As it seems the way, Hpipe and me had headed off on a totally different day but as we travelled across country the old chimneys of the factory caught our eye and we went to have a look..Well Blow me , if it wasnt a Pie factory - this was right up my street!!
No bother from security that day, trip went with out a problem although the old bill use it for police training and had managed to leave a door open for us and the security on sight seemed reluctant to leave his nice warm house to bother us... Best part about the site was having to use the old insulated conveyor tubes that go between the buildings to get from one to the other, being steep and about 20to 30ft in the air, they creaked like hell when you walked through them. They more resembled the inside of a space craft corridor due to the insulation.
Bit of history ....Bowyers had been connected with Trowbridge since 1805/8 when Abraham Bowyers set up a grocers Store which eventually became Bowyers that’s around today.
In March 2008 the bowyers factory now owned by pork farms was shut ending 200 years being based in Trowbridge.
Under investment in the Factory and economic reasons finally shut the place and around 400 people lost there jobs with the bulk of production moving to Nottingham
The Site consists of one (I think) grade 2 listed building which will be restored but the rest is due to be demolished to become part of the new Wiltshire College – well it was but now those plans have been dropped in December 2009 and its future is uncertain.
few Pictures...
The Main ovens
Lam1 and Lam2
Some of the millions of refrigerated rooms that made up half the site
Formulation labs full of recipies
The cool slide in one of the walk ways (smaller one), the top edge of that must be 20ft off the ground outside with a slide to the first floor
from the outside
one of the stripped frying room
Complete set here..
