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4 for the price of 1
Who was Abraham Darby? Well actually there were four of them who managed the Ironworks at Coalbrookdale between 1708 and 1851.
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It always costs more than you think
Abraham III lived in Dale House between 1776 and 1780, the same time when he was planning and directing the building of the Iron Bridge. He estimated it would cost £3,150 to build the Iron Bridge. In fact it cost just over £6,000, almost double the original estimate, but as it was the first Iron Bridge in the World who can blame him for getting his sums wrong!
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In the parlour
Dale House was built between 1715 and 1717 for Abraham Darby I. He did not live long enough to occupy it, although he did attend a Quaker Meeting shortly before the house was finished. On 5 May 1717 he died and was laid out in parlour at Dale House before being buried at the Quaker Burial Ground in Broseley.
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Iron everywhere
Abraham Darby III carried out a lot of alterations to Dale House before he moved in, including the cast iron lintels and window sills. Why use wood or stone when you could use cast iron.
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Keeping the secret
In 1707 Abraham Darby I took out a patent for casting cast iron pots in sand. This technique had been perfected by his colleague John Thomas. They were so worried that others might find out the secret of this process that they blocked the keyhole of the door while they carried out their experiments.
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Hell and paradise
The area around the furnaces, steam engines and the coke hearths would have been smoky and polluted. In contrast the wooded valley sides were green and pleasant. One area at the end of the Dale was known as Paradise Fields, presumably called this because of the contrast with the hellish appearance of the furnaces in the rest of the valley.
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Hobbies and interests
The ironmasters at Coalbrookdale had wide interests in geology, botany and sciences. William Reynolds had a plan to make flute that was 150 feet long and 2 ½ feet in diameter. It was to be blown by a steam-engine, and played on by barrels! Sadly he died before this bizarre contraption could be built.
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Foodstuff and farms
As well as ironworks and mines, the Coalbrookdale Company also owned corn mills and farms so that they could supply their own grain, teams of horses and food stuffs. In times of hardship steps were taken by the Darby family to help relieve poverty in the area. Soup kitchens were established and grain was sold at a reduced price, but this was not always sufficient when shortages were on a national scale.
In November 1796 there were riots and protests against the high price of food. Some private properties and businesses were looted and the rioters even came to Coalbrookdale. They were persuaded to go away by giving them food supplies and the properties and businesses in Coalbrookdale were unscathed. As a result of the riots two men were hanged and eight were transported - 4 of whom were employees of the Darbys.
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Walks for the workers
Richard Reynolds, the Quaker Ironmaster who was closely connected with the Darby family and the Coalbrookdale Ironworks, laid out a series of walks through the woodland around the Dale to provide an area where people living and working in the Dale could walk on Sundays.
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Celebrating an important discovery
It is recorded that Abraham Darby I bought a special consignment of beer for his men presumably to recognise the successful discover of his coke-smelting process.
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No loitering
It was always warm in the area around the furnace at Coalbrookdale and it became a place where the workers gathered in the evenings. This seems to have obstructed the working of the furnace and a notice was issued by the Coalbrookdale Iron masters to prevent idle and disorderly employees from loitering around the furnaces when they were not at work. The notice stated that any workers would be sacked and any non-employees would be prosecuted for trespass.
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6 sleepless nights
Abraham Darby II perfected making iron with coke so that it could be used to make wrought iron as well as cast iron. Tradition has it that he spent six sleepless days and nights at the furnaces until iron of the right quality was produced. At the end of the six days his workmen had to carry him home exhausted.
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Electric shocks
Abraham III like many of the other Coalbrookdale Ironmasters was interested in the scientific inventions of the time. He had an early machine which generated a small charge of electricity. His sister-in-law Deborah described one experiment : 'We had had a few shocks. The electricity was very strong tonight. Abraham gave Uncle Barnard some shocks and he says he thinks he is the better for them.'
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Travelling to School
Abiah Darby's children attended a Quaker school in Worcester. In the 18th century roads were poor and one of the quickest forms of transport was to go by river. The Darby family owned trows and barges to transport finished goods and raw materials along the river Severn. These would also sometimes carry passengers. Abiah writes of several journeys by river boat to visit her children. 'On the 14th set out for Worcester in our boat with our children to school.'
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Smallpox inoculation
Smallpox was a killer disease in the 18th century. In 1758 Abraham Darby II and his wife Abiah decided to have their children Mary, Abraham, Sarah and Samuel inoculated against smallpox. At this time the only method available was to for a doctor to infect them with a mild form of the smallpox virus, a process which could be fatal. Abiah Darby was very worried about, but Abraham was keen to have it done as Richard Ford's son had recently died of the disease so they were inoculated on the 14th of April and thankfully all of them survived the process.
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