The Iron Bridge

Lately, Mrs Vace Folle and I have been spending vacations on pilgrimages to ancestral villages. Having such a theme for vacation allows us to avoid the usual tourist destinations and to explore off the beaten path. It also adds interest to sights and circumstances that might otherwise escape the notice of a traveller. This fall, for instance, we are off to Ruthenia and the village of Gladyszow.

A couple of years ago, we (along with Mrs VF's brother) went to Shropshire to explore the origins of Mrs VF's paternal great grandfather. We visited, among other things, the delightful town of Shrewsbury which was home to the family for a time and the location of the beloved Brother Cadfael mysteries. The family lived near the Abbey where the Cadfael series is set. We also visited the quaint village of Condover and the vicinty of Lyth Hill which affords a great view of the area, the same view that Mrs VF's ancestors must have enjoyed.

In addition, we took a day trip to the Ironbridge, where the Industrial Revolution got its start. The area is named for the bridge of iron across the river, and it was home to an iron foundry, a china factory, and several other early industries. Many of the buildings and facilities have been preserved and may be toured. There are museums devoted to iron working, pipes and plumbing, pottery and bone china, and an interactive Victorian village. The processes employed and working conditions are explained. If you had told me that I would spend hours at the Museum of Iron and like it, I would have deemed you insane. But I loved every minute and wish that I had had two or three days to spend there and at the other attractions (I never got to the museum of plumbing).

While working conditions were considerably less comfortable and safe than now and hours were longer, I did not get the impression that the denizens of Ironbridge lived in a Dickensian hell by any means. The owner of the foundry lived within 50 yards of the facility in a fine, but not ostentatious, home and was present at the plant and known to the workers. The workers were drawn to Ironbridge from surrounding areas by the opportunity for work outside the semi-feudal situation they were used to. Many workers were women, especially in the pottery and china trade, and this seemed to empower them. The developments at Ironbridge and elsewhere transformed the world.

At Ironbridge, the Industrial Revolution can be seen and touched. As matter of fact as the presentations were, I could not help but be awestruck. It is a far more worthwhile place to visit than Stonehenge.