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England - 1790

Wilkinson

Obverse
Obverse:
Bust of Wilkinson.
Legend:
IOHN WILKINSON IRON MASTER
Edge:
WILLEY SNEDSHILL BERSHAM BRADLEY
Reverse
Reverse:
A man working at a forge.
Exergue:
1790

Vern's Comments:

 
D&H Warwickshire Nos. 332-474
 
   James Conder assigned Wilkinson's Tokens to Warwickshire in his Arrangement of Provincial Tokens (1798), and every work since has repeated the error. The tokens were made payable at Willey, Snedshill, Bersham and Bradley. Perhaps Conder looked up Willey in a gazetteer and found Willey in Warwickshire, which is a small agricultural village, but not on the coalfield nor in the iron-working areas that became the "Black Country."
   The other Willey is in Shropshire; also a small village, but only a mile from Brosely where Wilkinson had an iron foundry .The famous Trial was launched from Willey Wharf. Snedshill is also in Shropshire, being a part of Oakengates, in the same area. Bersham is a suburb of Wrexham, Denbighshire, where Wilkinson had another foundry; and Bradley was a part of Bilston in Staffordshire; his foundry there earned him the title of "Father of the South Staffordshire Iron Industry."
   Wilkinson's tokens are described in Commercial Coins under Shropshire, where they are in company with those issued at the iron-works of Coalbrookdale and Ketley.
Commercial Coins 1787-1804., pp. 201


England — Warwickshire

D & H 387 — Wilkinson

Bell Pg: 201
O:    No period.
A. 266
R:    Straight 1 and 7.
E:    WILLEY SNEDSHILL BERSHAM BRADLEY