Traditional pipe making skills ...

 Just a century ago, smoking a pipe was a common sight with smaller plain pipes smoked by the masses while more intricate ones were a status sign. 

Clay pipes were also quite fragile & so the first world war brought about the change to cigarettes that travelled well with soldiers & pipe manufacture declined over time. 

Broseley Clay & Pipeworks is a fairly local one - I last visited about 20 years ago & because part of the Museum is besides private 1 up 1 down cottages, it is not open too often. 

It is humbling to stand in the museum part of the 1 up, 1 down cottage & know that an entire family of parents & perhaps 6 or more children lived in these tiny spaces with just a fireplace for cooking in the downstairs room. 

It makes us look at our large homes with fresh eyes & appreciation of how life has changed in just a century. 

I noted online that they were open as part of a Heritage Weekend so we went off for a much needed return visit. 

These little industries were essential work & the prestige of this small pipe maker meant that clay pipes were often just called 'Broseleys' after the place they were made & the pipes were sent to far flung places that the workers could never even dream of.  Pipes had been made in this area from about 1600.

Touring the small space with a very knowledgeable volunteer was very interesting as her grandmother & great grandmother & great aunt all worked there in their time. She had photos of them at the pipe works & they were paid per saggar (firing pot) they made. It was precise work with long hours & poor pay but options were limited so people took up whatever employment they could. 

 The low ceilings, small rooms, poorly lit spaces make you appreciate the working conditions of people. Pipes had been made in Broseley since the early 1600's, a highly prized industry.

It was a fascinating return visit of a time when smoking was mainstream & there was a huge demand for such items. 

There is much beauty in the lines of beautifully made pipes laid out on the tables & in the saggars as they would have been when prepared for firing in the kilns at 1000C & then the time spent cooling before they could be taken out - a process of about 5 days. 

Good honest work was what happened in these little places ... 

I hope you have enjoyed the visit with me, thank you for stopping by, 

Dee