Black Country
25/7/2019
When Queen Victoria took a train through the black country, she asked for the curtains to be drawn as she found the poverty and industrial landscape to be depressing.
Certainly as the canal takes you west from Birmingham, some decaying industrial sites are evident, but more depressing now is the litter by and in the canal. Still, the main impression is of a heavily treed, green land on the day's climb through just 3 locks to reach the Wolverhampton level.
Dudley is at the heart of the black country, with its story of coal, glass, lace. The term dates from around the 1840s, with this and other regions of rural England becoming industrialised, wealthy for some. Tunnels from the canal lead south to the Severn,
transporting goods to the Bristol Channel and the world.
A favourite mooring for us is at the Black Country Museum. It is actually a 26 acre old coal mining site, where it is claimed Dud Dudley (!) first smelted iron using coal rather than wood.
In the 1970s some visionary locals acquired the site, and began the herculean task of moving whole buildings, pubs, workshops...dismantled brick by brick and rebuilt to form a village complete with a small farm, a 1930s funfair.
Iron houses built after the first world war with excess production were moved. Tram ways installed. A chain and nail making workshop, trap making- exports of rabbit traps to Australia were a big earner, before animal welfare rightly banned the trade, so the workshop complete with forges and all the tools was moved 5 kilometres to the museum/village.
The Cap'n particularly likes the Newcomen atmospheric engine and the vintage car and motor bike collection.
My favourites are the chooks and pigs living in a small holding, surrounded by an orchard, veggie garden, and a little cottage. I might move in.
From this gem we moved on to the canal basin at the top of the 21 Wolverhampton locks, which take you down to the Staffordshire Canal.
Turn right to the NW, a mile to the junction with the Shropshire Canal, or SW to Stourport on the Severn.
We head to the Shroppie, destination Wales.
Certainly as the canal takes you west from Birmingham, some decaying industrial sites are evident, but more depressing now is the litter by and in the canal. Still, the main impression is of a heavily treed, green land on the day's climb through just 3 locks to reach the Wolverhampton level.
Dudley is at the heart of the black country, with its story of coal, glass, lace. The term dates from around the 1840s, with this and other regions of rural England becoming industrialised, wealthy for some. Tunnels from the canal lead south to the Severn,
transporting goods to the Bristol Channel and the world.A favourite mooring for us is at the Black Country Museum. It is actually a 26 acre old coal mining site, where it is claimed Dud Dudley (!) first smelted iron using coal rather than wood.
In the 1970s some visionary locals acquired the site, and began the herculean task of moving whole buildings, pubs, workshops...dismantled brick by brick and rebuilt to form a village complete with a small farm, a 1930s funfair.
Iron houses built after the first world war with excess production were moved. Tram ways installed. A chain and nail making workshop, trap making- exports of rabbit traps to Australia were a big earner, before animal welfare rightly banned the trade, so the workshop complete with forges and all the tools was moved 5 kilometres to the museum/village.
My favourites are the chooks and pigs living in a small holding, surrounded by an orchard, veggie garden, and a little cottage. I might move in.
From this gem we moved on to the canal basin at the top of the 21 Wolverhampton locks, which take you down to the Staffordshire Canal.
Turn right to the NW, a mile to the junction with the Shropshire Canal, or SW to Stourport on the Severn.
We head to the Shroppie, destination Wales.
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