97, Water Lane

No. 97 Water Lane is a foundry workshop, now used as offices, built between 1857 and 1877. It was restored and converted in 1989. The building features red and brown brick in an English 5:1 bond with a Welsh slate roof. It has one tall storey and consists of seven bays. The street-facing side has multi-pane round-arched windows with curved-edged brick surrounds and stone sills. Decorative bands of nail-head and chamfered brick run along the eaves, and there are roof lights. The left side shows ends of regularly-set tie bar plates on five levels and has an inserted round-arched entrance. The rear of the building was rebuilt in the 20th century. An iron plaque set in a polished stone surround between the fourth and fifth bays commemorates the achievements of Matthew Murray at the Round Foundry, Foundry Street, and was erected in 1929. The interior was not inspected. After Murray's business closed in 1843, the works were taken over and expanded by Smith, Beacock and Tannett, Machine Tool Manufacturers, and renamed the Victoria Foundry. This building is similar in character to the earlier Murray foundry at No. 103 Water Lane and was constructed on the site of the entrance gate on Camp Fields; it was originally accessed from the greensand foundry at No. 99 Water Lane. The building remained in use as a foundry until 1895.