COPPABELLA BLACKSMITH CONSERVATION 1992 REPORT TO...
Transcript of COPPABELLA BLACKSMITH CONSERVATION 1992 REPORT TO...
0720.288 ACC
COPPABELLA BLACKSMITH CONSERVATION
1992
REPORT TO AUSTRALIAN NEWSPRINT MILLS PTY LTD
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3661
O.L£220000
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1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
1.
1. 2. 3.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.
CONTENTS
The Brief 1 Condition of the Site 2 Carpentry 3 Flue Stabilisation 5 Excavation Description 7 Excavation Notes 10 Note on the Bellows 11 Recommendations 12
APPENDIX Architectural Report 13 (with 9 prints and 1 drawing)
FIGURES Coppabella Farrier Features Artefact Population Stratigraphic Section
PLATES The forge seen from the northeast The forge seen from the southwest Shortening a purlin The Brick floor Detail of post base The twisted stack The corrected stack Earth floor in the east room Trench at the base of the stack Steel beam in place Detail of artefacts outside east room General view of the excavated surface
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1. The Brief
1.1 The brief for conservation work to the Coppabella
blacksmith, or farrier's workshop, arose from an initial
conservation study by Access Archaeology in 1987 1. The
agreed brief required :
(i) Shallow excavation (maximum depth 100mm
grading to zero) to occur in a band up to 3 metres wide
around the building. The purpose is to restore the historically
correct ground level by removing modern stockyard deposit
so that drainage can function and the bottom plates are
exposed. Excavation inside the building will be confined to
removing overburden from the bottom plates that need
replacing. Penetration of the floor will occur only if it is
necessary to underpin the hearth. Only qualified
archaeologists will be involved.
(ii) The structure requires some timber replacement.
The selected craftsman is Colin Mustard who has many years
of experience with broad axe and adze. As much original
material as possible will be retained in defective members.
Introduced timber will be selected and worked to
approximate the original. New post bases will be spliced as in
Diagram 1.1 of 1988.
(iii) The previous work in 1987 was exploratory.
Current works are aimed at the conservation of the place.
External excavation will commence with the removal of
recent cow manure by tractor blade. The historically correct
levels ascertained in 1987 will be exposed by trowel in metre
grids.
1Access Archaeology, 1988
(2)
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FIGURE TWO: ARTEFACT POPULATION
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FIGURE THREE: STRATIGRAPHIC SECTION hearth base, facing East, 9/5/91 depth in millimetres
Plate 1 : Restored building seen from northeast photo jw-g 9 I 5/91
Plate 3: Shortening a purlin; note skewed brickwork, lack of flashing. photo jw-g 23/4/91
Plate 4 : The brick floor photo jw-g 8/5/91
Plate 5 : Detail of new post base.and bottom plate (post 13) and the axes used for shaping. photo jw-g 11/4/91
Plate 6 : The twisted stack; note vertical fracture beside timber post, enlargement of stack above shoulder. photo jw-g 4/6/91
Plate 7: The corrected stack, note wired restraints on joists and rafters. photo jw-g 18/5/91
Plate 8 : The earth floor in the east room. facing south east1 note spare slab twitched to joist. photo jw-g 18/5/91
Plate 9: Excavation at the base of the stack; note that lowest course desends to the left (north) following original ground surface. photo jw-g 18/5/91
Plate 10 : The steel beam in place photo jw-g 18/5/91
Plate 11 : Detail of artefacts outside the east room. photo jw-g 7/12/91
Plate 12 :Facing East across the excavated smface; note slot drain at photo jw-g 7112/91
t!¥/lt~ldt4 'Bt4d4•tt' ~
(iv) The works are scheduled in two stages: (Stage 1).
- reduce soil around building to historically correct level - activate surface drainage
- splice new bases to posts
2
-replace rotted bottom plates, renew stops to match existing -secure cgi sheeting, capping and flashing
-secure gutter, replace dp's and bends
-renew bargeboards to match existing
-replace rotted weatherboards to match existing. (Stage 2)
- underpin hearth
- repoint flue
- remove rust from cgi and apply primer - replace missing slabs."
1.2 A permit was granted by the Heritage Council of NSW under s140 on 20 March 1991.
2. Condition of the Site
2.1 By March 1991 the building had deteriorated
markedly since 1987: some fabric had disappeared and it was
on the verge of collapse (see the Frontispiece). The hearth
stack to which the building had owed a large part of its
verticality had failed at last, twisting clockwise and tilting to
the northwest. An old slumping of the hearth (due to
inadequate footing) and movement of the building canted
the flue to the extent that joints had opened. The flue was
out of true with its base by 106mm at 2315mm above the
main crack (over 4 inches in less than eight feet); the overall
tilt from plumb was even greater owing to movement of the hearth (see Plate 6).
~fz/lecldt4 Bte.d4~ ~ 5
2.2 The roof was in good order except for some
displaced ridge cap but the west gable was badly decayed. The
majority of wall slabs and posts were rotting at the foot, the
east wall and some slabs were missing, all of the external base
plates were decayed (refer Architect's Report at Appendix 1).
2.3 The cattle yards mostly had been removed from
alongside the building but the accumulated debris remained
and the cobble surface, where detectable, was badly disturbed.
2.4 The poplars adjacent to the west wall had been cut
down. A grove of eucalypts has been planted immediately
north of the building. The historical authenticity of the
planting is unknown.
2.5 All the major artefacts (see Plate 6 in the 1988
report) had been removed for conservation by another party
although a number of horseshoes, bar scraps and some
relatively modern debitage remained.
3. Carpentry
3.1 The site was fortunate in the skills with a broad axe
of Mr Colin Mustard. Where a member could not be retained
care was taken to reproduce its form in locally sourced
timber. If a substantial part of a timber member could be
salvaged this was preferred to losing the whole (see Plate 5
for example). Some weathered material from other sources
was incorporated. The extent of work is described in
Appendix 1.
3.2 The initial task was to relieve the wall posts and
stack of the pressure from the roof then provide a stable base
for the roof to enable realignment. To this end screw jacks
were placed along the north wall and the slabs progressively
numbered then dropped out. All the north posts were
replaced. The load could now be spread between the jacks and
~Bt.add~~ 4
the new posts enabling the roof to be manceuvered
southeastward nearer to its original position. Complete
restoration of position was constrained by the slumping of
the hearth which could not be corrected without total
reconstruction but the roof is now close to its original three
dimensional location.
3.3 The process of jacking the roof, repairing the posts
and repositioning the slabs went clockwise around the
building, concluding with the north wall where the
temporary new posts were removed and earlier material
reintegrated with the building. Bottom plates were replaced
around the building, supported on timber stumps. An air
space has been retained beneath the plates to encourage
longevity and rabbit wire fixed across the aperture (this is an
innovation). The plates are mounted aproximately SOmm
higher than original and have a slightly thicker section to
compensate for the shortening of the wall slabs consequent
on their ends having rotted. Care was taken to replicate the
original construction method and to make a joint where an
original plate of short length had occurred.
3.4 The west gable has been largely replaced by second
hand weatherboards of a similar profile and texture to the
original. The introduced boards have been reversed showing
a painted surface inside the building (see Plate 7). The paint
was left on the boards because it is not intrusive (being in
shadow and well above the normal line of sight) and
demarcates the old from the new. The original nails were
withdrawn carefully from the gable and re-used as fixings.
3.5 The former power pole to which the building had
been tied with fence wire to prevent it collapsing was
removed and used to provide timber with a weathered
appearance (the pole had no other functional or historical
relevance). The remnants of the cattleyard adjacent to the
building were removed but were not sound enough for re
use.
~/letkt/4 'BI4e~.te4 e~ s
3.6 The roof timbers are sound and were left
undisturbed except in the vicinity of the stack. Owing to the
permanent deformation of the hearth and flue the roof
aperture had to be remade. Externally this involved cutting
the corrugated sheets and introducing new flashing.
Internally one purlin was shortened lOOmm to relieve
pressure on the stack (Plate 3) and a short batten beside the
stack (a fixing point for the cladding) was moved for the same
reason.
3.7 A light timber frame has been introduced around
the stack to rest on the joists. The intention is to reduce the
ability of the stack to buckle at its centre or to pivot on its
established failure points when subject to wind pressure for
example. The frame is made from split timbers that conform
to the rest of the structure and is wired in place so that it is
adjustable (see Plate 7).
4. Flue Stabilisation
4.1 Notionally the hearth and flue are the core of a
blacksmith's workshop. At Coppabella they were the last elements of the structure to be built and are much the worst.
The hearth was placed directly on the natural ground surface,
which slopes, and fill was introduced around it to produce a
level floor (see paragraphs 5.6 to 5.9 below). The horizon
underneath the topsoil is a plastic clay; this not only moves
in its own right in response to the presence of moisture but
has poor resistance to unequal load. The hearth apparently
began to shift even as the stack was being added.
4.2 The stack is idiosyncratic. It seems never to have
been properly vertical. It contains a series of slight angles as
though the builder was having some difficulty aiming for a
gap between the rafters then made a final attempt at
straightness as the stack poked into the sky. There are
changes in coursing below and above the roofline.
{!41if14k«A Btecd4~ ~ 6
4.3 The stack was both twisted and out of plumb at the
time of construction. It is also inherently unsound not only
for the lack of a stable footing and for the tilt but because of
the way that the flue is introduced to the stack. Plates 6 and 7
show that the flue mouth occurs above the shoulders of the
stack at a point where the stack is only one and a half
stretchers wide and one header thick, ie the weakest point in
the structure. The stack actually enlarges above the flue
mouth so that it is wider at the top than at the bottom. The
effect is a bifold movement: firstly the base tilted under the
load (note the crack in the hearth in Plate 6), secondly the
stack failed and articulated around the flue mouth.
4.4 There were thus three problems : retaining the
characteristics of the stack (which charitably may be described
as vernacular), averting imminent collapse, introducing
stability.
4.5 Having relieved the pressure from the roof the
major cracks in the stack were cleaned of grit and the upper
stack containing the flue was gradually moved by jack until
the gaps in the brickwork had closed. Although tilted it was
now in its correct relationship to the base. The fractured
joints were regrouted. With the jack still in position, a pier
and beam foundation was introduced beneath the base of the
stack at the rear of the hearth. The piers are cement poured
into holes 300mm x 300mm descending 300mm below the
lowest course of bricks. The beam is a steel channel (200 x 75 x
2000 mm) laid on edge. Prior to fixing the beam the stack base
notionally could have been jacked plumb but it would then be out of kilter with the rest of the hearth (to which it is not
adequately attached) and there was a risk of an additional
joint failure from the unprecedented stress causing total
collapse of the stack. The base of the stack is therefore still in
its historically correct position but protected from both
further sinking and lateral movement.
f3¥/leektl4 'Ct.:te~•~ ~ 7
4.6 It is emphasised that the measures taken are
intended to address the construction flaws in relation to
existing conditions. Should additional stresses be introduced
by tempest, earthquake, building failure, impact on the
building, thermal stress caused by relighting the forge, or
other cause, it is essential that the stack be inspected for
damage or movement. To this end the cosmetic regrouting
should be regularly inspected for fractures.
5. Excavation Description
5.1 The preliminary earthworks were conducted
mechanically. Hand excavation followed in three stages.
5.2 Because the east wall of the building was missing,
stock habitually camped in the east room leaving a deep layer
of manure. Since this had to be disturbed to gain access to the
bottom plates, the whole of it was removed. The hard-set
manure was scraped by tractor blade then excavated by hand.
No artefacts were recovered. Beneath the manure lay a hard
dirt floor made of brick clay mixed when wet with fresh
manure possibly with further induration by an admixture of
lime. There has been some damage to the floor surface from
stock before the later deposit was sufficient to protect it but
generally the floor is in good condition with a clear wear
pattern opposite the door (Plate 8). The floor extends up to
500mm (say 18 inches) beyond the building which suggests
that it was laid after the post frame was built (there was no
clear indication that the floor had been pierced for post holes)
but before the wall slabs were erected.
5.3 Coincident with exposing the floor, approximately
120mm of deposit from the cattleyards was scraped away
from the west face of the building. A small Ford Dexta tractor
with an 8' blade and 1/3 yard bucket was used. Power
equipment can produce delicate results, it showed here that
the paved yard surface had lost its grade and become
f3¥fletktt4 Bt.uMIIUt4 e~
discontinuous also it suggested that there was another
subsurface feature two metres east of the building.
K
5.4 Test excavations in 1987 had established that the
ground south of the building was paved using waterworn
stone and brick batts, graded to drain water away from the
building, apparently to the east. It was intended by the
current brief to expose the cobbles and reinstate the drainage
if possible. A one metre wide trench was excavated eastward,
parallel to the smithy and lOOOmm out from the bottom plate
from the door to the east room to the subsurface feature. This
indicated that the cobble paving is no longer a continuous
surface. Since a simple reinstatement of drainage was not
practicable due to the newly revealed feature, the remaining
overburden was regraded temporarily to drain west. A
modern dump of clay immediately west of the building was
removed to allow drainage around the end of the building.
5.5 When excavated by hand in a metre grid, the
feature appeared as a rectangular pad of brick roughly three
metres by two (Plate 4). The feature is let into the surface of
the ground (there is a backfilled trench approximately 70mm
wide along the east margin) and some trouble has been taken
to create a nearly level surface. The bricks, which are mostly
batts, are lightly fired and softer than the cementitious
jointing mortar so that they have worn, leaving the mortar
proud. The feature is certainly a floor. It has been laid to fit
the irregular margin of the yard paving (which it postdates).
The north and east margins also were laid to fit an existing
feature (no longer extant) that included at least two posts.
Unfortunately the ground about the floor is very disturbed
(note the deep hole in Plate 4) so the excavation could not be
easily pursued, it would not in any case have contributed
directly to the conservation of the fabric of the smithy.
f3¥1Jeck«a ~l4d4t~~IU ~ 9
5.6 The second stage of excavation occurred in April
1991 when the majority of the carpentry had been completed
and the stack straightened. A trench was cut (300mm wide x
110mm deep) across the rear of the hearth at the base of the
flue. The trench extended 200mm beyond the hearth at each
end where it was sunk up to 600mm. The purpose of the
trench was to enable a concealed pier and beam to be
introduced beneath the rear of the hearth to support the load
of the flue.
5.7 The hearth had been sat directly on the natural
ground surface at the north and slightly inset at the south
where the ground rises. The inset is too small so that above
the base course the bricks corbel out (see Plate 9). Clay had
been dumped in the forge room to provide a level floor
(300mm deep at the north of the hearth, reducing to 110mm
deep immediately south of the hearth) but it was not packed
into the voids of the irregular brickwork so that the vertical
load of the stack (that is transmitted through the outer brick,
see paragraph 4.6 above) was not supported but relied on the lateral strength of the hearth. Inevitably the hearth has
fractured and the stack has slumped, aggravating the
inherent instability of the upper reaches of the flue.
5.8 Concrete pads were poured at each end of the trench
and a rolled steel beam introduced beneath the corbel. The
beam has been packed tightly into place (see Plate 10) and
buried in original floor material.
5.9 Instructions were sought from the client as to the
desirability of continuing to excavate the yard. The decision
to continue seeking the paving along the south face of the
smithy was put into effect in December 1991 as the third stage
of excavation. In the intervening period the farrier's artefacts
had been replaced which greatly improves the interpretative
value of the site. Regrettably the bellows are not correctly
installed (this can be remedied) and heavy machinery was
e~~~,.letfA ~t4d4•tt' e~
driven repeatedly across the yard during wet weather,
compressing the thin overburden, churning part of the
newly exposed paving and fracturing the brick floor.
1()
5.10 The metre grid of 1987 was reinstalled to a width of
three metres along the south face of the smithy. The
compressed overburden was chipped by crowbar before being
removed by trowel and brush. It was found that the earth
floor of the building protrudes in a distinct lip up to 500mm
(say 18") wide. There has also been a path roughly formed
from brick batts leading to the forge doorway from the
southwest. There is a patch of brick batts outside the eastern
door. The cobble paving is generally in good order east of the
path but deteriorates to the west where in later years it had to
support the initial press of cattle into the yard. The surface of
the paving supports a substantial population of metal scrap
and artefacts (Plate 11). The incidence is shown in Figure Two
which demonstrates that like the cobbles, the metal
population decreases west of the forge entrance. The artefacts
have been left in position where they make a really evocative
display.
6. Excavation Notes
6.1 The metre grid is shown in Figure 1. Detailed
excavation occurred inside the building and along the south
face. The natural slope north of the building did not need
enhancement. Surface drainage now occurs westward acro~s
the paving to a small channel cut into the overburden (see
Plate 12) that directs any run-off onto a swale shaped by the
tractor around the west end of the building.
6.2 The stockyard overburden south of the building is a
compound of clay and manure. The colour, on exposure to
the sun, changed within minutes from pink to grey and
continued to vary with light and moisture. True ground, on
which the pebbles were laid is an orange clay. This layer was
not penetrated. The clay appears to be quite plastic when wet
f1¥/141dta ~f4d4.1d-~ 11
and it is likely that over time more paving will appear on the
surface.
6.3 The stratigraphy revealed by the excavation beneath
the coke fuel dump beside the hearth is quite simple,
comprising levelling fill, a thin band of grey soil (the original
ground surface) and two clay horizons (see Figure Three).
6.4 No artefacts were removed from the site. None
were recovered from the overburden (which was dry seived
through a 3mm sieve) and the forge detritus was left in situ
on the cobbles.
7. Note on the Bellows
7.1 The bellows are supported on a timber frame
comprising two uprights set in the ground with two cross
pieces. The bellows rest on the lower cross-piece; the upper
links the uprights, fixes the bellows operating lever and is
attached by a brace to the west wall. The uprights have bored
holes to adjust the height of the bellows. The cross pieces are
(or were) pegged and nailed in position.
7.2 The bellows have been reinstalled with new
uprights that do not replicate the old. One of the original
uprights has been used as the upper cross-piece, fastened with
steel reinforcing rods spiked through and bent over. The
brace is missing. The second upright was found in the yard
outside and has been put for safety in the east room. The
water jacket was in the wrong place and not connected (this
has been corrected) and comparison with a 1987 photograph
suggests that a number of artefacts have not been replaced.
e~flfleaktt4 ~(Addf~Ud, ~ 12
8. Recommendations
8.1 The continued stability of the flue be monitored.
8.2 The exterior timber receive another coat of CUPRINOL Clear before Winter 1992.
8.3 The artefacts on the cobbles should be stabilised to inhibit corrosion.
8.4 Vehicles should be kept away from the yard.
8.5 The bellows should be correctly mounted.
8.6 A spare slab has been twitched to the rafters in the
east room. When the new slabs in the east wall have shrunk,
they should be cramped and the extra slab introduced.
8.7 The stable building needs professional conservation
attention as a matter of some urgency. The bark ceiling is
intact but considerable damage has been done to the timber
floor and stalls by cattle and the two skillion areas have been demolished.
8.8 The architectural recommendations of Appendix One should be followed.
~flpetk«c 'Bt4d4•ie4 ~
Appendix One: Architectural Report Preamble
This report records the extent of conservation
works to the building fabric. The recording of
siteworks and works to the dirt floors is recorded elsewhere.
The building was temporarily propped for safety,
and a process of cable winching and twitching
restored as much verticality as possible. The
contractor, Colin and Wayne Mustard of
Delegate, NSW was instructed to remove the
minimum of original material, in accordance
with current conservation practice. Jointing
methods are varied in the building, and these
were selected and copied at each joint as appropriate.
Summary of works
Conservation works were undertaken to
reconstruct walls, replace decayed materials that
were placing the building at risk, and returning
structural stability to the building. Joints were
checked and made good as required. The forge
was also re-plumbed and underpinned. Roofing
and cappings were re-secured, and flashings repaired. Gutters were made good.
Description of conservation works;
1 North wall
Bottom plates, posts, post bases and slabs were
replaced (plates 1, 2 and 3). Local seasoned
hardwood (stringybark) logs were supplied by
IS
~~eek«a ~tad411144 ~
ANM for these purposes.
The slabs were re-dressed at the bases to fit to the new plates. Hardwood stops were fixed to retain
the slabs.
Second hand hexagonal wire netting was placed
over the windows to prevent access by vermin,
and to offer some security.
Upon completion of the woodwork, cuprinol
'clear' was applied to all exposed end-grain, and at
the bases of most slabs.
2 West wall
A new bottom plate was provided, between new
post bases at the corners (plate 4).
Slabs were re-fitted in original positions.
The gable weatherboards were re-secured, and
missing or decayed boards were replaced with
similar, second-hand material. Original nails
were re-used where practicable.
3 South wall (plates 5, 6 and 7)
Slab walls were re- assembled, following the
provision of bottom plates. A new post was
provided for the west leaf of the double door.
Original hinges were re-used to rehang the doors.
A conjectural re-constructed door was provided
(plate 7). The original configuration of this
opening was not clear, but the original studs were re-used in their original locations. Short slab
infill was installed above the door, copying
bulkheads elsewhere.
The guttering was re-fixed to fall to introduced
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'
~/ltekt/4 Bt~~-id e~
galvanised downpipes at each end. Second hand
downpipes were used to minimise the visual impact of introduced material.
4 East wall (plates 8, 9)
No useable bottom plate survived, but a close
analysis of the plates determined that vertical
slabs had been in place along the east side. No
openings were evident. A new, rebated bottom
plate was installed, and slabs held with a stop
were fitted. New corner posts were installed (plate 9).
The gable boards survived in moderately intact
state. They were re-secured where necessary.
5 Forge
The forge was winched and jacked back to a safer,
but not truly plumb position. Roof battens were
trimmed approximately lOOmm to allow the required clearance.
Rude timber cleats were twitched onto the roof
ties with wire. These are to add support to the
flue. Open joints were repainted with cement
rich mortar. This provides adequate compressive strength to withstand potential further
settlement of the forge. The base of the forge was
underpinned in accordance with the attached drawing.
Recommendations for future maintenance .
. 1 Apply cuprinol'clear' to all external
timber on an annual basis. (Available from
Dulux Trade Centre- Wagga Wagga).
Approximately 40 litres is required to coat the entire building.
15
~fleck«a Bt~.te4 ~
.2 Regularly inspect the cleats introduced to support the chimney. Ensure that the wire
twitches are tightened as necessary .
.3 Regularly inspect the roofing, cappings
and flashings, and maintain in a weatherproof and secure condition .
. 4 Protect the building from vermin, and
monitor for termite attack. Protect as required, and in strictly in accordance with current standards of practice.
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