Henry Cort

		Henry Cort Inventor - Creator of puddled iron - Father of iron trade
		This page is part of a website based on the life and achievements of eighteenth-century inventor Henry Cort. The creator and owner of the site was Eric Alexander who passed away. The site is now hosted by Hans Weebers Please contact me with any comments or queries.

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EARLY WORKS AT MERTHYR TYDFIL

Mr. Bacon was a man of much activity, energy, and enterprise, and, obtaining a long lease of an extensive tract of iron and coal country near Merthyr Tydvil, he entered into large contracts with the Government for supplying the arsenals. He was the originator of one of the most striking instances of modern creation of manufacturing enterprise. Merthyr Tydvil is situated in a wild part of Glamorganshire, barren of everything except subterranean wealth; it was known at distant times as a place for smelting iron ore, but the operations were never carried on to any great extent, and the place remained an inconsiderable village until about the middle of the last century. Mr. Bacon created extensive works in different parts of his property, which rapidly diffused industry and attracted population.

From Gibbs's nineteenth-century compendium, Buckinghamshire Worthies.

The development of Merthyr into an ironmaking centre can be traced to an agreement in 1758 to build a works north-east of the town.

For many years iron ore mined at Dowlais has been smelted elsewhere.

Now the demand for iron has increased with the outbreak of the Seven Years War against France. Lessee Thomas Lewis reckons it is time to start smelting on site.

He sets up a nine-strong partnership to install a blast furnace.

Partners are mostly from South Wales or Bristol, but they include the enterprising Edward Blakeway from Shrewsbury and ironmaster Isaac Wilkinson.

Isaac is responsible for building the furnace. But if the partners are hoping he will manage the works, they are soon disappointed.

A Broseley man, John Guest, is installed as manager. Guest is bent on taking over the works, and soon buys out all the partners except Lewis and Wilkinson.

Later he and Wilkinson combine to build a new furnace on nearby land owned by the Earl of Plymouth, forming the basis of the Plymouth ironworks.

At this point Isaac's Cumbria connections come into play.

Anthony Bacon's career has taken him from Cumbria to Maryland, then back to London. When the Seven Years War breaks out he becomes a Government contractor, supplying British garrisons in Africa and the West Indies.

To attract the necessary ministerial understanding, Bacon obtained election to the House of Commons from 1764 to 1784 from the venal and costly borough of Aylesbury, previously represented by John Wilkes.

From entry for Anthony Bacon in Oxford DNB.

About this time William Brownrigg approaches him with an idea for an ironworks north of Merthyr Tydfil.

In 1765 he leased lands and mining rights at Cyfarthfa, Glamorgan, where he had a cousin by marriage, Dr William Brownrigg, (and) built a coke-using ironworks. The next year Bacon purchased a share in the nearby Plymouth works from Isaac Wilkinson and John Guest, its founder, and in 1780 he purchased the balance of Plymouth plus the nearby Hirwaun works. At that point Bacon owned three of the four significant coke iron furnaces in the Merthyr Tudful area.

Besides his medical and scientific pursuits, Brownrigg invested both time and money in a rope factory, iron mining, timber production, turnpike construction, farms, and farm improvement.

From entry for William Brownrigg in Oxford DNB.

They lease land, extract ore and build a blast furnace, a foundry and a forge.

Brownrigg's brother-in-law Charles Wood is brought in to erect a "pot-and-stamp" finery.

When they find that the enterprise needs more iron than can be produced on site, they buy the Plymouth furnace from Wilkinson and Guest.

The foundation is laid for what will become the biggest ironworks of the early nineteenth century, after the involvement of Richard Crawshay.

Meanwhile Isaac Wilkinson makes his last career move, combining with Guest to set up works near Bristol.

This venture fails, leading to the "impoverishment" noted by his son-in-law Joseph Priestley.

Guest survives the crash and remains at Dowlais, which continues under his family for many generations.

RELATED TOPICS

Iron manufacture

Cort's patents

Cort's promotion efforts 1783-6

Shropshire and Staffordshire ironmasters

Cumbrian ironmasters: Wilkinson etc

Early works at Merthyr Tydfil

Scottish iron

Iron hoops

Puddling after Henry Cort

The pages on this site are copied from the original site of Eric Alexander (henrycort.net) with his allowance.
Eric passed away abt 2012
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