Workers Wanted!
Ironstone mines began opening right across this area in the 1850s. This had been a land of farms, fields and moors. Now huge numbers of miners were needed.
A good wage
Adverts for miners were posted across Britain, promising wages of five shillings and sixpence a day (around £25 in today’s money). Men came in their thousands from around the country.
Experience or enthusiasm
Some of the men had mining experience. They came from Durham and Northumberland’s coal fields and Cornwall’s tin mines. Seasonal farm workers from Lincolnshire and East Anglia were attracted by good wages and year-round employment.
The Story of Iron and Steel
2 The Railways Arrive
1823
There are just two blast furnaces in Durham and Northumberland. They produce around 2,500 tons of pig iron each year.
1825
The Stockton and Darlington Railway opens. It is the first public railway to use steam locomotives. The line carries coal from the collieries near Shildon to the market towns of Stockton-on-Tees and Darlington.
1828
The cost of producing iron starts to fall. Scottish engineer James Neilson discovers he can produce molten iron more quickly by using hot air instead of cold in a blast furnace. This uses less fuel and reduces costs.
1830
The Stockton and Darlington Railway line is extended to Middlesbrough. Coal can now be carried directly to the town’s ironworks, factories and ships.