 locomotives.
- Large Wheel Park. Smithy Shop, steam hammers, hearths for forging.
- Wagon Shop, 3 bays like the Engine Erecting Shop, side bays each had 19 repairing roads.
- Second Carriage Shop, similar to Wagon Shop, but facility to repair/build 16 carriages in each side bay.
1854
- Smithy Shop enlarged.
1866
- Steam Hammer Shop.
- Engine Erecting Shop extended with 12 more pits, now accommodates 42 locomotives.
- Tender Shop provided, has machinery for slotting and drilling of engine and tender frames.
- Boiler Shop extended to almost double its original size, now has a riveting machine.
- Smith Shop has a further four steam hammers.
- Spring Shop provided, manufactures all springs that are required.
- Carriage Shop removed elsewhere, so that the Upper and Lower Turneries could be enlarged.
- Upper Turnery has lathes, drilling, planing and slotting machines, brass finishing, Lower Turnery has the heavier machinery devoted to boring and planing of locomotive cylinders, turning and boring of wheel centres, machining of engine, carriage and wagon axles.
- Large Brass Foundry provided.
- Two new Carriage Shops with facilities to build/repair 130 carriages.
- Two new Wagon Shops with facilities to build/repair 130 wagons.
- Saw Mill erected.
1881
- Iron Foundry built.
1882
- New Boiler Shop opened, two bays. Riveting carried out by hydraulic riveting machines.
1889
- Foundry equipment modernised.
1890-91
- New Erecting Shop opened, sited between the Forge and New Boiler Shop. Two large erecting bays each of which has a centre road with pits running the length of the shop on either side. Each pit accommodates five engines.
1891
- A third Machine Shop built, between the Smithy and Old Erecting Shop in the space where was the old Wheel Park.
- Machinery includes slotting, shaping and drilling machines.
1893
- Engine Weigh House installed with Denison weighing machines.
1896
- Compressed air equipment installed, for the use of portable pneumatic drills, caulking, chipping hammers.
1897-98
- West Carriage Shop built.
1899
- Two New Wagon Shops provided on the Carr.
- North Shop had 7 roads and could deal with 140 wagons.
- South Shop had 15 roads and could deal with 220 wagons, also a Goods Shop for building drays, vans and road other vehicles.
1900-01
- Crimpsall Engine Repair Shop built, with four main bays each with four repairing pits and a stripping pit in
the centre. road, with accommodation for 100 engines. Also two small bays, one for coppersmiths and one for boilersmiths. - Wheel Shop provided at the West end of the Crimpsall.
- Tender Repair Shop also at the West end. Two large repairing bays and one smaller machine bay. The repairing bays each had two repairing pits, with a total capacity for repairing 32 tenders.
1901
- West Carriage Shop altered. The roof was raised so that two 20 ton overhead cranes could replace the previous lifting jacks that were used.
1902
- Locomotive Paint Shop opened. Eight roads provided, each holding five engines.
1906
- Carriage Building Shop (east end) and Paint Shop connected by an electric traverser
1907
- Forge Shop had Drop hammers were installed.
- Boiler Shop had a large hydraulic riveter installed.
1910
- Old Erecting Shop now utilised for constructing new tenders, steel carriage underframes and carriage bogie frames.
1930
- New Main Machine Shop converted from the old Erecting Shop and adjacent Tender Shop, with the
machinery taken out of the Turneries. - Around this period Tender shop had one bay adapted for the repairing of superheater flue tubes and boiler
tubes, anther bay adapted to accommodate boilers undergoing heavy repair. - Crimpsall Engine Repair Shop had one pit taken over for tender repairs, anther pit fitted with drilling, boring, shaping machines concerned with the manufacture and reconditioning of axleboxes.
- Crimpsall Engine Repair Shop. The repairing of engines was concentrated in two bays. The third bay was used for heavy boiler repairs.
- Tender Shop second bay now adapted to serve as an Engine Stripping Shop.
- Wagon Shops had a Saw Mill for sawing bulk timber into planks.
1935
- New Weigh House built between the Crimpsall Engine Repair Shop and the Locomotive Paint Shop.
Around 1936
- Central Drawing Office in the old turnery, with separate offices being provided for Locomotive and C. &
W. Departments.
1940, 21st December
- Fire destroyed the Saw Mill, Carriage Building Shop, Carriage Electrician’s Shop and Hair Shop. Carriage Paint Shop was saved with difficulty.
1948
- New Carriage Building Shop completed (replacing the one destroyed by fire).