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Commercial Gas Company

From London's Ghost Acres

Revision as of 15:35, 28 September 2015 by EliseLehmann (Talk | contribs)



Operation

1837 to 1949


Located in

London

Description

The Commercial Gas Light & Coke Company was founded in 1837. The company had gas works in 1839 at Harford St., Stepney and at Leven Street, Poplar in 1878. The Commercial Gas Light & Coke Company absorbed the British Gas Light Company in 1852 and the Ratcliffe Gas Light and Coke Company in 1875. In 1949 the Commercial Gas Light & Coke Company was taken over by the North Thames Gas Board (The National Archives).

Gas works were used to produce and store flammable gas. Coal was largely mined in Britain but also shipped in from Russia, Germany, Sweden, and Norway. The coal was shipped in on a barge up the river or on trains and then burned to create the gas, which was then purified and put into the gas holders until needed for consumer use. The process also created coke, tar, ammonia, and sulphur as by-products.

51.51921, -0.03758 Hartford St, Stepney

51.51609, -0.00239 Leven Rd, Poplar

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/rd/1f76e69f-552f-4187-b402-0e3f186e8b4b