The role of women in industrial history has often been hidden, overlooked, or forgotten. However, research carried out by social historian Ruth Goodman, on behalf of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, has revealed new insights into the fascinating and vital contributions that women have made to the industrial history of the Ironbridge Gorge. In this interview, Ruth Goodman discusses her research with the Trust's Interpretation Curator, Lauren Collier.
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Discover more about some of the women who worked in the ceramic and iron industries in the Gorge and gained the right to vote in 1918.
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Whilst the abundance of raw materials and the innovations of industrialists and entrepreneurs sparked industry in the Gorge, it was the ordinary workers who drove it forward and made it possible for this area to become ‘the most extraordinary district in the world’.
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Very few of the men, women and children who worked in industry across the Ironbridge Gorge have left a written record of themselves or their lives and so we can struggle to find their voices. However, every object manufactured in the Gorge is evidence of the labour and lives of these workers and the objects displayed across the Ironbridge Gorge Museums demonstrate their skill and efforts.
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Just like today, the amount of money earned for a day’s labour was often a sensitive issue.
For a greater level of skill or a greater risk of danger, as in ironworking and mining, workers would sometimes receive higher than average wages. However, wages could be affected by both booms and severe depressions in trade.
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