New industrial quarter opens at Black Country museum

Carol King, director of programmes, said a "huge" amount of work had gone into the new exhibition

A new industrial quarter featuring historic buildings and characters from the 1950s is set to open at a museum.

The Black Country Living Museum, in Dudley, has recreated and rebuilt three businesses to show how the industry has changed through the decades.

The attraction features J. H. Lavender Aluminium Foundry, Joe H. Smith & Sons (Oldbury) Ltd and the Cricket Field Brickworks.

An event to launch the new space, Red By Night, featuring industrial demonstrations and costumed characters, is set to take place at the museum on Friday.

The new industrial quarter at the Black Country Living Museum is due to be unveiled to visitors on Friday

Carol King, director of programmes at the museum, said a "huge amount" of work had gone into the new exhibition.

“This industrial quarter, it’s part of our bigger project forging ahead, which sees us take the story of the Black Country through 1940 to 1968 and back into living memory," she said.

“We’ve always been conscious of the changes that were happening in the Black Country, we really wanted to tell that story.

"The 40s, 50s and 60s were transformational in this area, it was really the time of booming industry and that’s why the industrial quarter was so important for us."

The new attraction celebrates the Black Country's industrial heritage

It was also an an opportunity for the museum to put objects that had been donated “many years ago” on display, Ms King added, with visitors able to see an aluminium factory, watch gravity casting and brickmaking.

“The Black Country in the 1950s was one of the last places that was still handmaking bricks,” she explained.

“All of the characters that you see in this area are all based on real people who worked here."

The family of toolmaker Joe Smith said the new exhibition made them "proud"

Trevor Smith, whose great-grandfather started tool manufacturer Joe H. Smith & Sons, said it was “exhilarating” to see a recreation of the factory, which had produced hammers and edge tools.

“It’s a privilege, makes you really proud obviously,” added Matthew Smith, a fifth-generation member of the family.

“It’s a lot of history and just glad to give something back to the country really," he said.

“To see it all back as it was and working, it’s unbelievable.”