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Published: October 16th 2010
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Excursion to Ironbridge
As planned, we made a journey for Ironbridge on Sunday, 5 September. We took the train to Telford Central and caught the bus. The bus went past several museums, e.g. Blists Hill Victorian Town, Coalport China Museum. We got off at High Street near Ironbridge. There were a lot of restaurants, hotels, and souvenir shops around the Ironbridge.
Firstly, we crossed over the Ironbridge, and then popped in the Information Centre, which has been converted from the Tollhouse. We bought the Ironbridge Passport costing us £19.95 each, for us to visit 10 of the museums (in 12 months).
We decided to visit three museums, i.e. Gorge Museum, Coalport China Museum, and Blists Hill Victorian Town. The Ironbridge was very picturesque. I took a number of pictures of the bridge.
The Gorge Museum
Secondly, we went to the Gorge Museum. There was a lifesize model of Severn Gorge with fine details of boatbuilding industry, ironworks, furnace, brickworks, Shropshire canal, people, and railway, etc in the time of the Industrial Revolution. We saw the film illustrating the history, recent discoveries, and conservation for future in regard to the Ironbridge. The world's first ironbridge was built by Abraham
Derby 200 years ago to improve the water traffic system. Shortly after the ironbridge was built, the industrial revolution kicked off around the northwest of Britain. Ceramic factories, tilemaking factories, ironworks, brickworks, and so forth, flourished around the gorge at the beginning of the 19th century. Those industries declined at the start of the 20th century, however, the restoration campaign was raised in the 1970s to preserve the important industrial monuments, as well as the Ironbridge, and then buildings which were once used for pottery, ironwork, tilemaking industries have been converted to the museums and restaurants, which the tourists use. Excavation works are still carried out to hand the legacy of the past to the future generations.
We had lunch at the cafe between the Gorge Museum and the Ironbridge, and caught the bus to the Coalport China Museum.
The Coalport China Museum
The block of the brick building complex have been converted to the exhibition rooms for Regency and Victorian porcelain and workshop displays.
We saw a wide range of porcelain e.g. vases, plates, teapots, jars, with pictures of flowers, animals, fish, countryside, scenes of Middle Eastern countries with camels, and Royal links. The showrooms of
workshop shows us comprehensive process of production of porcelain pieces with category of throwing to make on a pottery's wheel, jugger and jolly, mounting, ship casting (used to produce intricate shapes), transfer printing (for mass production), glaze dipping, print and first decorating, second decorating firing, gilding and burnishing.
We entered the exhibition room at the former furnace, and it included the pictures and stories of the unpleasant working conditions, e.g. little fresh air and high humidity which the pottery workers had to cope with, and splendid displays of plates and vases with pictures of flowers, fruits, fish, and royal links. We were astonished at the size of the furnace when we looked at the ceiling.
The bus turned up when we were heading for Blists Hill Victorian Museum.
Blists Hill Victorian Town
We arrived at Blists Hill at 2:45. After showing our passports of Ironbridge, we walked through the entrance building. We were shown the ironwork factories on the screen, and it made us feel that we were transported to the Victorian period. After following the route and leaving the entrance building, this scene turned out to be the reality. We were brought to the town where
lines of brick buildings with boards of shops, big Gothic style street signs and advertisements, and ladies and gentlemen wearing white blouses, black trousers, dark coloured hat and waistcoats, etc in an authentic manner, which were like the Victorian films.
We popped in the Lloyds Bank, Bates and Hunt Chemist shop with the dental surgery, Grocery shop, Bakery, Annie Earp Confectioner, the Foundry, Saw Mill & Carpenter, Doctor's Surgery house, Severn Trow, Mission Church, and Shelton Tollhouse, etc. The shops were filled with Victorian manufactured products, furnished in dark brown coloured (probably oak) cabinets and cupboards, and functioned in Victorian machines and equipment, and tools.
We walked along the canal and saw the buildings of the former brick and tile making factories, and model of the half-sized construction of Iron Bridge.
There were adults and children wearing Victorian costumes on the streets, as well as shops and workers who were demonstrating the manner and activities in the commerce and factories such as brickmaking, ironworks, printing company, bakery, wood carvings, to name just a few. They were all willing to give poses for tourists' photography, and very friendly to people.
There was a funfair on the green.
I got on a Merrily-go-round. there were a lot of old-fashioned and nostalgic sweets and toys displayed on the stalls, which I saw the similar ones at the local festivals in Japan. We missed seeing some of the heritage buildings along the canal, but truly enjoyed strolling through the Victorian town on 6 September.
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