Camperdown Works

Construction and operation

Alexander Elliot in his book Lochee – As it was and is (1911),^[5] noted that each of the Cox brothers brought specialist skills to the firm: James, the salesman, expanded overseas sales, William was regarded as a reliable judge of yarns and materials, and Thomas oversaw finance and commercial management. George Addison Cox, “a qualified engineer. To him the entire control of the works was given. In each department the impress of a master mind is apparent, in construction, attention to detail, and in the productive power of appliances.” In addition to supervising the construction and operation of the works, George Addison Cox was responsible for the design and improvement of machinery used in the preparation and spinning of jute fibre. Several patents granted to him in the 1850s and 1860s related to machinery for handling jute and other fibrous materials.^[6][7]

Warden noted that the Camperdown Works of Cox Brothers appeared unusual in the district in carrying out the entire manufacturing process - from raw material to finished cloth - within a single works complex, with materials passing systematically between departments. ^[8]

The development of Camperdown Works formed part of the wider Industrial Revolution in Scotland, during which Dundee emerged as a major centre of mechanised textile manufacture.^[9]

In 1849, construction began of Camperdown Works, in Lochee and within a few years all of their operations relating to the manufacture of jute were carried out on the site.^[10][11][12]

The first building to be erected on the site by the Cox Brothers was the power loom factory which was the largest then built in Dundee^[2]. A hand loom factory was built to its north in 1853, holding 225 looms.^[2] One of the most significant developments on the site was the High Mill, which author Mark Watson argues to have been one of the finest textile mills in Victorian Scotland. It was built in three stages from 1857 and included a 100-foot clock tower.^[13]

By the late 1860s the Works had developed into a large and highly integrated industrial complex.^[14][15]. In 1869 David Bremner described it as occupying eighteen acres of level ground, constructed on a “regular and well-considered plan” designed to allow extension without disrupting internal arrangements, indicating that the works had been deliberately planned to accommodate the future expansion of production.^[16] A branch line connected the Works to the nearby Dundee and Newtyle Railway, enabling raw materials to be delivered directly to the site and finished goods dispatched by rail to Dundee's harbour and wider transport networks.^[13][16]

The Jute fibre processed at Camperdown Works was imported primarily form Bengal, then the principal region of global jute cultivation, linking agricultural production in South Asia with mechanised textile manufacture in Dundee.

Raw jute was stored in large detached warehouses before passing through successive stages of manufacture arranged across purpose-built buildings. Bremner described the initial “batching” process, in which the fibre was treated with oil and water to soften it prior to spinning, followed by mechanical preparation and spinning processes similar to those used in flax manufacture.^[16] The machinery used at Camperdown was reported in 1869 to be of recent construction and largely made on the premises. The presence of engineering workshops and a foundry reflected a wider pattern in Dundee’s jute industry, where the development and adaptation of specialised machinery for processing jute formed an important part of local industrial activity^[16].

Several machines used at the Works were of George Addison Cox's own design, and patents were granted in the 1850s and 1860s for machinery used in the preparation of jute and other fibrous materials.^{[17][18][19][20]}

Steam power was central to the operation of the Works. In 1869 the machinery was driven by engines with an aggregate nominal capacity of 580 horsepower (1,850 indicated horsepower), supplied by 22 boilers arranged in a single line.^[16] The smoke from the furnaces was carried off by a large chimney, later known as “Cox’s Stack”, completed in 1866.^[21][22] Bremner recorded the chimney as 300 feet in height,^[16] while later architectural sources describe it as 282 feet high.^[21][22] Coal consumption in the late 1860s was approximately 15,000 tons per year.^[16] "Cox's Stack" remains one of the most prominent industrial landmarks in Dundee.

In addition to weaving sheds containing hundreds of power looms and hand looms,^[2][16] the site included a foundry for the repair and manufacture of machinery, warehouses for raw materials and finished goods, a three-bay engine shed serving the branch railway, and stables capable of housing up to thirty horses.^[23] By 1878 the Works employed approximately 4,500 workers, rising to 5,000 by 1900.^[2][10] Bremner recorded 4,300 persons employed within the Works in 1869, in addition to 400 sack-sewers working from their own homes.^[16][24]

Contemporary descriptions also noted the scale and internal conditions of the buildings. Bremner stated that the storeys ranged from fourteen to seventeen feet in height and that the rooms were thoroughly ventilated, exceeding the requirements of contemporary legislation.^[16] A half-time school for workers’ children was later established on the site, built in 1884 and closed in 1896.^[23] Together these elements formed a largely self-contained industrial system integrating production, power generation, engineering workshops and transport infrastructure within a single coordinated site.

Development of the jute industry in Bengal

The jute industry was historically and culturally important in Bengal long before the establishment of mechanised mills. Prior to the mid-nineteenth century, jute grown in Bengal was used locally to produce rope, sacks and coarse cloth using traditional hand-loom techniques. During the later nineteenth century, however, large mechanised jute mills began to be established around Kolkata. The industry expanded rapidly: by 1882 there were 18 mills in operation and by 1901 the number had risen to 51.^[25] The development of the Bengal mills was closely connected with the earlier expansion of the jute industry in Dundee, which had pioneered the mechanised spinning and weaving of jute fibre during the nineteenth century.

As the industry matured, however, production increasingly shifted closer to the source of raw jute in Bengal, where labour costs were lower and the supply of fibre was readily available. This gradual shift contributed to the long-term decline of large-scale jute manufacturing in Dundee during the twentieth century.

The rapid expansion of mechanised mills in Bengal later formed the basis of what is now described as the Jute industry in Bangladesh, which eventually became one of the world’s largest centres of jute production.

Closure

Production at the works ceased in 1981 and some parts of the complex were sold for demolition in 1985. The site was used as a double for 1940s Berlin in the 1980s BBC television drama Christabel.^[29]

Construction

Following the purchase, the High Mill was redeveloped into flats and many of the buildings in the works were demolished to make way for a leisure park with the Cox's Stack being retained.

Features

The Leisure park originally consisted of an Odeon cinema, a William Low (later rebranded as Tesco) superstore, The Venue, a local nightclub, the Megabowl, a bowling alley and Gala Bingo.

By the late 2000s, many of the original tenants either left or were forced to shut down, leaving Gala Bingo as the sole business on site. Many of the buildings at the park were boarded up and left abandoned.

Revival

Following a period of abandonment, the site was then purchased by TJ Morris in 2012 who opened a Home Bargains store on site. The Range opened up a store on the site of the former Tesco store in 2014. Smyths opened a toy store in 2015 with The Gym Group opening up a gym next door in 2017.

In 2023, Greggs opened a restaurant and drive through at the entrance of the park and Home Bargains moved to the former Odeon site, which opened in December of that year.