A PICTURE album produced by Vickers at Barrow for a visit by King George V and Queen Mary a century ago features in a major new display at the City Museum in Lancaster.

The album has been loaned by BAE Systems at Barrow for the exhibition called Boomtown: From front line to White Lund - which can be seen until November 12.

Vickers was an established producer of munitions – from artillery pieces to shell cases – and took on responsibility for managing the new Number 13 Shell Filling Factory at White Lund.

It was near the banks of the Lune between Lancaster and Morecambe and work started on building the factory on December 2 in 1915.

The first shell was filled with explosives on July 18 in 1916 and by the time of the royal visit nine months later – on May 16 in 1917 - a total of one-and-a-half million shells had been filled.

The factory produced shells to fit guns with a six-inch to 12-inch barrel diameter.

By May in 1917 the factory had used 8,000 tons of explosives.

The factory covered 400 acres and by September 1917 was employing 4,621 men and women.

Staff records do not survive but it is known that Kendal and Windermere provided workers – as did many communities in Lancashire, plus Newcastle and Belfast.

Output was 10,000 shells each week.

Pictures in the Vickers’ presentation album show various stages in the shell filling process and different buildings within the site.

The factory even had its own laundry.

The album notes: “Workers are supplied with overalls which are fire-resisting.

“The overalls are frequently washed, and after being dried are steeped in a fire-resisting solution.”

A total of 3,000 overalls were washed every week.

The King and Queen arrived in Lancaster on Wednesday, May 16 in 1917, arriving by train at the Castle Station.

They visited the Caton Road Projectile Works – a secret site for making torpedoes for use in many Barrow-built submarines – and White Lund

The exhibition notes: “Lancaster was thronged with crowds, the visit coincided with the tradesmen’s half-holiday, the schools were closed and local employers gave their workers time off to witness the historic visit.

The King and Queen spent the night in the Royal Train which was parked in Glasson Dock Sidings.

It was noted: “The following morning the train departed to continue the tour, which included the shipyard at Barrow, Workington Ironworks, Sedbergh School Officer Training Corps and Carlisle and Gretna for the munitions works.”

The Ministry of Munitions had chosen White Lund for its good railway links and the availability of empty houses and lodgings in Lancaster and Morecambe.

Its relative isolation was also useful for the handling of bulk explosives such as TNT and ammonium nitrate.

There were fire hydrants and sprinkler systems around the site and the 12-mile railway system was operated by fireless locomotives which took a charge of steam from the boiler house and created no sparks.

The White Lund site was cleared and sold off in 1927 but shells were still being found in 2003 during work on an industrial estate.

The exhibition is free and can be seen from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10am to 5pm.