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Series
Board of Ordnance Office and successors: Royal Gunpowder Factory and successors,...
Catalogue reference: WO 385
What's it about?
WO 385
This series consists of maps and plans of the site and buildings of the Royal Gunpowder Factory and successors, Waltham Abbey, relating to the manufacture of gunpowder. It also contains maps and plans, accumulated at Waltham Abbey, of other...
Full description and record details
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Reference (The unique identifier to the record described, used to order and refer to it)
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WO 385
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Title (The name of the record)
- Board of Ordnance Office and successors: Royal Gunpowder Factory and successors, Waltham Abbey: Maps and Plans
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Date (When the record was created)
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1783-1983
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Description (What the record is about)
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This series consists of maps and plans of the site and buildings of the Royal Gunpowder Factory and successors, Waltham Abbey, relating to the manufacture of gunpowder. It also contains maps and plans, accumulated at Waltham Abbey, of other gunpowder factory sites and small arms factory sites.
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Related material (A cross-reference to other related records)
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See also DEFE 15
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Separated material (A cross-reference between records that are related by provenance but now kept separately)
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Duplicates, unmarked plans and maps not selected for permanent preservation in the PRO have been offered toEpping Forest District Museum.
For further records of the Chemical Research and Development Department see Ministry of Aviation,
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Held by (Who holds the record)
- The National Archives, Kew
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Former department reference (Former identifier given by the originating creator)
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WASC 900 series
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Legal status (A note as to whether the record being described is a Public Record or not)
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Public Record(s)
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Language (The language of the record)
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English
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Creator(s) (The creator of the record)
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- Ministry of Defence, Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment, 1962-1991
- Ministry of Supply, Chemical Research and Development Department, 1945-1948
- Ministry of Supply, Explosives Research and Development Establishment, 1948-1958
- Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey, 1783-1915
- Royal Ordnance Factory, Waltham Abbey, 1915-1945
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Physical description (The amount and form of the record)
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88 flat sheet(s)
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Access conditions (Information on conditions that restrict or affect access to the record)
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Many records unfit for production
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Immediate source of acquisition (When and where the record was acquired from)
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In 1999 Ministry of Defence, Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment
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Subjects (Categories and themes found in our collection (our subject list is under development, and some records may have no subjects or fewer than expected))
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- Topics
- Manufacturing
- Maps and plans
- Weapons
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Accruals (Indicates whether the archive expects to receive further records in future)
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No future accruals expected
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Administrative / biographical background (Historical or biographical information about the creator of the record and the context of its creation)
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The Royal Gunpowder Factory lies north west of Waltham Abbey on the River Lee. The first formal evidence exists for the presence of a gunpowder mill on the abbey site or nearby in the 1640s. In 1689 the mill's owner was awarded a contract to supply the Ordnance Office and in 1783 the government purchased the mill; it was to become one of what were later known as the Royal Ordnance Factories. From around 1862 the output of the factory began to diversify as more potent chemically based explosives such as cordite were produced. Gunpowder production ceased at the factory in 1941 following enemy bombing and production ceased altogether in 1943.
The factory was formally closed as a Royal Ordnance Factory on 28 July 1945 and re-opened two days later as the Chemical Research and Development Department where research into explosives was carried out. In 1948, the department became the Explosives Research and Development Establishment and later became part of the Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment.
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Record URL
- https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/id/C14589/
Catalogue hierarchy
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Within the department: WO
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You are currently looking at the series: WO 385
Board of Ordnance Office and successors: Royal Gunpowder Factory and successors, Waltham Abbey: Maps and Plans
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