What the heck that's so hot @.@ Lol I can't even imagine 5 year olds doing manual labor like that ._. Like I know that was the norm back then but it seems so crazy to think about today. 

Geez those furnaces are way bigger than I expected too. I guess when I think of furnaces I think of teeny tiny ones lolll these are massive X.X 

Nice photos too btw ~ this was interesting : D 

Nice stuff. I don't know much about this kind of thing but the pics are cool. Wouldn't wanna be a kid working in one wth.. 

I love your photos I didn't know furnaces could be made that big either O_O they look like the size of mountains?! Or is the scale showing up bigger than it actually is in the picture? No I guess that can't be it because in that one picture there's a tall fence so they really are the size of mountains O_O 

@Sakura , @Sarada  @Eris thanks for your comments, I pleased that you liked my photos. The actual blast furnaces weren't that large, they were originally inverted wine glass shaped and about 10 foot or so in diameter and about the same high but the whole structure of the furnace has to be massive when you're dealing with molten iron at 1500C which is about 2730F you need a massive structure to cope with it. There's also the requirement to have the charging point above the furnace where the ore was fed into it. The working conditions must have been horrendous even if you weren't working with the furnaces, there was a small railway network that was used to move the iron and other stuff around the works and the carts would have been moved by hand and the very young children may not have had shoes.

Ate those things only 10 feet tall in the picture? O_O they just look so big 
 

1 hour ago, Sarada said:

Ate those things only 10 feet tall in the picture? O_O they just look so big 

Perhaps I shouldn't try to reply to questions early in the morning not long after I've got up .  I didn't do a very good job with my reply . Yes, the actual furnace, or perhaps crucible would be a better term, isn't all that big, but the structure that makes up the whole of the furnace is quite large from the ground to the top of the chimney it would be around 80 - 90 feet high and the walls of the structure would have to be thick enough to retain the heat and survive the high temperatures of the furnace 24 hours a day 7 days a week. The whole thing would also have to be wide enough at the top to allow room for them to add the ore into the opening at the top of the chimney.

Amazing photos and interesting history behind them. Are you still able to go inside the structures like the workers cottages? 

I enjoy reading these I always learn something new. I like the photos you took you seem to get some really good shots.
 

This doesn't sound like a place I'd like to work  question - after the inspection revealed children working there was anything done? I think that a lot of places had minor child labor laws as early as 1800 but still allowed child labor for 10 - 12 hours a day depending on what country since different ones had different laws. 

@Sasuke Yes, you can still go into the foundry and no.2 furnace's cast house and there's a sort of audio visual presentation in there that gives an idea of what it would have been like working in there with coloured lights and a sound system that played the noise of the furnace and shouts of the workers. You can go right up to what is left of no.2 furnace but access to the other furnaces is not allowed. You can enter the workers houses and they're set out as the would have been in different decades, they're quite small but they were well equipped.

@Zeref I'm glad you find my blogs interesting a learn something from them, and thank you for the compliments about my photos. I'm sure it's a place I wouldn't want to work! As far as I know nothing was actually done about the child labour, I think it was just one of those inspections that was made and filed. The children in the iron works probably had a better life than those working in the mines where the iron ore came from.

4 minutes ago, Animedragon said:

@Sasuke Yes, you can still go into the foundry and no.2 furnace's cast house and there's a sort of audio visual presentation in there that gives an idea of what it would have been like working in there with coloured lights and a sound system that played the noise of the furnace and shouts of the workers. You can go right up to what is left of no.2 furnace but access to the other furnaces is not allowed. You can enter the workers houses and they're set out as the would have been in different decades, they're quite small but they were well equipped.

@Zeref I'm glad you find my blogs interesting a learn something from them, and thank you for the compliments about my photos. I'm sure it's a place I wouldn't want to work! As far as I know nothing was actually done about the child labour, I think it was just one of those inspections that was made and filed. The children in the iron works probably had a better life than those working in the mines where the iron ore came from.

I wondered about the life there too if it was possible better than other places if they were fed for free or not? In some cases in that time period if that was how it was, working there might have been a good option to get guaranteed food. 

1 hour ago, Zeref said:

I wondered about the life there too if it was possible better than other places if they were fed for free or not? In some cases in that time period if that was how it was, working there might have been a good option to get guaranteed food. 

They certainly didn't get free food. The company owned shop at the works was run to make a profit for the company.

13 hours ago, Animedragon said:

Perhaps I shouldn't try to reply to questions early in the morning not long after I've got up .  I didn't do a very good job with my reply . Yes, the actual furnace, or perhaps crucible would be a better term, isn't all that big, but the structure that makes up the whole of the furnace is quite large from the ground to the top of the chimney it would be around 80 - 90 feet high and the walls of the structure would have to be thick enough to retain the heat and survive the high temperatures of the furnace 24 hours a day 7 days a week. The whole thing would also have to be wide enough at the top to allow room for them to add the ore into the opening at the top of the chimney.

I'm so glad to know they are huge because thinking they were only ten feet tall had me wondering what kind of midget fences that was on the front then

This blog entry has generated quite a bit of interest, so by way of a 'thank you' here are four bonus pictures. These are some inside photos so I hope you'll find them interesting.

Part of the display in no.2 furnace. Originally there would have been a wine glass shape lining between the base and the opening of the chimney but this had been cut away for replacement but the works closed before the replacement was built.

Some of the cottages were furnished as they would have been at different times, and I forgot toe make a note of the dates!. Close inspection of my full size photos I would place this one at 1900s possibly around 1914. The vases are about right for that period and the photo on the mantelpiece is of soldiers in first world war style uniforms.

I'm much more confident to date this one at 1940s as the newspaper headline reads "Hitler Assassinated".

Another one I'm confident to date as 1950s as the date on the Playbook Annual is 1954. (I remember some of the things in that room, and I've still got a standard lamp like that in my living room).

I hope you enjoyed looking at these bonus photos.

10 hours ago, Sarada said:

I'm so glad to know they are huge because thinking they were only ten feet tall had me wondering what kind of midget fences that was on the front then

I was glad to read that too because the pictures looked like they were so massive XD 

3 minutes ago, Animedragon said:

This blog entry has generated quite a bit of interest, so by way of a 'thank you' here are four bonus pictures under the spoiler tag. These are some inside photos so I hope you'll find them interesting.

  Hide contents

Part of the display in no.2 furnace. Originally there would have been a wine glass shape lining between the base and the opening of the chimney but this had been cut away for replacement but the works closed before the replacement was built.

 

Some of the cottages were furnished as they would have been at different times, and I forgot toe make a note of the dates!. Close inspection of my full size photos I would place this one at 1900s possibly around 1914. The vases are about right for that period and the photo on the mantelpiece is of soldiers in first world war style uniforms.

I'm much more confident to date this one at 1940s as the newspaper headline reads "Hitler Assassinated".

Another one I'm confident to date as 1950s as the date on the Playbook Annual is 1954. (I remember some of the things in that room, and I've still got a standard lamp like that in my living room).

I hope you enjoyed looking at these bonus photos.

Oooooo those are cool! ~ I love looking at homes that are setup for certain time periods. 

4 hours ago, Animedragon said:

This blog entry has generated quite a bit of interest, so by way of a 'thank you' here are four bonus pictures. These are some inside photos so I hope you'll find them interesting.

Part of the display in no.2 furnace. Originally there would have been a wine glass shape lining between the base and the opening of the chimney but this had been cut away for replacement but the works closed before the replacement was built.

Some of the cottages were furnished as they would have been at different times, and I forgot toe make a note of the dates!. Close inspection of my full size photos I would place this one at 1900s possibly around 1914. The vases are about right for that period and the photo on the mantelpiece is of soldiers in first world war style uniforms.

I'm much more confident to date this one at 1940s as the newspaper headline reads "Hitler Assassinated".

Another one I'm confident to date as 1950s as the date on the Playbook Annual is 1954. (I remember some of the things in that room, and I've still got a standard lamp like that in my living room).

I hope you enjoyed looking at these bonus photos.

Those are interesting. I agree with @Sakura it's neat to see the way things would have been set up in the past. 

7 hours ago, Animedragon said:

This blog entry has generated quite a bit of interest, so by way of a 'thank you' here are four bonus pictures. These are some inside photos so I hope you'll find them interesting.

Part of the display in no.2 furnace. Originally there would have been a wine glass shape lining between the base and the opening of the chimney but this had been cut away for replacement but the works closed before the replacement was built.

Some of the cottages were furnished as they would have been at different times, and I forgot toe make a note of the dates!. Close inspection of my full size photos I would place this one at 1900s possibly around 1914. The vases are about right for that period and the photo on the mantelpiece is of soldiers in first world war style uniforms.

I'm much more confident to date this one at 1940s as the newspaper headline reads "Hitler Assassinated".

Another one I'm confident to date as 1950s as the date on the Playbook Annual is 1954. (I remember some of the things in that room, and I've still got a standard lamp like that in my living room).

I hope you enjoyed looking at these bonus photos.

Wow that little TV

7 hours ago, Zeref said:

Wow that little TV

 

Yes, a huge 12 inch screen and in glorious black & white, and probably took 5 minutes to warm up before you saw the pictures . We had one for a while when I was about 4 or 5, my dad bought it at a jumble sale, we couldn't afford a new one, but I don't think it lasted all that long.

Nice shots, they almost looks wholesome with the greenery, but knowing what was going on on-site gives it another feeling ! The lack of awareness and protection towards noise/heat and the working conditions sure doesn't sound like a fun time.. Still, the tower/furnace remains impressive.

On 5/21/2025 at 4:16 PM, Animedragon said:

This blog entry has generated quite a bit of interest, so by way of a 'thank you' here are four bonus pictures. These are some inside photos so I hope you'll find them interesting.

Part of the display in no.2 furnace. Originally there would have been a wine glass shape lining between the base and the opening of the chimney but this had been cut away for replacement but the works closed before the replacement was built.

Some of the cottages were furnished as they would have been at different times, and I forgot toe make a note of the dates!. Close inspection of my full size photos I would place this one at 1900s possibly around 1914. The vases are about right for that period and the photo on the mantelpiece is of soldiers in first world war style uniforms.

I'm much more confident to date this one at 1940s as the newspaper headline reads "Hitler Assassinated".

Another one I'm confident to date as 1950s as the date on the Playbook Annual is 1954. (I remember some of the things in that room, and I've still got a standard lamp like that in my living room).

I hope you enjoyed looking at these bonus photos.

Wow, that TV looks even smaller than Sony's old PMV which were used in hospitals and other professional setting  

5 hours ago, Moestub said:

Nice shots, they almost looks wholesome with the greenery, but knowing what was going on on-site gives it another feeling ! The lack of awareness and protection towards noise/heat and the working conditions sure doesn't sound like a fun time.. Still, the tower/furnace remains impressive.

It's a fascinating place to visit and all the greenery makes it a look a really nice peasant and tranquil place, but in reality I don't think there would have been much, if any, greenery when it was working and it certainly wouldn't have been tranquil!!

5 hours ago, Moestub said:

Wow, that TV looks even smaller than Sony's old PMV which were used in hospitals and other professional setting  

That TV would have bee state-of-the-art at the time and that TV like the record player/radio unit opposite would have been quite expensive items, so the people living there in the 1950s would have been fairly well off.

5 hours ago, Moestub said:

The lack of awareness and protection towards noise/heat and the working conditions sure doesn't sound like a fun time

Health & Safety wasn't a thing back in those days.