In 1901, a Smith Bros. & Eastwood, 300 hp. tandem compound engine was installed at Cross Lane Mill, Low Bradley, Nr. Skipton, for the weaving firm of Peter Green & Sons.  It replaced an earlier beam engine at the mill.  The tandem engine, built in Bradford, then ran the mill for 77 years.

Early in 2003, the mill premises were sold for development into houses and flats.  The previous owner was anxious that the engine should be preserved.  To this end, an enthusiast was given ownership and permission to dismantle and remove the engine, and find a new home for it.  The position became more acute as the engine was dismantled, with nowhere to store it under cover.  At this stage, the Committee at Bancroft Trust offered to find room in a large store at Bancroft Mill, and the Bradley engine parts were transported there.

Talks were instituted between the engine owner and Bancroft Trust, which resulted in a plan to re-erect the engine at Bancroft Mill as an added attraction, with the hope of eventually turning it over by steam.

The Smith Bros. & Eastwood engine is an example of a different type of engine to the Bancroft engine, ie, tandem configuration, as opposed to cross compound, both operating in the Craven area.  It is an example of a northern-built engine with several novel features, and is in excellent condition. 

It is believed to be the sole surviving engine built by Smith Bros. & Eastwood of Bradford.

The erection and display of this engine, together with full interpretation of its operation and history of Bradley Mill, will enhance the value of visits to Bancroft Mill by the public.  The engine, however, can only be rebuilt if the Bancroft store building is extended. 

This rare 1901 Smith Bros. & Eastwood steam engine has an overall “footprint” of 41 feet x 4 feet.  The proposed new home for the engine, a large brick/stone building at Bancroft Mill, currently used as a store, is 30 feet long and 20 feet wide.  At the front of the building, facing Gillians Lane, are four, wooden, sliding doors.

To accommodate the engine within this building, it has to be extended by approximately 16 feet.  The extension would be added to either the rear gable-end, or front gable, where there is adequate space whichever end is chosen.  To improve the frontage of the building, and also improve natural lighting of the interior, it is proposed to replace the sliding doors with two glazed, arched windows/doors, from the Bradley Mill engine and boiler house, which would enhance the appearance of the frontage and be in keeping with the new role of the building.

With the project completed, the engine would occupy one half of the complete length of the building, together with safety railings in place.  The public access to the building would be via a side door from the Mill yard, and all moving parts of the engine could be viewed from the remaining half of the building.  Good natural lighting would be ensured by the arched windows at the front, two existing side windows, and extensive glazing of the proposed extension.

text & images © 2007 Bancroft Mill Engine Trust