Who was Abraham Darby?
NOTE: This is unique on Britain Unlimited that
a page covers more than one person but there were four bearers of
the name Abraham Darby in the famous Quaker family. The First and
Third who achieved particular success are covered here.
Abraham Darby the FIrst: First Successful Smelter
of Iron with Coke.
Abraham Darby the Third: Builder of the world's first Ironbridge
over the River Severn.
No portraits of the Darby Family exist
as it was against their Quaker religion
to make images of themselves.
Date and Place of Birth:
Abraham Darby the First: 1678, Wren's Nest, Sedgley,
West Midlands, England.
Abraham Darby the Third: 1750, Nash House, Coalbrookdale.
Family Background:
Abraham Darby the First was the son of a Quaker
farmer.
Education:
Within the family by Quakers and self-taught.
Apprenticed as a metal worker.
Upper
Furnace Pool, Coalbrookdale
still showing Iron deposits today
(© Anthony Blagg)
|
Aga Cooker Factory now on
the site
of the famous Coalbrookdale manufactory
(© Anthony Blagg)
|
Chronology/Biography of Abraham Darby:
1700: Founded the
Baptist Mills Brass works near Temple Meads in Bristol and over
the next few years turned Britain into a major producer and exporter
of brass. Using sand moulds made the process continuous.
1708: Founded the
Bristol Iron Company.
1709: First successful
manufacture of good quality iron in furnaces fired with Coke at
his new premises in Coalbrookdale, Shropshire, on the banks of the
River Severn. Charcoal was becoming too scarce and could not achieve
fires for furnaces of the right temperature and coal contained many
impurities including Sulphur which made inferior quality iron. The
area was rich in low sulphur coal.
1712: 250 tons of
coal were being used per week at the Baptist Mills Brass Works.The
advent of the new Newcomen steam engine created major new market
for iron.
Nash House, Coalbrookdale where Abraham Darby the Third
was born and
which became known to the family as The Darby home.
(© Anthony Blagg)
1758: Abraham the
First was succeeded in the business by his son Abraham the Second
and the factory had cast about 100 Newcomen engines by this time.
1779: Abraham Darby
the Third, grandson of the original Abraham Darby created the world's
first cast iron bridge at Iron Bridge, which still crosses the River
Severn today. It was designed by Thomas Farnolls Pritchard and the
pieces where transported from the Colabrookdale Factory one and
a half miles to be erected of the river at what is now called Ironbridge.
The world's First Iron Bridge which became the symbol of
the Industrial revolution,
Ironbridge, Telford.
(© Anthony Blagg)
Marriage:
Abraham Darby the First: 18th September 1699
to Mary Sarjeant.
Date and Place of Death:
Abraham Darby the First: 8th March 1717, Madeley
Court, Shropshire, England.
Abraham Darby the Third: 1791.
Age at Death:
Abraham Darby the First: 39.
Abraham Darby the Third: 41.
Site of Grave:
Abraham Darby the First: All Saint’s Church,
Broseley, Shropshire, England.
Abraham Darby the Third: Quaker Burial
Ground, Coalbrookdale, Telford, Shropshire. This walled piece of
land was bought by Abraham Darby the Second for his burial and those
of many other Quaker's in the vicinity.
The Quaker Burial Ground just up
the road from Nash House.
Bought by Abraham Darby the Second for his burial and that of other
quakers in the area.
Abraham Darby the third is also buried here.
There is a plaque at the entrance showing the original burial locations
(© Anthony Blagg)
Places of Interest:
SHROPSHIRE:
Iron Bridge Gorge Museums, Coalbrookdale. His
grandson Abraham Darby the Third cast and erected the world's first
iron bridge at Coalbrookdale, Shropshire.
Rosehill House, Colabrookdale built next door to Nash House
showed how prosperous the Darby Family had become
(© Anthony Blagg)
