Cast Iron Houses?

[dunsbyowl1867]

My uncle was telling me the other day he was following some walk leaflet from Chapletown to Tankersley and it noted some houses in Mortemley Close made out of cast iron panels. These were manufactured by Newton & Chambers. Obviously they were not a great success? Anyone have any further information?

[RichardB]

http://www.heritagewoodsonline.co.uk/Chapeltown.pdf

http://www.sytimescapes.org.uk/files/uploa...Settlements.pdf

[DaveH]

The Black Country Museum near Dudley has a couple of preserved cast iron houses.

As you say they were not very popular, mainly for the following reasons, -

1

They were very cold, metals are excellent conductors of heat and the heat would very quickly go through those walls, - must cost a fortune to heat in the winter.

2

They suffered from rusting and corrosion, unlike normal houses which just get a bit of damp, condensation and mildew water would rust and damage iron housing meaning that the whole lot would need constant redecorating and maintainence.

3

They were noisy, as well as having hard floors and walls any knock or bang on a wall would echo and reverberate throughout the house

4

They were difficult to decorate, water based paints (emulsion) and wallpaper paste would accelerate corrosion and you couldn't knock a nail in the wall to hang a picture on.

I think our old asbestos prefab would have been preferable.

[Stuart0742]

The Black Country Museum near Dudley has a couple of preserved cast iron houses.

As you say they were not very popular, mainly for the following reasons, -

1

They were very cold, metals are excellent conductors of heat and the heat would very quickly go through those walls, - must cost a fortune to heat in the winter.

2

They suffered from rusting and corrosion, unlike normal houses which just get a bit of damp, condensation and mildew water would rust and damage iron housing meaning that the whole lot would need constant redecorating and maintainence.

3

They were noisy, as well as having hard floors and walls any knock or bang on a wall would echo and reverberate throughout the house

4

They were difficult to decorate, water based paints (emulsion) and wallpaper paste would accelerate corrosion and you couldn't knock a nail in the wall to hang a picture on.

I think our old asbestos prefab would have been preferable.

This is the pair of Houses at the Black Country Museum

[DaveH]

Thats the one Stuart, mighnt have guessed you would have taken a picture, can't remember if I took one or not but can't find any from the museum at present.

[dunsbyowl1867]

Thats the one Stuart, mighnt have guessed you would have taken a picture, can't remember if I took one or not but can't find any from the museum at present.

Thanks everybody, was the Black Country Museum the one featured on some of the Fred Dibnah programmes? Would you recommend a visit?

[Stuart0742]

Thanks everybody, was the Black Country Museum the one featured on some of the Fred Dibnah programmes? Would you recommend a visit?

Not sure about the Fred Dibnah bit but well worth a visit if you are in that part of the country (Dudley). Similar sort of place as Beamish

http://www.bclm.co.uk/

[DaveH]

Thanks everybody, was the Black Country Museum the one featured on some of the Fred Dibnah programmes? Would you recommend a visit?

As a fan of the late Fred Dibnah and having met him personally several times while indulging in one of my other interests, - visiting and running steam rallies I can confirm that in one series he did visit the Black Country Museum, I think he went to the blacksmiths and a steel casting shop, but it may have been the coal mine.

As Stuart says it is worth a visit and is very much like the museum at Beamish, although not quite as big.

The Black Country museum is set in the year 1900.

When we last went in the entrance took you first to the Bank where you changed your modern money for old £sd money at a year 1900 exchange rate. For £1 you got back something like two shillings and fourpence three farthings which you could then spend in the museum on sweets and gifts priced at a suitable old currency exchange (which of course equated to its full present day value). On leaving you could convert any old money back at the same rate with no commision, so if you had all your two shillings and fourpence three farthings left you got your original £1 back.

I also remember going to the "town" on a horse drawn bus (omnibus) pulled by a pair of strong shire horses. This is the only vehicle I have ever been on which is faster up hills than down! The shire horses are more than strong enough to pull the fully laiden bus up quite a steep gradient, but going down hill the weight of the bus is trying to push them down the hill and being unsure of their footing while being pushed they tend to "dig their hooves in" and procede with caution very slowly.

Fully enjoyed my visit, as I do with all museums of this type, - fully recommended.

[Stuart0742]

As a fan of the late Fred Dibnah and having met him personally several times while indulging in one of my other interests, - visiting and running steam rallies I can confirm that in one series he did visit the Black Country Museum, I think he went to the blacksmiths and a steel casting shop, but it may have been the coal mine.

As Stuart says it is worth a visit and is very much like the museum at Beamish, although not quite as big.

The Black Country museum is set in the year 1900.

When we last went in the entrance took you first to the Bank where you changed your modern money for old £sd money at a year 1900 exchange rate. For £1 you got back something like two shillings and fourpence three farthings which you could then spend in the museum on sweets and gifts priced at a suitable old currency exchange (which of course equated to its full present day value). On leaving you could convert any old money back at the same rate with no commision, so if you had all your two shillings and fourpence three farthings left you got your original £1 back.

I also remember going to the "town" on a horse drawn bus (omnibus) pulled by a pair of strong shire horses. This is the only vehicle I have ever been on which is faster up hills than down! The shire horses are more than strong enough to pull the fully laiden bus up quite a steep gradient, but going down hill the weight of the bus is trying to push them down the hill and being unsure of their footing while being pushed they tend to "dig their hooves in" and procede with caution very slowly.

Fully enjoyed my visit, as I do with all museums of this type, - fully recommended.

I thought it was the museum at Iron Bridge Museum where you exchanged your new money for proper money

[DaveH]

I thought it was the museum at Iron Bridge Museum where you exchanged your new money for proper money

There are 7 museums in this area including Black country, Iron Bridge, Coalport china and Blist Hill along with a few other "sights" like the first iron bridge itself and you can get discounts by buying a multiple ticket to get you into several of them which involves a bit of travelling about but the multi-ticket is valid for quite a long time.

I thought the iron bridge museum was just a display of iron making including an early blast furnace near to the site of Telford's iron bridge and that the Black Country museum was the one like Beamish with its own little town (including the bank and its old money), transport system, coal mine, iron works, farm, and of course those 2 cast iron houses.

[Guest Old Canny Street Kid]

My uncle was telling me the other day he was following some walk leaflet from Chapletown to Tankersley and it noted some houses in Mortemley Close made out of cast iron panels. These were manufactured by Newton & Chambers. Obviously they were not a great success? Anyone have any further information?

I have not read the other responses, but I am fairly sure that these houses were built by Newton Chambers & Co, or had some link with that firm. The houses in question were/are actually at Mortomley, just off the main road and going down to the old works sports ground (I have not been up that way for ages and don't know if it is still a sports ground) where Thorncliffe Rec used to play football and cricket. I think they were built as some sort of experiment.

[DaveH]

There are 7 museums in this area including Black country, Iron Bridge, Coalport china and Blist Hill along with a few other "sights" like the first iron bridge itself and you can get discounts by buying a multiple ticket to get you into several of them which involves a bit of travelling about but the multi-ticket is valid for quite a long time.

I thought the iron bridge museum was just a display of iron making including an early blast furnace near to the site of Telford's iron bridge and that the Black Country museum was the one like Beamish with its own little town (including the bank and its old money), transport system, coal mine, iron works, farm, and of course those 2 cast iron houses.

The Black country Museum is the one I thought it was, see link to their web site.

Black Country Museum

[DaveH]

The Black country Museum is the one I thought it was, see link to their web site.

Black Country Museum

..and they still have those cast iron houses

Cast Iron Houses

[Stuart0742]

..and they still have those cast iron houses

Cast Iron Houses

Interesting photo on that link, have I seen it before?

[DaveH]

Interesting photo on that link, have I seen it before?

Yes, it's in your post #4 in this thread

So why did you think it was Ironbridge? :huh: