The John While Family: They came from the Black Country in England to Carbon and Hanna
Page by Bob Leathers
Bob Leathers and Jim Landen traveled to the United Kingdom looking for some While Family history. We set out wanting to know where the While family came from and what it was like there. We were interested to know why they left Netherton, England for Carbon, Wyoming and why they stay in Carbon and Hanna even after experiencing what we thought were harsh lives. What we found was life in the Black County appeared to be worse, lots worse. The following are our notes of what we found and experienced. (Bob Leathers)
Image from the December 1866 Illustrated London News shows the landscape packed with industrial activity and pollution from steam-powered chimneys. In the foreground relics of desolation and older activity remain, including a horse gin which had been used to draw coal out of a mine.
James Nasmyth walked to the Black Country from Coalbrookdale in 1830
I proceeded at once to Dudley. The Black Country is anything but picturesque. The earth seems to have been turned inside out. Its entrails are strewn about; nearly the entire surface of the ground is covered with cinder heaps and mounds of scoriae. The coal which has been drawn from below ground is blazing on the surface. The district is crowded with iron furnaces, puddling furnaces, and coal-pit engine furnaces. By day and by night the country is glowing with fire, and the smoke of the ironworks hovers over it. There is a rumbling and clanking of iron forges and rolling mills. Workmen covered with smut, and with fierce white eyes, are seen moving about amongst the glowing iron and the dull thud of forge-hammers. Amidst these flaming, smoky, clanging works, I beheld the remains of what had once been happy farmhouses, now ruined and deserted. The ground underneath them had sunk by the working out of the coal, and they were falling to pieces. They had in former times been surrounded by clumps of trees; but only the skeletons of them remained, dead, black, and leafless. The grass had been parched and killed by the vapors of sulfurous acid thrown out by the chimneys; and every herbaceous object was of a ghastly gray – the emblem of vegetable death in its saddest aspect….In some places I heard a sort of chirruping sound, as of some forlorn bird haunting the ruins of the old farmsteads. But no! The chirrup was a vile delusion. It proceeded from the shrill creaking of the coal-winding chains, which were placed in small tunnels beneath the hedge-less road. (James Nasmyth)
The Black Country
The Black Country received its name in the mid 19th century when the area was described as “Black by day and red by night” by Elihu Burritt, the American Consul to Birmingham in 1862. His description was based on the atmospheric pollution caused by area coal mines, lime kilns, backyard chain making and nail making, along with smoke and soot from the thousands of ironworking foundries and forges in the area. Mines, quarries, and slag heaps defaced the land. However, thousands upon thousands of people moved to the Black Country from the depressed agricultural areas to live in filthy, disease ridden slums thrown up in the area. In addition to highly concentrated manufacturing enterprises, The Black Country was associated with the invention of the steam engine. The steam engine was first operated near Dudley Castle in 1712 and in 1821 the first iron steamship was built in the Dudley area at the Horseley Ironworks. Famous authors such as Charles Dickens and William Shenstone wrote about the intensity of manufacturing in the Black Country and its negative effect on the landscape and the people. Charles Dicken's novel, The Old Curiosity Shop, written in 1841, described how the area's local factory chimneys "Poured out their plague of smoke, obscured the light, and made foul the melancholy air".
The Black Country Videos Part 1 and Part 2 from YouTube
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Part 1
YouTube Video: The Black Country Video - Part 1
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Part 2
YouTube Video: The Black Country - Part 2
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Image from the Black Country Museum in Dudley, West Midlands, England illustrates a Black County backyard nail and chain making facility. Lousia (Hadley) While was a nail cutter by occupation in the Black Country. Did she work in a place like this? Her husband John While Sr. worked all his life in a coal mine. I wonder at what age and under what conditions he worked in the Black Country Coal Mines?
Women cutting and forging nails. (Black Country Museum)
Image from the Black Country Museum. A woman cutting and making nails.
Dudley about 1832. Image by J.M.W. Turner.
Image – Dudley about 1832, by J. M. W. Turner (1775-1851) In both the water color and its engraved version of 1835, Turner depicts the dramatic intensity of a town in the throes of industrial change against the backdrop of a traditional landscape. The symbols of tradition and faith (the ruins of Dudley castle on the hillside and the church steeples to the left) are pictured alongside the furnaces, chimneys, boilers and canal boats of the modern industrial age.
The While and Cox Families
The Sarah and Elizabeth Roberts sisters were born, raised and married in the Black Country of England. Sarah married Henry While and Elizabeth married Richard Cox. Both men were coal miners in the Black Country, a profession that would be a part of their families for generations. Their lives, it would seem, involved the typical love of family and happiness, but the family history can only be described as a hard life, mixed with both incredible heartache and misery.
Elizabeth and Richard Cox lived for a short time in Netherton, Dudley, England after they were married. They immigrated to America with their children in about 1869, just after the end of the American Civil War. In 1880 they were living in Saint Clair, Schuylkill, Pennsylvania. By 1889, Elizabeth and Richard had followed their son Joseph Cox and were living in a coal camp at Carbon, Wyoming.
Sarah and Henry While remained in England, living in Netherton, Dudley, England in the heart of the Black Country. They lived and raised their family at 87 Halesowen Road in Netherton. They lived at the address for many years after they were married. Their sons John While, James While and Jobe While along with their grandson James While - the son of their oldest son Samuel - however, did not stay in England, they were recruited to Carbon, Wyoming and Hanna, Wyoming by Elizabeth, Richard and their son Joseph Cox to work in the coal mines. Bleak living and working conditions in the Black Country along with new job opportunities in America were probably the reasons for Elizabeth and Richard to leave England and seek a brighter future in America. It was probably the same reasons the While men were convinced by the Cox families to make the move as well.
Elizabeth and Richard Cox lived for a short time in Netherton, Dudley, England after they were married. They immigrated to America with their children in about 1869, just after the end of the American Civil War. In 1880 they were living in Saint Clair, Schuylkill, Pennsylvania. By 1889, Elizabeth and Richard had followed their son Joseph Cox and were living in a coal camp at Carbon, Wyoming.
Sarah and Henry While remained in England, living in Netherton, Dudley, England in the heart of the Black Country. They lived and raised their family at 87 Halesowen Road in Netherton. They lived at the address for many years after they were married. Their sons John While, James While and Jobe While along with their grandson James While - the son of their oldest son Samuel - however, did not stay in England, they were recruited to Carbon, Wyoming and Hanna, Wyoming by Elizabeth, Richard and their son Joseph Cox to work in the coal mines. Bleak living and working conditions in the Black Country along with new job opportunities in America were probably the reasons for Elizabeth and Richard to leave England and seek a brighter future in America. It was probably the same reasons the While men were convinced by the Cox families to make the move as well.
The Home of Sarah And Henry While
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The pictures above were taken at the Intersection of Halesowen Road and High Street in Netherton in 1896 and 2011. The pictures were taken over one hundred fifteen years apart. Both pictures show 73 Halesowen Road in Netherton where Henry and Sarah While lived and raised their family. In the 1896 picture, on the right hand side of the road to the far right of the picture an awning with a man standing under it marks the location of the grocery store and home. In the 2011 picture the Firkin Bakery store with a Firkin delivery truck in front marks the location of the home.
Netherton was once a quiet North Worcestershire village on the ancient road from Dudley to Halesowen, but grew into a thriving Black Country industrial community with strong sense of its own identity. Its natural landscape was remolded by man in pursuit of coal and clay, and further refined by industrialists. Nethertonins produced metal goods ranging from jew's harps to ship anchors, from nails and chains to industrial boilers. Among the nineteenth-century houses, pubs and chapels vied for supremacy. But in the second half of the twentieth century the town seemed to be in decline. Today Netherton is hoping for an imaginative regeneration. What it offers is a land of surprises: ancient woodlands, water-skiing on a reservoir, home-brewed ales, churches, chapels, an art centre, canal side walks, a proud industrial past and ever-changing vistas. (Netherton, by Ned Williams)
Netherton or "Lower Town" as some folks in the area call it, is now part of the Dudley Metropolitan area. It is very difficult to tell where Dudley ends and Netherton begins. Netherton is located about a mile south of the city center of Dudley. Netherton was in the heart of the mineral deposits that fueled the industrial growth of the area. The anchors and chains for the ill-fated liner RMS Titanic were manufactured in the Black Country in the area of Netherton. Three of the Titanic's anchors and accompanying chains were manufactured here, with the set weighing in at 100 tons. The center anchor alone weighed 12 tons and it took 20 Shire horses to pull it through Netherton on its journey to the ship. The 20th century saw a decline in coal mining in the Black Country, with the last colliery in the area, the Baggeridge Colliery, closing on March 2, 1968, marking the end of an era after some 300 years of mass coal mining in the region. However, a small number of open cast mines remained in use for a few years afterwards.
The Black Country - International Women's Day and Mary Macarthur
Mary Macarthur Standing. International Women's Day.
The Black Country Women who changed the world! 1910 (Steve Edwards)
International Women's Day and Mary Macarthur
The Black Country Women who changed the world!
The women, led by the founder of the National Federation of Women Workers, Mary Macarthur, began a 10 week strike and successfully established the right to a minimum wage.
In 1910 there were 3,500 chain makers working in small shops in the Cradley and Cradley Heath district. Two thirds of them were women.
Tired of working day and night for starvation wages, the women chainmakers downed their hammers and stood up for their right to earn a living wage.
In March 1910 the Chain Trade Board agreed a minimum wage of 2½d an hour to replace the old piecework system. Although this was low it meant a 100% rise for most of the women, giving them 10 to 11 shillings for a 55 hour week.
Mary Macarthur was born in Glasgow on 13th August 1880. (Steven Edwards)
What was it like to live in the Black Country?
Some answers were found at the Black Country Museum.
Some answers were found at the Black Country Museum.
Why did the Black Country have among the highest number of child deaths in 1852?
As the images above illustrate, many families in the Black Country worked in coal mines and the domestic nail trade. They had poor homes, inadequate diets, and no sanitation. At birth, the life expectancy was only 16 years and 7 months in 1851, with cholera from contaminated water a frequent killer.
When did the United Kingdom make it illegal for children to work in mines?
The Mines Act of 1842 stopped under 10's from working in mines. The age limit was raised to 14 in the year 1911. In 1917 the under 18's were restricted to daylight shifts. Until 1911 ten year old boys were commonly found working a long shift in the coal mine. It was an occupation they would keep for a lifetime, short though it may be, as survival was short lived.
What would it have been like to grow up in the Black Country?
Children who grew up in the Black Country typically lived in a two bedroom house with no inside toilet or running water. The parents would occupy one of the bedrooms and elderly family members would occupy the other. The children would bed down anywhere on the floor. A small kitchen would also serve as the living room and dining room. The outside yard or surrounding area would be full of rotting rubbish because there was no other place to throw such things away. In many cases the sewage was open and overflowing into the ground contaminating the drinking water in the wells. Hence the outbreaks of cholera that killed thousands of men, women and children.
What was work like in the Black Country?
If you were unemployed in the early 1900's all your options seemed grim. While parts of the Black Country thrived, thousands of people laboured in the dirty, dangerous conditions of the coal mines and backyard workshops. Workers had few legal rights with nothing to fall back on, just charity or the shame of the workhouse. Accident rates in the Black Country famous mines dropped sharply following the 1850 Act for Inspection of Coal Mines of Great Britian, but continual small scale incidents still made coal mining among the most dangerous in the country. Daily life for the miners, including boys as young as 13, included dealing with damp, rats, and chronic illness. Small chain and nail makers got one of the worst deals of all. The tiny workshops at the back of their houses were cramped and fume filled. Tied to the crooked middlemen, they earned poor wages and many families suffered chronic illness and malnutrition. The Factory Act of 1878, which covered the barest minimum of welfare for the worker, did not apply to them.
If born into a poor family in the 1890's what would life have been like to live in the Black Country?
You would probably have lived in a dark, damp house crowded with your siblings.Your father may have laboured in a coal mine, small forge, or workshop nearby, while you spent most of your time playing in the street or going to school - if your chores allowed. First thing in the morning you would wash in a jug of cold water, because it was rare to take a warm bath in front of a fire. Fuel to warm the water was in short supply and expensive to obtain. The toilet outside would not only be chilly, smelly, and unsafe - as sewage often seeped into the well water used for drinking and household needs. Your mother would have done laundry in a communal brewhouse as well as preparing a hot dinner like groty pudding or faggots. By the 1890's some slum housing had been cleared away by local authorities. However, they built nothing better to replace it, which left families in even worse circumstances as those made homeless were forced into even more crowed accommodations. At least where you lived, there was a real sense of community with people sharing problems, solutions, and resources because there was often no choice if you wanted to survive. In 1891 the census records for this year in the Dudley area revealed that 23% of the people lived in a house where there were more than seven people occupying three rooms.
As the images above illustrate, many families in the Black Country worked in coal mines and the domestic nail trade. They had poor homes, inadequate diets, and no sanitation. At birth, the life expectancy was only 16 years and 7 months in 1851, with cholera from contaminated water a frequent killer.
When did the United Kingdom make it illegal for children to work in mines?
The Mines Act of 1842 stopped under 10's from working in mines. The age limit was raised to 14 in the year 1911. In 1917 the under 18's were restricted to daylight shifts. Until 1911 ten year old boys were commonly found working a long shift in the coal mine. It was an occupation they would keep for a lifetime, short though it may be, as survival was short lived.
What would it have been like to grow up in the Black Country?
Children who grew up in the Black Country typically lived in a two bedroom house with no inside toilet or running water. The parents would occupy one of the bedrooms and elderly family members would occupy the other. The children would bed down anywhere on the floor. A small kitchen would also serve as the living room and dining room. The outside yard or surrounding area would be full of rotting rubbish because there was no other place to throw such things away. In many cases the sewage was open and overflowing into the ground contaminating the drinking water in the wells. Hence the outbreaks of cholera that killed thousands of men, women and children.
What was work like in the Black Country?
If you were unemployed in the early 1900's all your options seemed grim. While parts of the Black Country thrived, thousands of people laboured in the dirty, dangerous conditions of the coal mines and backyard workshops. Workers had few legal rights with nothing to fall back on, just charity or the shame of the workhouse. Accident rates in the Black Country famous mines dropped sharply following the 1850 Act for Inspection of Coal Mines of Great Britian, but continual small scale incidents still made coal mining among the most dangerous in the country. Daily life for the miners, including boys as young as 13, included dealing with damp, rats, and chronic illness. Small chain and nail makers got one of the worst deals of all. The tiny workshops at the back of their houses were cramped and fume filled. Tied to the crooked middlemen, they earned poor wages and many families suffered chronic illness and malnutrition. The Factory Act of 1878, which covered the barest minimum of welfare for the worker, did not apply to them.
If born into a poor family in the 1890's what would life have been like to live in the Black Country?
You would probably have lived in a dark, damp house crowded with your siblings.Your father may have laboured in a coal mine, small forge, or workshop nearby, while you spent most of your time playing in the street or going to school - if your chores allowed. First thing in the morning you would wash in a jug of cold water, because it was rare to take a warm bath in front of a fire. Fuel to warm the water was in short supply and expensive to obtain. The toilet outside would not only be chilly, smelly, and unsafe - as sewage often seeped into the well water used for drinking and household needs. Your mother would have done laundry in a communal brewhouse as well as preparing a hot dinner like groty pudding or faggots. By the 1890's some slum housing had been cleared away by local authorities. However, they built nothing better to replace it, which left families in even worse circumstances as those made homeless were forced into even more crowed accommodations. At least where you lived, there was a real sense of community with people sharing problems, solutions, and resources because there was often no choice if you wanted to survive. In 1891 the census records for this year in the Dudley area revealed that 23% of the people lived in a house where there were more than seven people occupying three rooms.
Searching for the While Family
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Video 1
Home of Henry and Sarah While July 2011 |
Video 2
The Old Swan or Ma Pardos July 2011 |
Dudley Archives and Local History Service
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Cemetery Records
The church records show Henry and Sarah were buried in the Netherton, Dudley, England cemetery, but we could to find the graves.
St. Andrew's Church of Netherton was started on St. Andrew's Day, 1827. It is located on the highest hill in Netherton. The main entrance shown in the picture below is up an avenue from the east. The cross at the top of the drive is the Parish War Memorial Cross. It is a beautiful old church. We were not able to view the inside of the church, but the town folk we met said it was beautiful on the inside as well. They also told us that funds to operate the church were limited because the young people don't support the church as they did in years past. In places the grounds were in desperate need of repair. Many of the older grave sites were in bad shape. The grounds are massive and we were told that the church also has limited funds for keeping the grounds in good condition. It was the church the While and Cox families used. (Bob Leathers)
Images by Bob Leathers - July, 2011: front and side view of St. Andrew's Church in Netherton. The church records clearly show Sarah and Henry While were buried on the grounds of St. Andrew's Church. The burial sites were not be found.
St. Andrew's Church in Netherton
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Along with the normal burials, the churchyard also contains the mass unmarked graves of countless victims of the cholera epidemic that struck Dudley in 1831 and 1832.
St. Andrews Churchyard
The burial area around the church was huge.
Grave Sites Found At St. Andrew's Church
- William Henry While born December 17, 1852 and died November 26, 1928.
- Elizabeth While, wife of William Henry While, born May 10, 1856 and died July 2, 1925.
- Elizabeth, daughter of William Henry While, born January 6, 1893 and died March 12, 1957.
- Prudence Annie While, wife of James Henry While born March 21, 1899 and died March 12, 1957.
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The images below are examples of "Unkept Ground" as noted in the Dudley Archive Records.
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Church of St. Mary
The parish church of St. Mary dates back to the 11th century, although much of the main body of the building is from the 17th century. It was the church of a huge parish of Kingswinford until it was closed because of mining activities in 1831. It reopened in 1846. The building is now a Grade II listed building. A listed building, in the United Kingdom, is a building that has been placed on the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest.
Married at St. Mary's Chruch
- September 28, 1845, Sarah Roberts married Henry While in the Church of St. Mary in the Parish of Kingswinford in the County of Staffordshire.
Church of St. Mary. 2011. (Image by Bob Leathers)
St. John The Evangelist Church
St John The Evangelist Church, on Kates Hill in Dudley, was built in 1840. For more than 160 years Black Country folks used the church as a place of worship and recreation. In 2002, the Church Of England closed the church as being unsafe and beyond repair. Since then, the church and the surrounding grounds have been left to decline even further. However, a group of community citizens - The St. John's Church Preservation Group - organized in the summer of 2007 in order to save, re-open, restore, and maintain the church and the grounds that surround it. A link to their website is posted below. The church is a true piece of Black Country heritage. Famed architect William Bourne designed the building. This is the same man responsible for the original blueprints of the old Dudley Guest Hospital. Buried at St. John’s is the famous Black Country prizefighter William Perry, "The Tipton Slasher," who went on to be champion of England from 1850 to 1857.
Married at St. Johns
- August 1, 1870 - Sarah and Henry's daughter Mary Ann While, age 22, married John Smith, age 23.
- August 1, 1870 - Sarah and Henry's son Samuel While, age 21, married Priscilla Ball, age 20.
- Note: Mary Ann and Samuel were married on the same day in the same church.
- April 23, 1876 - Sarah and Henry's son William Henry While, age 23, a miner, married Elizabeth Garrett, age 20.
- October 26, 1891 - Sarah and Henry's son John While married Lousia Hadley.
- May 3, 1891 - Samuel and Priscilla's daughter Sarah While, age 20, married Thomas Hubble, age 22.
- November 22, 1903 - Samuel and Priscilla's son James While, age 22, married Eliza Ann Allen, age 20.
St. Johns Church. 2011. (Image by Bob Leathers)
Images: St John The Evangelist Church, Kates Hill, Dudley, England taken in July, 2011, by Bob Leathers.
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St. Edmund Chuch of Dudley
The Church оf Saint Edmund іs а parish church located оn Castle Street іn Dudley. It іs known locally аs "Bottom Church", аs opposed tо St Thomas's parish church іn High Street whіch іs known аs "Top Church". The church dates bаck tо AD 970. Іn 1646, during the English Civil War, the church was ordered to be demolished. Аs а result, residents іn the parish congregated аt St. Thomas's Church іn Dudley. St. Edmund's Church wаs subsequently rebuilt. The rebuilding wаs completed about 1724. The reconstruction оf the church wаs paid fоr by brothers Richard аnd George Bradley аnd by subscriptions frоm the parishioners. Іt wаs built оf red brick wіth stone dressings аnd consisted оf а chancel, nave, aisles, south porch, аnd аn embattled west tower. The interior оf the church wаs altered іn 1864, although the church still retains іts early pews, pulpit, аnd panelled gallery.
Married at St. Edmund
- February 23, 1902, Elizabeth and William Henry While's daughter, Sarah While, age 25, married Thomas Marsh, age 28, a bachelor, and furnace man by occupation.
St. Edmund Church of Dudley. 2011. (Bob Leathers)
2011: The Black Country Today
The heavy industry which once dominated the Black Country is now gone. The twentieth century brought a decline in coal mining and chain making. The coal mining industry came to an end in 1968 with the closure of Higley Colliery near Sedgley. The area still maintains some manufacturing, but on a much smaller and cleaner scale. Clean air legislation resulted in big environmental changes. The Black Country is no longer black, it is quite beautiful.
Replica of Titanic's anchor. (Image by Bob Leathers)
A replica of the Titanic's fifteen and three quarter ton anchor sits outside the Netherton Arts Center. The original Titanic anchor was cast by the Noah Hingley.
2020: The Black Country
The Black Country is a region of England which today covers the metropolitan boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhapton. The Black Country was the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. For as far as the eye could see the landscape was dominated with coal mines, iron foundries, glass factories, brick works and many small industries. The industrial landscape ensured that chimneys from factories bellowed out smoke and soot too heavily pollute the air. The pollution filled the sky and the region which was described as 'Black by Day' and 'Red by Night' as the furnaces set a light the night time sky became known as The Black Country. The Black Country has an official day, it's own flag and a Black Country Anthem to celebrate the historical importance of the region. Please celebrate Black Country Day on July 14th and share this brief history guide as to why our region is called The Black Country.
The Old Swan in Netherton
A Visit To The Old Swan
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The Best Pub With The Best Ales In The United Kingdom
The first recorded date of the While family living at 73 Halesowen Road was in 1851, and they were still living there in 1900. The Old Swan is located at 87 Halesowen Road, just a few doors down from the While home. The pub is now known throughout the Black Country as Ma Pardoes. The current building dates from the 1860's, but there has been a pub at that address since 1835. The While family lived near the Old Swan for about 50 years. The interior and exterior of the pub remain largely unchanged from its early years. In fact, the pub is now a licensed museum. When I entered the Old Swan, the traditional atmosphere of the Black Country hit me as I encounter a cast iron stove, enameled ceiling, antique mirror, artwork, and a huge enamel mural of a swan on the ceiling. When I entered the room, I could imagine my ancestors sitting around a table in the pub have a meal and drinking a pint or two.
Old Swan, Halesowen Road, Netherton - 1835
Affectionately known as Ma Pardoe's after the long-serving, and entirely teetotal landlady Doris Pardoe, who ran the pub between 1932 and 1984, the pub originates from 1835 and was extensively rebuilt in 1863.
Terry Porter is the bar tender pouring Old Swan Dark and blowing the whistle in the videos below!
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THE OLD SWAN INN
LICENSED BREWER - TIMOTHY JAMES NEWEY
Bob (a While descendant) and Jim, Americans from Wyoming, are pictured with Tim Newey
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Faggots and Peas at Ma Pardoes in Netherton
While visiting Ma Pardoes, I had a Black Country dinner of faggots and peas. The dish tasted very good! Faggots and peas in gravy is an old fashioned dish popular in the Black Country during the 18th century and still popular today. It is most likely a dish eaten often by the While and Cox families during their years in the Black Country. This dish became popular in Netherton during the industrialization period. It is probably a recipe brought to America by the families. Faggots are made from the internal organs of a butchered animal, usually pork. Herbs are added for flavoring.
Nov 21, 2020
Nov 21, 2020: The Olde Swan in Netherton although known locally as Ma Pardoes was known s Mrs Pardoes when she was alive. Tim Newey is the current custodian of the pub and brewery and he gives us a tour of them. (TheGobbledygook1on Youtube)
Those Who Remained in The Black Country
Image: The Replica anchor from the Titanic, once located at the Black Country Museum, now has pride of place on Netherton Green - a small grassy area just up the road from Firkins. Picture provided by Terry Porter.
Along with Sarah and Henry, their children Mary Ann, Samuel, William Henry, Jane and Richard all remained in the Black Country. Only three descendants of Sarah and Henry are known to be alive in England in 2013. Their father, John Leslie While (1918-2010), worked in Netherton in a foundry making chain. He worked for Hingley's which is famous for making the Titanic anchor. The company also made the anchor and chains for the Queen Mary.
Making The Titanic's Anchor Chain at Hingley & Sons, 1909. (Image from Facebook. Black Country)