Chesterfield power station
former coal-fired power station in England
Chesterfield power station supplied electricity to the town of Chesterfield, Derbyshire from 1901 to 1958. The electricity generating station was owned and operated by Chesterfield Corporation prior to the nationalisation of the British electricity industry in 1948. It was redeveloped as demand for electricity grew and old plant was replaced, and had a generating capacity of 6.9 MW in the 1920s. The station closed on 1 April 1958.
History
Chesterfield was the location of a pioneering electricity system in the 1880s. In 1881 Hammond and Company lit Chesterfield’s main streets with 8 arc lamps from a generator installed in the yard of the Theatre Royal. By the end of the year 22 arc lamps were in service. Two 20 horse power (14.7 kW) compound engines coupled to Brush dynamos were installed along the River Hipper. These were capable of supplying 80 arc lamps and 640 incandescent lamps. The supply system included 15 miles (24 km) of overhead conductors.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Chesterfield power station” as former coal-fired power station in England. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as former coal-fired power station in England. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 19, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q104867770. Authority coordinates are 53.236, -1.439. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1901, 1958, 1948 and 1881.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Chesterfield power station”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Chesterfield power station primary sources, Chesterfield power station archive and Chesterfield research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Chesterfield power station”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Chesterfield power station” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.