Coalbrookdale & Co

Biography

The Coalbrookdale ironworks were established in 1706 in Shropshire by Abraham Darby (1678-1717), the first ironmaster to successfully smelt iron with coke. This breakthrough led to the mass-production of cast iron on an industrial scale, and contributed to the Industrial Revolution as a whole. The first iron bridge - which gave its name to the nearby town, iron rails and steam locomotives were produced there, but in the 19th century the Company was also a major manufacturer of domestic cast and wrought iron goods. Its catalogues offered appliances ranging from umbrella stands to fireplaces, fruit plates and garden furniture. By the middle of the nineteenth century the Coalbrookdale Foundry was the largest in the world.