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William Wood (1671–1730) was a hardware manufacturer, ironmaster, and mintmaster, notorious for receiving a contract to strike an issue of Irish coinage from 1722 to 1724. He also struck the 'Rosa Americana' coins of British America during the same period. Wood's coinage was extremely unpopular in Ireland, occasioning controversy as to its constitutionality and economic sense, notably in
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Du ...
's ''
Drapier's Letters ''Drapier's Letters'' is the collective name for a series of seven pamphlets written between 1724 and 1725 by the Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Jonathan Swift, to arouse public opinion in Ireland against the imposition of a pri ...
''. The coinage was recalled and exported to the colonies of
British America British America comprised the colonial territories of the English Empire, which became the British Empire after the 1707 union of the Kingdom of England with the Kingdom of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain, in the Americas fro ...
. Subsequently, Wood developed a novel but ineffective means of producing iron, which he exploited as part of a fraudulent investment scheme.


Family life

William Wood was born in
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
, son of Francis Wood, a silkweaver.See . His family were supposedly descendants of
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
s named Dubois who had fled France after the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre in 1572. William married Margaret Molineaux in 1690, daughter of Willenhall ironmonger Richard Molineaux. The couple lived in a large house in
Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
, The Deanery, where they raised 14 children.


Career


Ironmonger

After his marriage William Wood entered into a partnership as a manufacturing ironmonger in Wolverhampton with his father-in-law, Richard Molyneux. Later in 1723 his two brothers-in-law, the Dublin ironmongers John and Daniel Molyneux, disclaimed all connection with the coinage of William Wood. However, little is known of his trade.


Ironmaster

In 1715, William Wood 'took two important steps away from his prosperous anonymity and down a road which led eventually to infamy and ruin. The first was his application for the receiver-generalship of the land tax for the neighbouring county of Shropshire, and the second his formation of a large partnership for the production and marketing of iron and steel in the Midlands and London.' Effectively he was attempting to profit from the crushing Whig victory in 1714. In 1714, he had entered into a partnership with Thomas Harvey and others at Tern Mill, a brass and iron mill close to Tern Hall (now
Attingham Park Attingham Park is an English country house and estate in Shropshire. Located near the village of Atcham, on the B4380 Shrewsbury to Wellington road. It is owned by the National Trust. It is a Grade I listed building. Attingham Park was b ...
), with the intention of obtaining further ironworks. They built Sutton Forge, at Sutton by Shrewsbury, and with Charles Lloyd of Dolobran, Bersham Furnace. They also had for a time furnace at Esclusham Above and
Ruabon Ruabon ( cy, Rhiwabon ) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The name comes from ''Rhiw Fabon'', ''rhiw'' being the Welsh word for "slope" or "hillside" and ''Fabon'' being a mutation from St Mabon, the original church ...
. In 1717, he became a partner in building a
blast furnace A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being "forced" or supplied above atmospheri ...
at Rushall, where there was at least an intention to use coke as fuel, then a comparatively novel idea. In 1720, Wood issued a prospectus for erecting 'a company for manufacturing iron copper brass etc.', ''The Present State of Mr Wood's Partnership''. He probably hoped to profit from share dealing. Harvey wanted to buy Wood's shares and have his own business back. Wood offered to buy Harvey's, but did not offer enough. Harvey accepted shares in the new company. He also agreed to sell his potwork at Gardden at
Rhosllannerchrugog RhosllanerchrugogDavies, Jenkins and Baines (eds) ''The Welsh Academy Encyclopedia of Wales'', 2008, p.752 (also spelled Rhosllannerchrugog, or simply Rhos) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It lies within the histo ...
and shares in the White Grit and Penally lead mines on the
Stiperstones The Stiperstones ( cy, Carneddau Teon) is a distinctive hill in the county of Shropshire, England. The quartzite rock of the ridge formed some 480 million years ago. During the last Ice Age Stiperstones lay on the eastern margin of the Welsh i ...
for £17100. By 1723, Wood also had the Falcon Iron Foundry at
Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...
, where he placed his son William in charge. Harvey went unpaid for several years and had to seek help from his fellow
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...
Joshua Gee Joshua Gee (1667–1730) was a British merchant, publicist and writer in economics who mainly focused on trade. Gee is best known for his book called ''The Trade and Navigation of Great Britain Consider'd'' which was first published in London, 172 ...
, whose son Joshua married Harvey's daughter, leading to litigation against William Wood, his sons William and Francis and son-in-law William Buckland (as guarantors). This ultimately led to several ironworks being returned to Harvey. Wood's share of Ruabon Furnace was purportedly transferred to Daniel Ivie in satisfaction for the non-delivery of iron. He broke into the house at Gardden, occupied by John Hawkins the clerk there, and had to be removed by a constable, but Hawkins (who was arrested) had to get himself removed to London by
habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, ...
in 1731 to answer proceedings. Ivie seems to have operated there until 1737, while Hawkins became managing partner for a firm involving some of the
Coalbrookdale Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge. This is where iron ore was first ...
ironworks partners at Bersham ironworks.


Wood's halfpence

Wood hoped to make a profit producing coins for use in Ireland and America. During the first half of 1722 the king's mistress, the Duchess of Kendal, obtained a patent from the
Earl of Sunderland Earl of Sunderland is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1627 in favour of Emanuel Scrope, 11th Baron Scrope of Bolton. The earldom became extinct on his death in 1630 while the barony becam ...
for coining copper money for Ireland. This was a means of providing her with something to live on after the death of the king. Wood thought this would be a profitable enterprise so he purchased the royal patent from the duchess for £10,000. In his indenture from
George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George I of Antioch (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgor ...
dated 16 June 1722, Wood was authorized to produce up to 360 tons of halfpence and farthings for Ireland at 30 pence to the pound over a period of fourteen years for an annual fee of £800 paid to the king. These Hibernia coins, which were minted in Phoenix Street,
Seven Dials, London Seven Dials is a road junction and neighbourhood in the St Giles district of the London Borough of Camden, within the greater Covent Garden area in the West End of London. Seven streets of Seven Dials area converge at the roughly circular centra ...
, from January 1722, were heavier than the coppers then circulating in Ireland. They were certainly less profitable for Wood to mint than his lighter weight Rosa Americana issues (Hibernias weighed sixty halfpence to the pound as compared to 120 Rosa Americana halfpence to the pound). When including the costs of production and the £10,000 fee paid to the Duchess of Kendal, P. Mossman has calculated Wood would have lost £4,871 over the fourteen years of the patent. Thus from Wood's standpoint the Hibernia coin specifications were too generous based on the cost of production, fuelling speculation that Wood intended to make good his shortfall by
debasing A debasement of coinage is the practice of lowering the intrinsic value of coins, especially when used in connection with commodity money, such as gold or silver coins. A coin is said to be debased if the quantity of gold, silver, copper or nick ...
or even counterfeiting his own coins. Wood's coinage was extremely unpopular in Ireland. The Anglican
archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin is an archepiscopal title which takes its name after Dublin, Ireland. Since the Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: one in the Catholic Church and the other in the Church of Ireland ...
,
William King William King may refer to: Arts * Willie King (1943–2009), American blues guitarist and singer *William King (author) (born 1959), British science fiction author and game designer, also known as Bill King *William King (artist) (1925–2015), Am ...
, was an early critic of the copper coinage scheme, arguing as early as July 1722 that its introduction would lead to an outflow of gold and silver coins from the kingdom. The Commissioners of the Irish Revenue similarly argued that there was no shortage of halfpence and farthings in Ireland, and a large influx of copper coins would be prejudicial to the country's commerce and the royal revenue. The
Parliament of Ireland The Parliament of Ireland ( ga, Parlaimint na hÉireann) was the legislature of the Lordship of Ireland, and later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1297 until 1800. It was modelled on the Parliament of England and from 1537 comprised two ch ...
sent an address to the king in September 1723 protesting against the coins' introduction, citing the danger of inflation and of legal tender (gold and silver) coinage flowing out of Ireland as well as the "Clandestine and Unpresedented manner" in which Wood had obtained his patent. Open letters, ballads, pamphlets, and puppet shows denounced or mocked Wood's coinage.
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Du ...
attacked the coinage in a widely circulated series of pseudonymous ''
Drapier's Letters ''Drapier's Letters'' is the collective name for a series of seven pamphlets written between 1724 and 1725 by the Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Jonathan Swift, to arouse public opinion in Ireland against the imposition of a pri ...
''. Swift objected to the secretive way this patent had been given to a private individual in England, rather than to the Irish authorities (who were not consulted in the matter); to the officiousness of
Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Lea ...
in defending the patent; and to the high-handed way that the wishes of Ireland's parliament and public opinion were set aside. Swift claimed that Ireland would be defrauded of much of the silver and gold in circulation on the grounds that Wood's coins were of inferior quality and could easily be forged.Jonathan Swift, ''Drapier's Letters'' III. The controversy was not quelled when assays carried out by
Sir Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the g ...
, at that time
Master of the Mint Master of the Mint is a title within the Royal Mint given to the most senior person responsible for its operation. It was an important office in the governments of Scotland and England, and later Great Britain and then the United Kingdom, between ...
, showed that the copper in the coins he assayed "was of the same goodness and value with that which was coined for England." Irish pamphleteers, including Swift, pointed out that Wood himself had selected the coins for Newton to test and that Wood would not be able to turn a profit without debasing the coins actually bound for Ireland. The controversy turned increasingly into a larger debate about Ireland's constitutional status and the rights of the Irish Parliament and people. As a result of the popular agitation against the coins, Wood's halfpence and farthings were ultimately recalled. As compensation for the loss of his patents, Wood was granted a pension of £3000 a year for eight years, although he only received this for three years before his death on 2 August 1730. The famed blind Irish harper
Turlough O'Carolan Turlough O'Carolan ( ga, Toirdhealbhach Ó Cearbhalláin ; 167025 March 1738) was a blind Celtic harper, composer and singer in Ireland whose great fame is due to his gift for melodic composition. Although not a composer in the classical sense, ...
(1670 – 25 March 1738) wrote a tongue-in-cheek celebration of this failure, titled "Squire Wood's Lamentation on the Refusal of his Halfpence".


Patent iron-making venture

While working at Lee Hall in
Bellingham, Northumberland Bellingham ( ) is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, to the north-west of Newcastle upon Tyne and is situated on the Hareshaw Burn at its confluence with the River North Tyne. Features Famous as a stopping point on the Pennine Way ...
, his son Francis devised a means of making iron with mineral coal, which he patented in 1727. In 1723, Thomas Baylies on behalf of Wood had agreed an iron ore mining lease in
Frizington Frizington is a village in Cumbria, England, historically part of Cumberland, near the Lake District National Park. Historically, it was a collection of farms and houses, but became a unified village as a result of the mining (both coal and iro ...
Parks, near
Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It i ...
. In May 1728, he sought to exploit the patent for iron-making processes invented by his son Francis, which he re-patented himself. He financed this by contracting to supply a large quantity of iron to the United Company of Mines Royal and Mineral and Battery Works, who advanced money (or rather saleable shares) with which Wood erected works on Frizington Moor. The works were 375 feet long and 36 feet wide, with 11 furnaces, three horsemill-powered forges and engines for grinding coal and iron ore. Wood was secretive over what was achieved. Sir John Meres of the United Company of Mines Royal (etc.) asked James Lowther of Whitehaven to find out what was happening. The reports that Lowther obtained from his agent John Spedding indicated the works were experiencing difficulty, with the result that the Company delayed instalments of what they were to advance. The company never received more than some 10 tons of Wood's iron. Having failed to secure finance from the Mines Royal Company, Wood wanted to incorporate the "Company of Ironmasters of Great Britain", with a capital of £1,000,000, but it was feared this would prove to be a vehicle for
stockjobbing Stockjobbers were institutions that acted as market makers in the London Stock Exchange. The business of stockjobbing emerged in the 1690s during England's Financial Revolution. During the 18th century the jobbers attracted numerous critiques from ...
. This led to an investigation by the
Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...
, at which point William Wood died. The government provided £500 to build furnaces by the high road to
Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, so that the promoters could demonstrate the process. Wood, two of his sons, William and
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...
, his son-in-law William Buckland, and Kingsmill Eyre were the petitioners in this. A trial of the process in the presence of John Hanbury, Sir James Lowther, and the Earl of Hay took place in November 1731. The iron produced was then tried by blacksmiths in the presence of Privy Council clerks. The smiths gave the opinion that the iron required more work than common redshort iron and was weaker when cold. This adverse report was the end of efforts to have a company chartered. Kingsmill Eyre took out a patent for a similar process in his own name in 1736. In this, scrap iron was added to the charge, which made the iron less bad. He tried to revive the Frizington works, but nothing came of this and he was declared bankrupt in May 1738.


Posterity

William's son John obtained £2000 from his father for handing back a share in Francis' patent, though he had some difficulty in getting it paid. He set up
Wednesbury Wednesbury () is a market town in Sandwell in the county of West Midlands, England. It is located near the source of the River Tame. Historically part of Staffordshire in the Hundred of Offlow, at the 2011 Census the town had a population of 3 ...
Field Forge in 1740, where he made iron from scrap. He patented a process for making
pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate product of the iron industry in the production of steel which is obtained by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with ...
malleable in 1761 and, with this brother Charles in 1762, a similar process, the earlier form of that known as
potting and stamping Potting and stamping is a modern name for one of the 18th-century processes for refining pig iron without the use of charcoal. Inventors The process was devised by Charles Wood of Lowmill, Egremont in Cumberland and his brother John Wood of We ...
. This was an important advance in the conversion from
pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate product of the iron industry in the production of steel which is obtained by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with ...
to
bar iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" t ...
. William’s son Charles Wood was involved in the discovery of
platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Pla ...
. He built Low Mill Forge, near Egremont, where he conducted experiments for the potting and stamping process, which he patented with John. He built the Cyfarthfa Iron foundry in
Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Mot ...
, for Anthony Bacon and William Brownrigg, recording events in a diary (Gross 2001). Francis was engaged at Ember Mill in
Thames Ditton Thames Ditton is a suburban village on the River Thames, in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Apart from a large inhabited island in the river, it lies on the southern bank, centred 12.2 miles (19.6 km) southwest of Charing Cross ...
when he was declared bankrupt in October 1732, as was William Wood junior. Charles and his brother-in-law William Buckland followed in 1733. Charles was the grandfather of the noted Victorian writer
Mary Howitt Mary Howitt (12 March 1799-30 January 1888) was an English poet, the author of the famous poem '' The Spider and the Fly''. She translated several tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Some of her works were written in conjunction with her husband, ...
. She published a history of the family, ''Some Reminiscences of my Life'', in the journal ''
Good Words ''Good Words'' was a 19th-century monthly periodical established in the United Kingdom in 1860 by the Scottish publisher Alexander Strahan. Its first editor was Norman Macleod. After his death in 1872, it was edited by his brother, Donald Macleod ...
''.
Mary Howitt Mary Howitt (12 March 1799-30 January 1888) was an English poet, the author of the famous poem '' The Spider and the Fly''. She translated several tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Some of her works were written in conjunction with her husband, ...
(1886). "Some reminiscences of my Life." ''Good Words''.
William was also an ancestor of the poet Armine Kent and the architect
Arthur Blomfield Sir Arthur William Blomfield (6 March 182930 October 1899) was an English architect. He became president of the Architectural Association in 1861; a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1867 and vice-president of the RIBA in ...
.


References


External links


Wolverhampton's Blue Plaques: Lichfield Street, Fryer Street, Wulfruna Street & Victoria Square

Wood’s Hibernia Coins Come to America


* ttps://archive.org/details/worksjonathansw65swifgoog/page/n324 The Works of Jonathan Swift: Containing Interesting and Valuable Papers not Hitherto Published
Hibernia Coppers 1722-1724: Introduction

Wood's Halfpence in "Ireland in 100 Objects"


Further reading

* * With comments on the article by Phil Mossman in vol. 8, no. 4 (Winter, 2000) * * * * * * * * * * * *


See also

* Coins of British America *
Coins of Ireland Irish coins have been issued by a variety of local and national authorities, the ancient provincial Kings and High Kings of Ireland, the Kingdom of Ireland (1541–1801), the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922), the Irish Fr ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, William Coin designers Ironmongers British ironmasters People from Wolverhampton 1671 births 1730 deaths Businesspeople from Shrewsbury