Conditions of the Williams Family in Dowlais in the 1840s

Notes from the First [and Second] Report [s] of the Commissioners for Inquiring Into the State of Large Towns and Populous Districts

The Merthyr Tydfil area was said to be open, airy and well exposed to the sun. The temperatures are cooler and it is quite rainy and damp. Despite having 18 iron-furnaces at Dowlais, the Merthyr Tydfil area was said to not be a smoky place due to the high quality coal being used. However, the area was said to be in a sad state of neglect.

It was said that "with the exception of some little care in the main streets all else is in a miserable condition." The poorer inhabitants would throw all slops and refuse into the open gutters in front of their houses.

The town was not well planned, which contributed to lack of drainage, leaving stagnant pools of water on the roads along with the piles of refuse. That said, being a hilly area, rain would purge the areas where the pitch of the road was favorable.

In Dowlais, there were regulations about removing ashes before the doors in Dowlais, The Dowlais Iron Company would remove the ashes, but each house was to pay one penny per week for this service, a payment that was usually docked from wages, given most inhabitants worked for the company.

Bathrooms were scarce leading to the areas being a "complete network of filth" with the accompanying stench. About 40 to as many as 100 people would share a bathroom, usually that was in a neglected state. There was not much bathroom privacy among the poorer class, and many females suffered constipation in efforts to avoid exposure. With the lack of facilities, cinder heaps and river-sides would have to make due for many. Many children who started school had to be taught how to use the toilets at school, since it was such a rarity.

The conditions made most immune to modesty, and workmen were accustomed to stripping down after work and being washed and rubbed down by the females of the house.

Water supply was poor as well, with only a few enjoying water piped in, with most relying on pump wells, many of which that were contaminated by the run off from the filthy streets. Some 20 families would use the same well, many paying around 1 shilling 6 pence per quarter. During the dry months, many pumps would run dry and the poor would beg the tradesmen for water. Many would have to walk a mile and wait 3 to 4 hours through the night to wait their turn at a spigot.

Many cottages were erected by speculators looking to benefit from the influx of people to work at the iron works. Most cottages were only two rooms, a lower and upper room, the upper for the family to sleep. The rooms were usually about 8' x 10' up to 8' x 12', and were said to be very poorly ventilated. There were generally around three beds to sleep around 5 to 6 people. However four beds with up to 10 people was not unheard of. They were made from quarrystone and were stone-tiled. With an abundance of coal, the cottages were well warmed. In stark contrast to outside the home, Dowlais homes tended to be neat and tidy on the inside.

Rent for the cottages was from 6 to 8 shillings per month, or 3 pounds 18s. to 5p. 4s. per year. This was a high rent at the time, especially considering the conditions. For a better cottage with a kitchen, pantry and ground floor bedroom would cost from 8 to 13s. per month. Monthly wages for workers were 12s. for Labourers, 14s. for Miners and Masons, 17s. for Colliers, and 20s. for Puddlers and Firemen. Many families would take on lodgers to help with the costs.