Fairbairn Steam Crane, Bristol. United Kingdom. - Preserved Machines on Public Display on Waymarking.com

Built in 1878, the Fairbairn Steam Crane is the oldest surviving exhibit of its type in Britain. The crane is one of the M Shed exhibits and is kept in in full working order by a team of volunteers. It fires up on selected weekends when visitors can learn all about its working life on the dockside.
Although many of Fairbairn’s cranes were powered by hand and therefore unable to lift very heavy loads, the steam-powered Bristol crane could lift an impressive 35 tons. Prior to this, none of the dock’s 17 other cranes could lift more than 3 tons. This limit on weight capacity was increasingly becoming a problem for Bristol Docks because ship design was changing so rapidly during the 1870s. The Industrial Revolution was in full-swing and metal hulled ships were becoming much bigger and their cargos were becoming heavier; if bigger cranes were not commissioned, Bristol Docks would lose out to other competing docks.
Since Bristol Docks had already invested heavily in building a railway line adjacent to the harbour quay, the decision was taken to spend £3,600 on a desperately needed steam crane. So, in 1875, the order was placed and construction commenced. After 3 years, The Fairbairn Steam Crane in Bristol was completed in August of 1878.

Type of Machine: Steam Crane Year the machine was built: 1878 Year the machine was put on display: 1973 Is there online documentation for this machine: [Web Link]

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Date Logged Log   02/27/2022 staticman1 visited it