I can’t recommend a trip to the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley enough. If you are in Birmingham, it’s an easy taxi ride from the city. Going through the ticket gate, you time-travel from modern day Britain, right back to daily Edwardian life. It’s a great museum for children with a programme of events and regular demonstrations by actors. They walk around the town giving an idea of what it was like to live during these times. It’s the perfect combination of education and fun.
Worked to the bone
One of the areas I enjoyed the most was watching a Blacksmith at work. He gave an excellent demonstration of chain-making and this is an example of a “sweated” trade. This meant that workers (often women) were paid very little to produce low-value goods at home. He brought to life the harshness and danger of the times. He also drew attention to the fact that women were paid so much less for their work. Added to this, men were also not expected to mind children and run households, while making chains by hand in poorly lit and unsafe conditions.
The importance of the The Suffragettes, trade unions, politicians and wider society in supporting the women of the Black Country was made clear. This was especially true during the strikes in 1910, when women demanded better pay and rights. One strike lasted 10 weeks. This brave and bold move forced the British government to act and to establish minimum wage for hand-hammered work done by women. The new pay rate that was won was two and a half pence an hour. This was almost double what women were earning before this, and a huge step forward. Without the risk and struggle, nothing would have changed.
School’s Out
If you want to take a walk down memory lane and recite your times tables or practise your ABCs, then head to the school house. We peeped our heads in the door and it was so fun to see a classroom full of attentive children and adults listening to the teacher. It really did bring back memories of sitting in rows at small desks and trying your best to keep up with so many new things.
Leave time for lunch
We had such a great time looking at the shops and little winding streets of the town. One of the highlights was fresh fish and chips that we ate on a picnic bench overlooking the canals and checking out the fashion and clothes shops. We happened to visit on the weekend of the King’s Coronation, so there was extra excitement in the air. Actors showed off breads baked in the shape of crowns and there was a party atmosphere in the streets with people encouraged to join in the dancing.
For Peaky Blinder’s fans and for car enthusiasts, there is lots to see. The Museum is often used as a movie set and volunteer mechanics keep the old buses and cars moving.
And lastly, the gift shop is excellent and there’s a café with lots of seating so a big thumbs up from me!