Beckton Gas Works History – East London Victorian Industry

The gasworks at Beckton in the borough of Newham played a significant role in the East End industry for over 100 years. Its story also illustrates how this once thriving industrial area has declined and changed its focus. Formerly the largest gasworks in Europe, Beckton Gasworks was in use from 1870 to 1969, when it closed down.

Beckton Gas Works Legacy

The site buildings and structure no longer exist, but the gasworks has left some legacy in the area in the form of the Beckton Alps.

Old Gas Holders at Beckton, East London. 2004.
dg / Gas holders at Beckton

The History of London’s Famous Gas Works

The East End was a hive of industry in the late 1800s. Its proximity to the Thames’s docklands and its position outside central London made this an ideal location for various dangerous manufacturing and production industries.

In 1870, the Gas Light and Coke Company, under the leadership of Simon Adams Beck, decided to open a gasworks in the area. The site and the surrounding area got the Beckton name from Simon Adams Beck. Although there was plenty of competition in the area, the Beckton Gas Works eventually became the foremost manufacturer of gas for London, at least north of the Thames.

The Victorians had discovered a way to produce gas from coal, which was Beckton’s main activity. Many industries also use this process’s by-products to manufacture other products such as coal tar, dyes, disinfectants, ammonia and sulphuric acid.

Beckton Gas Works from above.
Aerial View Beckton Gas Works

However, the Gas Light and Coke Company decided pretty early on that it would be more profitable to use their by-products rather than sell them to other manufacturers. In 1879, the company set up the Beckton Products Works, becoming the UK’s largest manufacturer of tar and ammonia by-products.

The site of the gasworks was huge, covering over 500 acres. It had its own piers on the Thames and could simultaneously store a quarter of a million tons of coal. The company brought coal into the plant for manufacture and had a thriving business selling the by-products of gas production that it did not use. At one point, the gasworks ran 17 collier ships and an extensive internal railway on site. At its peak, the gasworks is thought to have employed 10,000 men.

Beckton train station. East London Historic Photos.
Beckton train station.
Ben Brooksbank, CC BY-SA 2.0
creativecommons.org
via Wikimedia Commons

In the late 1940s, nationalisation saw the gasworks pass into the hands of the North Thames Gas Board. Over time, natural gas reserves in the North Sea made many gasworks like Beckton relatively redundant, and the plant was closed down in 1969, as it could not compete with natural gas prices. British Gas and Transco ultimately managed the site after it had closed down and was left in a derelict state for many years.

The Beckton Alps

Producing gas from coal left the company with large amounts of toxic waste, which could not be used for any other purpose, and it all ended up being piled up on the site, creating an artificial range of hills. Locals started to call this the Beckton Alps, and the name stuck.

Although the hill was landscaped and made much smaller, it was still big enough to run as a dry ski slope for a while. This is now the highest point in the area and is designated as a site of importance for nature conservation. It is now the only remaining evidence that the Beckton Gas Works stood on this spot.

Beckton Alps in 1973. Historic London.
Pierre Terre / Beckton Alps, 1973

The Beckton Gas Works in Films

The derelict state of the site made it an ideal location for filming, and Beckton Gas Works has appeared in a surprising number of Hollywood movies. It is perhaps best known as becoming Vietnam in the Stanley Kubrick film “Full Metal Jacket”. Its derelict state was perfect for a war-ravaged landscape, although it has to be said that Kubrick’s dynamiting of areas within the site left it in a far worst shape than when he started!

Beckton Gas Works as a Film Set.
Beckton Gas Works as a Film Set.
CreativeCommons

The gasworks also appeared in the opening sequence of the James Bond movie, “For Your Eyes Only”, and was used for London scenes in Nineteen Eighty-Four. Oddly, the location was also used in the John Wayne film, “Brannigan”.

Beckton Gas Works in the present

The buildings of Beckton Gas Works no longer exist. As with many areas of the East End, it took many years to deal with the fall-out as industries moved away from the area and to manage regeneration after the Second World War. Beckton has seen a lot of redevelopment in the last few years as part of the Docklands project, although much of this development in the area is in private housing. The original site is now mainly home to retail and shopping parks.

In Summary

Beckton Gas Works was a primary gas production and storage facility in the East London borough of Newham. The site was established in the 1870s and remained in operation until the 1970s, playing a significant role in the development of the gas industry in the UK.

At its peak, Beckton Gas Works was one of Europe’s most significant gas works, covering an area of over 500 acres and producing around 5 million cubic meters of gas per day. The site was situated on the banks of the River Thames, which provided a convenient source of coal and enabled gas to be transported to other parts of the city by barge.

The gas produced at Beckton was used for various purposes, including street lighting, heating, and cooking. In the early days, gas was produced by heating coal in large ovens called retorts, which had a range of by-products such as Coke, tar, and ammonia. The Coke fueled the retorts, while the tar and ammonia were sold to other industries.

Beckton Gas and Product Works and their location. Extract from Ordnance Survey Six-inch England and Wales 1842-1952.
Beckton Gas and Product Works and their location.
Ordnance Survey Six-Inch England and Wales
1842-1952, CC BY-SA 4.0
https://creativecommons.org
via Wikimedia Commons

Over time, the gas production process was refined, and more efficient methods were developed. In the 1930s, Beckton became one of the first gas works in the UK to use the water-gas process, which involved passing steam over hot Coke to produce a gas rich in hydrogen. This process was more efficient than the traditional coal-gas process and enabled the production of gas to be increased significantly.

During World War II, Beckton Gas Works supplied gas to London during the blackout. The gas produced at Beckton was used for street lighting and to power vehicles such as buses and taxis. German bombers also targeted the site and attempted to disrupt gas production by damaging the retort houses and gasometers.

After the war, the demand for gas continued to increase, and Beckton underwent a series of modernisation programs to improve efficiency and increase capacity. However, by the 1960s, it was clear that the site was becoming obsolete, and plans were made to close it down.

Gas Works Closure

The closure of Beckton Gas Works was a significant event for the local community, as many people had worked there for generations. However, the closure also marked the beginning of a new era, as the site was redeveloped for new uses such as housing and retail.

Demolition of Beckton Gas Works, London.
Demolition of Beckton Gas Works, London.
Graham Smith from England, CC BY 2.0
creativecommons.org
via Wikimedia Commons

Today, the former site of Beckton Gas Works is known as Beckton District Park, a large public park that covers over 200 acres. The park features a range of facilities, including sports fields, playgrounds, and a nature reserve. The site also contains several historic buildings and structures, including the original gasometers, which have been preserved as a reminder of the site’s industrial heritage.

In conclusion, Beckton Gas Works was a significant part of the gas industry in the UK and played a vital role in supplying gas to London for over a century. Although the site is no longer in operation, its legacy lives on, and the redevelopment of the site has created new opportunities for the local community.

Beckton Gasworks Location

111 thoughts on “Beckton Gas Works History – East London Victorian Industry”

  1. Really interesting site and I enjoyed reading all the comments, I was researching the Victorian cast iron street lamp posts at Beckton- as my dad – Jim Clarke worked there and when it closed in 60’s he purchased one and I now have it and wanted more information.

    Reply
  2. I wondered if there were any employment records from the Gas works,my grandfather in census was down as a Hammerman,I wondered if it meant that he hammered red hot rivets into steel

    Reply
  3. My dad, Jim Turrington recalled that when he started his apprenticeship in 1937, the Station Engineer, in charge of three or four thousand staff would tour the site in a chauffeur driven car, and always wore a top hat!
    40 years later, dad became Station Engineer. By this time there were just 200 staff left, and dad drove his own car around the site – and usually wore a flat cap!

    Reply
    • Hello Trevor, many thanks for the comment. It must have been an amazing site (and sight). I worked for 20 years in aviation and can remember when the British Airways CEO, Lord King would be driven around the LHR perimeter roads in his executive limo.

    • Hello Malcolm, yes, different times! As a young boy, I remember seeing the coal being heated in a series of vertical coke ovens, perhaps 80 – 100ft tall. When the process was complete, enormous doors would open, and steel rams would punch the near white-hot coke out, and it would break over a few chains, and fall into rail trucks. It would then pass under a quenching tower, creating vast clouds of steam.
      During the 1930s, apprentices were encouraged to make small items they could take home, as a way of improving their skills. Most items were made in brass, often salvaged from locomotive repairs. About 4 years ago, my dad gave me a brass money box, and told me it was made from scrap from Beckton No 1 locomotive, this prompted me to research the locomotive, and surprisingly, it still exists!

    • Hello Trevor, that must have been an awesome sight to have seen. I only remember the Beckton Alps as a small child. I can recall the derelict warehouses on the drive to the Woolwich Ferry. My Grandad was an electrician in Shoreditch and we’d spend a fair amount of time in Silvertown too. I was fascinated by the railway down the centre of the street.

    • My father was a stoker in those coke ovens, he was very badly burned one day and was off work for a few months but went back and carried on as usual, we lived in one of the row of house on Windsor Terrace owned by the gas works

    • That must have been a very tough and dangerous environment to work in. Even at a safe distance the heat felt intense.

  4. My nan and grandad lived at no 16 Windsor terrace.My grandad Ted Moore worked at the gas works and mum Eileen for a while. I remember staying with them as a child. their neighbour was a lovely lady we called aunty Alice .

    Reply
  5. My father Walter Fennell works at Becton Gas Works from leaving school 1930s until closer. He was an iron moulder and used to come home with all his clothes blackened with the coal dust. I am sure that contributed to his death in 1970 at the age of 53.

    Reply
    • I’m sure you are right Hazel, I’m so sorry to hear this. The miners referred to the condition as ‘the dust’. After years of breathing it in the results are inevitable.

  6. Very interesting site, thankyou. There was an extensive railway system here, and I believe there were in excess of 70 miles of track and sidings. There was a signal box with a 30-lever operating frame which we think came from the LBSCR/LCDR/SECR railway company(s) (we’re not sure) Manufactured by the Mackenzie and Holland company it was purchased by the South Devon Railway (a Heritage line) but never used. It was left in a wagon that rotted away and it all fell out of the bottom! It was then rescued by the Gartell Light Railway in Yenston Templecombe, Somerset, and completely rebuilt. It was then installed at what was to become ‘Pinesway Junction’ on the said railway, a private two-foot gauge concern open at selected dates during the year. There is NO access at other times. Quite a history, and as a GLR volunteer I can report that it has become of much interest to railway and signaling enthusiasts. If anyone has more knowledge of the exact original location and any pictures of the signal box at Beckton we would be most interested. Take a look at the GLR Facebook site where there are quite a few pictures of the signal box it now stands in.

    Reply
  7. My dad worked at Beckton as a train driver during the 1950’s-60’s and sometime in the 1960’s he must have transferred to British Gas. During the late 60’s early 70’s he was involved in overseeing the closing down of Beckton. I remember that one day he came home from work with a large bell and told us that it was being thrown on a skip and he took it out. He said it couldn’t let it be thrown away as over the years too many men’s lives had been dependant on the ringing of that bell. I still have that bell and now use it to occasionally call my husband in from the garden !

    Reply
  8. I kind of remember my dad telling me that they found / dug up an old steam train there – never knew if it was true or not!

    Reply
  9. Hi, my Grandfather work at Becton – George William Sach. I think he worked there during the war. I seem to recall he was a reserved fireman during the war itself but don’t know if this was one of those family rumours that gets twisted over time. I also think my dad Henry George Sach may have worked there for a short time driving the steam engines. Unfortunately this is all the information I have and no family members alive to ask anymore about it.

    Reply
    • Hello Toni,
      I hope this is of some help you probably know most of it.
      In the 1939 Register Census your grandfather George William Sach is listed, he did work at Becton Gas works and was a Gas Stoker age 31. There is no mention of him being a fireman but he may have joined the AFS (Auxiliary Fire Service) later which was voluntary part time.

      In the 1911 Census he is listed in the family home with his parents and siblings at No.10 Boundary Road Barking Essex.
      Claude Sach (Head) age 32 : Rosina Sach (Wife) age 32 : Ellen Perks (Single) Rosina’s sister : Lily Sach (Daughter) age 12 : Rose Sach (Daughter) age 10 : Henry Sach (Son) age 8 : George W Sach (Son) age 3 : Claude Sach (Son) age 1. (Your grandfather had 3 brothers and 3 sisters listed in the 1911 Census and 1939 Register)

      In The 1939 Register Census on 29th September he is listed again at No.10 Boundary Road Barking, with his mother Rosina Sach (Widow) age 63 : George William Sach age 31 : Edith E Sach age 26 : Albert C Sach age 22 : and their grandmother Elizabeth Perks (Widow) age 85.
      George got married in about November 1939 to Katherine England your grandmother and was living at No.278 Boundary Road Barking in the 1960s.

  10. My Dad’s side of the family are from East Ham & I remember him recounting a very sad tale about the fate of a distant relative at Beckton Gas Works. Dad said that 2 young brothers worked at the site, one day there was a horrific accident and one of the young men got caught up in the winding mechanism of some industrial equipment. He was killed and laid out, with terrible injuries. His brother was called in to identify him with no prior warning, and just asked “Is that your brother?” He fainted and was traumatized, suffered with his mental health for the rest of his life.

    Reply
    • I think this fatal accident could be the 1911 one where my granddad’s brother died in machinery,leaving behind a wife and 8 children and no benefits then .Beckton said my grandad ,then 11,would have a job there when he was old enough and he started there aged 14,became a blacksmith and stayed until he retired

  11. My Grandfather Charles Herbert McMahon worked at the Products Works Beckton for 42 years until made redundant in 1968/1969 and has left a short written account.

    Reply
    • Hello Bernie, not sure if you’ll see this in time but I am writing a short article about this and would love to read your grandfather’s account if possible?

      Could you possibly give me an email at – [email protected] if you see this and wouldn’t mind sharing this with me, Cheers!

  12. I only discovered this amasing place this year, and sadly found the ‘accidental’ hole in the fence had been sealed up again last week (thanks Thames Water). The Environment Agency have no records of this site at all (amasing considering it is their job to record groundwater toxicity levels throughout the UK) and Newham Council claim it is closed because of ‘unsafe footpaths’. There are literally a few small cracks in the concrete, crazy! Apparently a locomotive engine and rubbish from the British Library’s revamp are under here too! If I start a petition to the Councillor responsible for the environment of Newham, would people sign it?!

    Reply
  13. My father David Ritchie worked there from 1932 until 1952. He was working on locomotives during the day and Home Guard as well, all through the War. Our father’s could have known each other. He lived in Winsor Terrace.

    Reply
  14. My dad, Albert Milton worked at the Products Works from about 1936 to 1969 when he retired through ill health and died in 1972 We lived in Beckton Road and he used to cycle to and from work.We were bombed out during the blitz and moved out to Essex, near Brentwood, about 6 miles from the station..He worked long hours during the war, often 7 days in a row, cycling to Brentwood Station very early, changing at Stratford Low level then another train on to Beckton .And then the reverse to come home.Often in the dark during air raids.I remember the kids Christmas parties there and the strong chemical smells.

    Reply
  15. “The gasworks at Beckton in the borough of Newham played a major role in East End industry for over 100 years” – this is complete fabrication! During this period Beckton was in ESSEX, not London.

    Beckton only got swallowed up by London in 1965. Before that the ESSEX border was much further west, at the River Lea, where it met Middlesex.

    Reply
    • My father worked in the gas works and I lived at 46 Windsor Terrace a company house, I married in 1957 and moved away, Beckton was London E6 all the time I lived there so sorry it was not Essex then

    • Margaret, you must have known my grandad and his mother’s family, the Reeces. Gladys Reece, with lots of brothers and one sister Rosina, parents Rosina and Tom Reece. They lived at 41 Windsor Tce I’m pretty sure. My grandad was Hector Chase.

    • I lived, for a short time at 96 Winsor Terrace in the 1954/55 time, I was only a kid then but we stayed with Sydney and Daisy Hurrell. Their son Bill was a Flight Sergeant Pilot flying Hurricanes and was killed in action in 1944 and I’m wondering if you or someone you know knew the family, after the war Daisy emigrated to Australia with her remaining son but Syd stayed at the house. My sister and I ended up in a home for orphans and Fatherless children, so lost touch, just wonder if anyone has any info’ ?

    • Hi Mike,
      Only just seen your post. My dad Jim Turrington was a good friend of Bill Hurrell’s and knew his family. They both became apprentice fitter and turners at Beckton in 1937, and joined the RAF together in 1942, both serving as Flight Sergeant fighter pilots, but in different arenas.
      Dad survived the war, and always knew that Bill had been killed in action.
      You may be aware by now, that Bill Hurrels remains were identified in 2019, and he received a military funeral in September 2022, with at least one relative from Australia attending. Further information can be seen on the MOD War Detectives Facebook page, and my post is under the name of Denise Tinker.

    • My grandparents lived at 74 Winsor Terrace from 1915 until the 1960s. The address was always Beckton E6

  16. I remember my late Dad working at Beckton during the 1950’s and 1960’s.

    He used to cycle to the site every day from our house in Ilford, a flat cap on his head and a donkey jacket on his back, and a roll-up of Golden Virginia dangling from a corner of his mouth. My late Mum seeing him off in her hairnet and dressing gown, as he left very early each day.

    He took me there when I was about seven years old. It felt like a long way (even on a bus) for him to cycle each day!

    I couldn’t get over the noise of the steam-hauled coal trains on the overhead viaducts, the smoke and the heat. It was an amazing place for a young boy to visit, and left a lasting impression on me! If only I’d been old enough to own and operate a cine camera, I would’ve done so to capture the industry of that period – long since swept away in a tide of redevelopment.

    I did come across a few minutes of film on YouTube which may be of interest, showing some of the industrial steam locomotives being used on site: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUVZ2od1K7g&t=1s.

    If anyone else has any film to still of the site from that period I would love to see them? Great to read all of the interesting comments posted already – and hopefully those in the future too.

    Reply
  17. My grandparents lived at the gasworks during the war. My grandfather, Leslie Clark, was something senior in engineering and very tall. Possibly in charge of the works?? My grandmother, Mary, was tiny. Does anyone remember them? My great grandfather, Joseph Clark, was an engineer there too but that IS going back…

    Reply
    • Hello all,

      I have fabulous memories of growing up around Winsor Terrace in the 1970’s & 1980’s. As a child My Great Grandmother and my twin Great Aunts lived at 100 Winsor Terrace. When it was a house! However, more importantly my parents grew up living next door but one to eachother. My Maternal grandparents lived at number 8 and my Paternal Grandpatents, number 4 Winsor Terrace. There were many characters and family members and special friends, who were a significant part of either, the Gas works, the street or our up bringing. Our family history of the street spans from the war years through to the 1990’s. Our family were employed by both the gas works and the Beckton Thames water site. A recent passing of a treasured family member left us some amazing family photos of this time span. We were the Beavington/ Hammond/Quinn family. Anyone who knew them feel free to get in touch.

      I recently took my Mother to the VA Museum. Only to discover that My mother had been a friend of Melanie Hampshire growing up, I have tried to find her on social media., but to no avail. It would be great to find her so that they can catch up. If any one has any information please feel free to help put them back in touch.

    • You may have known my grandparents or parents lived in Windsor terrace there whole life number 58 if i remember rightly Elmes family

  18. Hi everyone
    I am doing a podcast about different East London towns.
    I would like to do an episode about Beckton; so if you live, have lived there, and have a few stories to share please get in touch.
    I have done two episodes, I’m about to do a third, please listen to other episodes https://notlikeitusedtobe.podbean.com/

    Reply
    • My father was a stoker in the gas works and we lived in one of the company houses in Windsor Terrace, this was I believe from 1945 until my father won on the premium bonds and bought a house in Bridge near Canterbury.
      In 1957 I married and had the reception in the company social club, we had all the families in the street to our wedding and did the congar in and out of everyone’s house. I remember when the river overflowed and Windsor Terrace was flooded quite badly all the gardens were under water . The company railway ran along the back of the houses and during the time I lived there someone managed to steal one of the railway engines, goodness knows how. At the top of Windsor Terrace there was a Church where my parents were married ,sadly it was bombed during the war, the house I lived in is still there

    • My grandparents lived in 74 Winsor Terrace. They lived there from 1915 when they got married. My father was born there in 1916. My father went to Winsor school, then got an apprenticeship at the Gas Works. He became a fitter and turner and worked on the locomotives all through the War. Grandad died in the 60’s but lived in the same house. When David Milne Watson was Governor at the gas works grandad had been a coachman but was then given the job of Messenger for the company. My grandmother had been Nurse to the Milne Watson children before she married.

    • My father had the contract knocking down No 7 Retult house the biggest retult in Europe. I was about 19 when I work in there for my father has a demolition oxygen burner, in there for3 years 6 of us ended up in old church hospital with Lead poisoning ,we got it from burning the RSJ, with the lead paint over the years they kept painting them

    • Wendy, my Uncle, Aunt and cousin lived at 74 Winsor Terrace in the 1950s up to about 1990s. Was the house divided into two flats? What was the surname of your grandparents?

    • I lived at 46 Windsor Terrace, next door was a family called Banham with a small son named Brian, next to them was the Roots with a daughter called Barbara, I knew everyone in the street but can’t remember names any more,the 1950s were a long time ago. Does anyone remember our family the Keys, I was a teenager when my mother had twin girls, she usedto help a lot in the chapel and sadly passed away when she was only 47 in 1960

  19. My Grandfather, William “Bill” Brown, worked as a stoker – did evening classes etc and became a supervisor. Worked at Beckton until around 1963.

    Reply

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.