A hands-on introduction to a historic forge
The experience is based at the Locksmiths House Museum in the town of Willenhall in the Black Country. At its height, the area was the largest lock manufacturing town in the world.
The Locksmith’s House Museum is the former home and workshops of the Hodson Family who manufactured locks from the 1790s until the late 1960s. The experience day makes use of the bellows-blown, coke-fired forge and some of the belt-driven machinery.
The experience is for a maximum of 2 people under the guidance of experienced engineer Andy Middlebrook.
Typically, the day will begin at 10am when the workshop forge is lit, along with a short museum house tour. Lunch is provided and the day finishes at 3pm, by which point guests will have produced a forged padlock bar and traditional nails or chain links which they may take home as souvenirs.
The days must be booked through the Black Country Living Museum booking page.
A. M. Experimental - The Handy Engineer 