In May, the Victorian Society published its annual list of the ten most endangered buildings in Britain. The buildings in this year’s Top Ten are nationally important Grade II* and Grade II listed buildings and a scheduled monument, all of which are in risk of being lost if action is not taken immediately. This year’s endangered list includes the Chances Glassworks, Smethwick, Sandwell, in the Midlands.

The Chance Glassworks site includes a Scheduled Monument and nine Grade II structures. These were built in the period 1847 – 1860. Robert Lucas Chance established Chance Brothers Glassworks on the former British Crown Glass Company site in 1824 and continued to expand the site to become the largest glassmaker in the world. Glass manufacture took place continuously up until 1981. The canal-side site has since stood derelict. Dominating the site is a seven-storey warehouse, as well as a rare Siemens No7 Regenerative furnace. The Chance Heritage Trust have been working on the restoration of the site for many years. For further details about the Trust follow this link: https://chanceht.org/

Chances were innovative producers of scientific grade glass, applying for 27 British Patents from 1838-1900. They developed the first cathode ray tubes, working with John Logie Baird, for radar and television sets. They supplied glass for around 2,300 of the world’s lighthouses, as well as for the Crystal Palace in London, windows for the White House, and the Houses of Parliament.

The other buildings on the Victorian Society list include a requisitioned school where author Vera Brittain nursed during WWI, one of the world’s first purpose-built amusement parks, a banqueting hall for the workers, one of the first tennis pavilions in the world, and a building where the first £1m cheque was signed.

For details of all the ten endangered buildings follow this link: https://www.victoriansociety.org.uk/national-news/griff-rhys-jones-launches-2024-top-ten-endangered-buildings-list/