Yates and Thom

Yates & Thom Ltd, or Yates of Blackburn, was a British manufacturer of stationary [steam engine]s and boilers at the Canal Ironworks, Blackburn, Lancashire, England.
The company had its origins in a blacksmith's shop started by William Yates in 1824.
image:Steam engine, [Leigh Spinners. - geograph.org.uk - 733978.jpg|thumb|Leigh Spinners cross compound steam engine]
In the 1860s, the company supplied a cam operated, drop valve compound engine operating at 100 psi to the India Mill, Darwen. Other mills supplied by Yates and Thom included the List of mills owned by the [Lancashire Cotton Corporation Limited#Other Mills that were owned before 1951|Durban Mill], Oldham. This was an 1800 hp triple-expansion four-cylinder engine built in 1906. It had a 24" HP cylinder, a 29" IP cylinder and two 38" LP cylinders with a 5 ft 6 in stroke. At 180 psi, it drove a 27-ft, 67-ton flywheel with 38 ropes at 65 rpm. It used Corliss valves on all cylinders. An engine, one of a pair supplied by the firm, survives at Leigh Spinners.
The company supplied a 3,300 horsepower twin tandem compound engine, which survives in the engine house at the Astley [Green Colliery Museum]. It was the largest steam winding engine used on the Lancashire Coalfield.
In 1928, the company became Foster, Yates and Thom when it was acquired by Joseph Foster & Sons. The company continued to manufacture boilers until 1964, with the remainder of the works closing in 1973.