Brookhouse Colliery and coking plant (1974)

[crosscity]

I took this photo near the scrapyard at Beighton Junction in 1974.

It is of Drewry Class 04 Shunter No D2229 at Beighton Junction, which I presume was between duties at Brookhouse Colliery and coking plant. This shunter was owned by the National Coal Board after being transferred from BR in 1969. Around 1990 the loco was acquired by the Heritage Shunters Trust and is stored at Rowsley (Peak Rail).


24Jun74. Beighton Junction. Drewry shunter D2229. [Slide_0618] by Ray, on Flickr

I'm interested to know what the colliery/coking plant buildings and structures are in the background.

 

[randyrippley]

this page may give some idea
http://www.ipernity.com/doc/earthwatcher/album/807588

 

[crosscity]

this page may give some idea
http://www.ipernity.com/doc/earthwatcher/album/807588

The pictures are very interesting. I can't quite see if any of them identify the structures, especially the one that looks as though it is covered in scaffolding.

 

[AndrewE]

I took this photo near the scrapyard at Beighton Junction in 1974.

It is of Drewry Class 04 Shunter No D2229 at Beighton Junction, which I presume was between duties at Brookhouse Colliery and coking plant. This shunter was owned by the National Coal Board after being transferred from BR in 1969. Around 1990 the loco was acquired by the Heritage Shunters Trust and is stored at Rowsley (Peak Rail). 24Jun74. Beighton Junction. Drewry shunter D2229. [Slide_0618] by Ray, on Flickr

I'm interested to know what the colliery/coking plant buildings and structures are in the background.

Making coke generates lots of volatiles in addition to coal gas. Coke ovens therefore have the equipment to filter and store the gas for fuel, plus some chemical engineering plant to separate and make safe or store the other fractions for sale if they have not been burnt to fuel the process too.
Given how toxic and / or flammable most of the by-products are, the safest way to support the mini-oil refinery is probably an open structure so that poisonous or explosive areas cannot build up... so I would guess that the "scaffolding" is just the support tower with some intermediate floors.