Crawshay Bailey
Encyclopedia
Crawshay Bailey was an English
industrialist who became one of the great iron-masters of Wales.
, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield
and his wife Susannah. His parents had moved from Normanton
, near Wakefield
in around 1780 by which time they had already had at least three children (Ann, Elizabeth and William). Crawshay was the youngest of a further five children to be born in Great Wenham (the others being Susan, Joseph
, John, and Thomas). His mother, Susannah was the sister of Richard Crawshay
, the Ironmaster
based at Cyfarthfa Castle
near Merthyr Tydfil
where Crawshay Bailey came at the age of twelve to work for his rich uncle in 1801, joining his elder brother Joseph. In 1809 he was a witness to his rich uncle's will, in which he was bequeathed the sum of £1,000 (equivalent to £55,000 in today's terms 2007 http://www.measuringworth.com/index.html).
, Crawshay went into the iron
business as a young man in 1811 at Nantyglo
and soon at Beaufort, Ebbw Vale
. He became a Partner, with his brother in 1820.
For a time he also ran the ironworks at Rhymney
, and while there he constructed a tramway between Rhymney and Bassaleg
near Newport
.
Though by now a major ironmaster
he far-sightedly bought up large areas of coal
-rich land, at their agricultural value too, in the Rhondda Valleys
, at Mountain Ash and Aberaman
and was prepared to sit on these assets for nearly nine years before developing them as some of the richest coal and iron ore deposits in the world.
In a similar manner he waited until the most auspicious time before applying for a Parliamentary Act to open and run a railway company. In 1845 he was instrumental in setting up the Aberdare
Railway, along with Sir John Josiah Guest
to capitalise on further assets in the form of sinking new collieries and building new blast furnaces.
He also promoted railways between Coleford
, in the Forest of Dean
, via Monmouth
and Usk
to Pontypool
.
He was anti trade union
and opposed to his workers organising themselves along these lines.
in 1837 and also held the same office in Monmouthshire
in 1850. He was Member of Parliament
for Monmouth Boroughs
from 1852 to 1868 and was elected in five successive parliamentary elections.
near Abergavenny
, where he lived in Llanfoist House. A local park in Abergavenny town is named Bailey Park in his honour and Llanfoist Primary School had a house named after him.
He died in 1872, aged 83, after at least seventy years in industry. His only son, and heir, Crawshay Bailey II (born 1821), inherited.
Crawshay Bailey had an Engine
It was always needin' mendin'
And dependin' on its power
It could do four miles an hour
Did you ever saw
Did you ever saw
Did you ever saw
Such a funny thing before?
(and so on—many, many verses in different versions)
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
industrialist who became one of the great iron-masters of Wales.
Early life
Bailey was born in 1789 in Great Wenham, SuffolkSuffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield
Wakefield
Wakefield is the main settlement and administrative centre of the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, England. Located by the River Calder on the eastern edge of the Pennines, the urban area is and had a population of 76,886 in 2001....
and his wife Susannah. His parents had moved from Normanton
Normanton
Normanton is the name of several places:In England:*Normanton, Derbyshire*Normanton, Leicestershire*Normanton, Lincolnshire*Normanton, Nottinghamshire*Normanton, Rutland*Normanton, West Yorkshire**Normanton...
, near Wakefield
Wakefield
Wakefield is the main settlement and administrative centre of the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, England. Located by the River Calder on the eastern edge of the Pennines, the urban area is and had a population of 76,886 in 2001....
in around 1780 by which time they had already had at least three children (Ann, Elizabeth and William). Crawshay was the youngest of a further five children to be born in Great Wenham (the others being Susan, Joseph
Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet
Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet was an English ironmaster and Member of Parliament .Bailey was born in 1783 in Great Wenham, Suffolk, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield and his wife Susannah...
, John, and Thomas). His mother, Susannah was the sister of Richard Crawshay
Richard Crawshay
Richard Crawshay was a London iron merchant and then South Wales ironmaster.Richard Crawshay was born in Normanton in the West Riding of Yorkshire...
, the Ironmaster
Ironmaster
An ironmaster is the manager – and usually owner – of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain....
based at Cyfarthfa Castle
Cyfarthfa Castle
Cyfarthfa Castle is the former home of the Crawshay family, historical ironmasters of Cyfarthfa Ironworks in Park, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Despite appearing superficially to be a fortified building it is a house built in the style of a large mansion...
near Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
where Crawshay Bailey came at the age of twelve to work for his rich uncle in 1801, joining his elder brother Joseph. In 1809 he was a witness to his rich uncle's will, in which he was bequeathed the sum of £1,000 (equivalent to £55,000 in today's terms 2007 http://www.measuringworth.com/index.html).
Business career
Along with his elder brother, Joseph, later Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st BaronetSir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet
Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet was an English ironmaster and Member of Parliament .Bailey was born in 1783 in Great Wenham, Suffolk, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield and his wife Susannah...
, Crawshay went into the iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
business as a young man in 1811 at Nantyglo
Nantyglo
Nantyglo is a village in the ancient parish of Aberystruth and county of Monmouth situated deep within the South Wales Valleys between Blaina and Brynmawr in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent.- Places of interest in Nantyglo :...
and soon at Beaufort, Ebbw Vale
Beaufort, Ebbw Vale
Beaufort is a village located in the historic county of Brecknockshire and the preserved county of Gwent. It currently lies on the northern edge of the county borough of Blaenau Gwent in Wales....
. He became a Partner, with his brother in 1820.
For a time he also ran the ironworks at Rhymney
Rhymney
Rhymney is a town and a community located in the county borough of Caerphilly in south-east Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. Along with the villages of Pontlottyn, Fochriw, Abertysswg, Deri and New Tredegar, Rhymney is designated as the 'Upper Rhymney Valley' by the local...
, and while there he constructed a tramway between Rhymney and Bassaleg
Bassaleg
Bassaleg is a small semi-urban suburb on the west side of the city of Newport, in south Wales. It lies in the Graig electoral ward and community.- Location, communications & amenities:Bassaleg is located two miles north west of Newport city centre...
near Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
.
Though by now a major ironmaster
Ironmaster
An ironmaster is the manager – and usually owner – of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain....
he far-sightedly bought up large areas of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
-rich land, at their agricultural value too, in the Rhondda Valleys
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley , is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley...
, at Mountain Ash and Aberaman
Aberaman
Aberaman is a village near Aberdare in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, south Wales.-Schools:*Blaengwawr Comprehensive School *Blaengwawr Primary *Oaklands Primary -Sport:...
and was prepared to sit on these assets for nearly nine years before developing them as some of the richest coal and iron ore deposits in the world.
In a similar manner he waited until the most auspicious time before applying for a Parliamentary Act to open and run a railway company. In 1845 he was instrumental in setting up the Aberdare
Aberdare
Aberdare is an industrial town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Dare and Cynon. The population at the census was 31,705...
Railway, along with Sir John Josiah Guest
John Josiah Guest
Sir Josiah John Guest, 1st Baronet, known as John Josiah Guest, was a Welsh engineer and entrepreneur.-Life:Born in Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, as the son of Thomas Guest, a partner in the Dowlais Iron Company...
to capitalise on further assets in the form of sinking new collieries and building new blast furnaces.
He also promoted railways between Coleford
Coleford, Gloucestershire
Coleford is a small market town in Gloucestershire, England in the west of the Forest of Dean with a population of 8,351 . It is situated some four miles east of the Welsh border, and is close to the Wye Valley, a popular walking and canoeing area...
, in the Forest of Dean
Forest of Dean
The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. The forest is a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.The...
, via Monmouth
Monmouth
Monmouth is a town in southeast Wales and traditional county town of the historic county of Monmouthshire. It is situated close to the border with England, where the River Monnow meets the River Wye with bridges over both....
and Usk
Usk
Usk is a small town in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated 10 miles northeast of Newport.The River Usk flows through the town and is spanned by an ancient, arched stone bridge at the western entrance to the town. A castle above the town overlooks the ancient Anglo-Welsh border crossing - the river can...
to Pontypool
Pontypool
Pontypool is a town of approximately 36,000 people in the county borough of Torfaen, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in South Wales....
.
He was anti trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
and opposed to his workers organising themselves along these lines.
Political career
He had already been appointed High Sheriff of BrecknockshireHigh Sheriff of Brecknockshire
This is a list of High Sheriffs of Brecknockshire or Breconshire.The office of High Sheriff of Brecknockshire was established in 1535 since when a High Sheriff was appointed annually by the Queen until 1974 when the office was merged into that of High Sheriff of Powys as part of the creation of...
in 1837 and also held the same office in Monmouthshire
High Sheriff of Monmouthshire
This is a list of High Sheriffs of Monmouthshire, which was created in 1536 but not fully settled until 1540. The shrievalty was finally abolished in 1974 when the county and shrievalty of Gwent was created.-List of Sheriffs:Served under Henry VIII:...
in 1850. He was Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Monmouth Boroughs
Monmouth Boroughs (UK Parliament constituency)
Monmouth Boroughs was a parliamentary constituency consisting of several towns in Monmouthshire...
from 1852 to 1868 and was elected in five successive parliamentary elections.
Later life
By 1867 he owned iron works, blast furnaces, coalmines, tramways, railways and brickworks. He retired in this year, selling off all his assets over the next three years. Before 1851 he had retired to LlanfoistLlanfoist
Llanfoist is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales at , very near Abergavenny.The name of the village derives from St. Fwyst, an early Christian Welsh Saint.-Attractions:...
near Abergavenny
Abergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
, where he lived in Llanfoist House. A local park in Abergavenny town is named Bailey Park in his honour and Llanfoist Primary School had a house named after him.
He died in 1872, aged 83, after at least seventy years in industry. His only son, and heir, Crawshay Bailey II (born 1821), inherited.
Popular culture
Crawshay Bailey was the original subject of the song now usually corrupted to Cosher BaileyCrawshay Bailey had an Engine
It was always needin' mendin'
And dependin' on its power
It could do four miles an hour
Did you ever saw
Did you ever saw
Did you ever saw
Such a funny thing before?
(and so on—many, many verses in different versions)