Mystery Object

[Flyfisher]

I was in Hurley, by the Thames, earlier today and spotted this curious object mounted on the outside wall of The Old Bell (built in 1152 apparently):

The top of the object is open and the front plate is hinged at the top. When the lever is lifted, the bottom of the front plate is pushed in (note the rollers on the lever assembly), creating a squeezing or crushing action on anything inserted into the top of the object. Unfortunately, its modern application seems to be an ashtray, but I rather doubt that's its original purpose. The barman in the pub didn't know what it was.

Any ideas?

 

[Cloudscape]

I'm trying to make out what's written on it. It appears to say: PORTWAY'S PATENT CO____ MAKER?

 

[Flyfisher]

Yes, not the clearest photo as I only had my mobile phone with me. But I couldn't fully read the original wording either because of the liberal coating of paint. I don't remember exactly what I could read, but it didn't seem to give a clue to its purpose.

 

[Gareth Hughes]

Coke Breaker - Portway made tortoise stoves (according to a friend of mine...)

 

[Cloudscape]

And that's a tortoise in the middle of the 'logo'. I wondered what it was:



I lightened the image in Photoshop, and I'm confident of the "Portway's Patent", but less so of the "Co___". I think "aker" is right.

 

[DaveBrigg]

Portway made tortoise stoves (according to a friend of mine...)

They never caught on as well as the gas version.

 

[essexbearhunter]

http://www.hevac-heritage.org/items...s/rodney_stoke_church/rodney_stoke_church.htm has pictures of one model of Tortoise near the bottom of the page and a bit on C Portway.

 

[Gareth Hughes]

Thanks to my friend N******, whom many of us miss, I can also draw your attention to the entries for Feb 7 and Feb 27 in this Victorian school's history:
http://a-day-in-the-life.powys.org.uk/eng/ed/ee_gladestry.php

 

[FamilyWiggs]

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/A2A/records.aspx?cat=007-merl&cid=-1&Gsm=2008-06-18#-1 includes this:

"CATALOGUE of "Tortoise" Slow Combustion Grates and Stoves TR MRL/P2/B75 1930-1931

Contents:
Coke Fillers, Crusher and Coke Breaker, Dog, Rabbit and Poultry Troughs and Pans, Fire and Stove Guard, Drilling Machines, Tyre Benders and Traction Engine Jacks: S.E. Haward & Co.Ltd: pp 24 [Former Reference 55/513]"

suggesting that coke breakers were being sold and used not so long ago. Presumably coke could be bought in large lumps and crushed smaller prior to burning?

 

[Flyfisher]

Thanks for that Gareth (and N******).

I thought it was some sort of crushing device because the hinged plate is not pushed fully closed at the bottom and I was reminded of concrete crushers which use a similar mechanism (albeit larger) wnere a large lump of material is inserted into the top and gradually slips down the crusher as bits of it are broken off by the crushing action until all the bits are small enough to drop out of the gap at the bottom. I would never have guessed it was used for crushing coke though.

Another question though. This crusher was mounted on the outside wall of the pub, which doesn't seem a particularly convenient place for crushing coke ready for a furnace that was, presumably, inside somewhere. Would it have been better placed in the coke store or next to the furnace in question? Could it have been fixed to the wall for purely decorative purposes or could it have been placed there as a some sort of share community resource?

 

[Gareth Hughes]

My guess is that it's been put there fairly recently for use as an ashtray.

 

[Penners]

Tortoise Stoves were made by Charles Portway in Halstead, Essex for well over 100 years. They were used in their hundreds of thousands to heat church halls, meeting rooms, workshops, plus military huts, barracks, etc, during both World Wars. I knew the last MD, Michael Portway, during the 1970's.

They were called 'Tortoise' because they burned slowly, and only needed feeding infrequently.

 

[Flyfisher]

Looks like just the thing for my workshop, although the days are warming up nicely at present so no need for the next 6 months or so.

 

[Penners]

Don't tell me that, after spending last winter on the roof, you're turning soft!

 

[Flyfisher]

Soft or not, all I know is that I've now had enough of roof repair to last a lifetime - and hopefully the repairs will!