Bow Works was purpose built for the manufacture of steel measuring tape and other land surveying equipment by the inventor of the steel tape James Chester man in 1864. The company ceased to operate from this site in 1989 and the site was substantially restored and rebuilt in 1993 as offices for a large insurance company. The 1993 works involved the demolition and rebuilding of parts of the road and the addition of a number f ranges. The Pomona Street façade and the two long narrow North - South ranges to the west of the complex are significantly legible survivals showing the original function of the buildings clearly. The site is shown on the 1851 OS as surveyed small (probable allotment) plots. Previous mapping shows the land in this area as characterised by irregular piecemeal enclosures.