Pensnett Canal

In the early 1800s, the Earl of Dudley owned a large number of mines, from which coal, ironstone, limestone and fireclay were extracted. Although many were leased to other operators, there was a trend to bring control of them back to a central agency. John William, who had been Earl of Dudley since 1827, died in 1833, and control of his estate passed to his executors, of which the Earl of Stafford was one. The mineral agent at the time was Francis Downing, but he was replaced by Richard Smith in 1836, and it was Smith who built up an industrial empire by taking back control of leasehold properties. This required better transport links, and in 1839 contractors were invited to submit…