ROWLEY VILLAGE, ROWLEY REGIS

Rowley and the Jews Harp.

Contents

Introduction

The Jews Harp and the Troman Family

David and Phoebe Troman, from Rowley village to Birmingham and the booklet written by Derek Tromans in 1953.

Observation on the text of Derek Tromans booklet

Troman, Jews Harps and Gypsies

The Troman family, Bedsteads and Malvern Hall.

John R Smith Jew's Harp maker of Rowley Regis and New York State

Although Jews Harps were made in the Black Country, and in particular Rowley Village, perhaps for hundreds of years in large quantities, there is today hardly any tangible evidence of the craft apart from few price lists, census records, mentions in trade directories and a couple of old newspaper articles.

The buildings in which they were made have long since disappeared although the streets are still there, Shell Corner, Rowley Village, Hawes Lane, Club Buildings (Stanford Drive), Newtown on the edge of Netherton and the quaintly named Beggars Row in Cradley Heath.

If your lucky you can still purchase a Black Country Jews Harp via the internet if your very fortunate it could bear the name Troman or the Troman makers mark.

Somewhere there still exists a folder containing actual samples of Troman Harps made in the late 19^th Century and a descendant of the troman family wrote a small booklet in the 1950s to record details of the manufacture and origin of Jews Harp making in the Black Country for posterity.

But generally although it’s a fascinating story hardly anyone today has any inkling that this area was at one time the world centre for the manufacture of this strange little instrument amidst the chains nails and anchors which made the Black Country famous. Everyone remembers the mighty Titanic Anchor produced by Hingleys of Netherton but no one remembers a little musical instrument called the Jews Harp produced by numerous families in the home forges of the Black Country.

Shank of a Sidaway Jews Harp recently unearthed in East Yorkshire.

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The Jews Harp and the Troman family

Article which appeared in the Blackcountry Bugle by Bob Adams

In response to your recent articles about Jews Harps and the Troman connection, I would like to submit the following. Ferdinando Tromans was the brother of my Grandfather George Tromans who at one time kept a fish and chip shpopposite the Anchor in Gorsty hill. George was the second eldest son of 14 children. Ferdinando was the eldest then came Mary Anne, Hannah, George,William,Edmund,Alice,Ernest,Frederick, Benjamin,John,Samuel,Lily and Thomas. In 1901 the family were living in Pearson St, Old Hill but Ferdinando was livinh in Lawrence Lane. I enclose a photo of George very smartly dressed in his back yard at Gorsty Hill, he allways dressed up ,according to my mother and my aunt ,and insisted on his family being well turned out and well behaved at all times. He also liked a drink and hobnobbed with his 'betters' more than once he was escorted home a little the worse for drink by the local bobby. He worked at some time as a miner underground until he hurt his hand and had to move to surface work, eventually he saw the potential in a greengrocers at gorsty Hill as a fish and chip shop and so moved into business on his own account. My grandmother however had to do most of the work as well as bring up 9 children whilst Grandad proceeded to drink the profits. the shop eventually closed presumably during the ist world war.

According to my mother uncle Ferdy as she referred to him was a very tall man well over 6 feet, I think you can see this from the photo previously printed in the Bugle.

I was intrigued by the name Ferdinando and started to trace my maternal family history, soon discovering th jews harp connection. Ferdinando could have been named after an Earl of Dudley - Ferdinando Duley Lea who succeeded to the Barony in 1740. The earliest record I can find of a Ferdinando Tromans so far is in the St Giles Parish register 27/2/1771 'Ferdinando son of James and Hannah Troman baptised' On the 27/9/1771there is the record previously described 'Ferdinando Troman buried - ffee 1/4 refused pay'. It is not clear wheter this burial record relates to the infant Ferdinando as usually with an infant death the name of the father is also recorded, but in this case it is not so it may be a previous incumbent of the name. I can however find no earlier record of the name .

In addition to the Newtown Tromans there was also a colony of jews harp makers in Rowley Village or 'upper rowley' and I believe you can connect both colonies via the St Giles registers and Captain Tromans.

I spent months transcribing all the Tromans in the register and then arranging them into date order which reveals the family groups and connects the generations, this can't be done by simply looking at the registers. I then looked at St Thomas in Dudley and the parish registers of Park Lane Presbytarian chapel; St Marys, Kingswinford and Oldswinford in an effort to complete the picture.

I like to think the original jews harp makers came from Rowley Village and later an offshoot was formed in Newtown which I understand was at one time a hamlet along the lines of mushroom green. The jews harp makers in Rowley Village lived in Hawes Lane and Club Buildings which is now Stanford Drive. One of them Benjamin Tromans is listed as living in a 'private house' Hawes Lane so he may have been of some account. Jews Harp makers listed in Rowley Village from 1841 were David Tromans, Nealy Tromans, Benjamin Tromans,Joseph Tromans,John Tromans, George Tromans and Timothy Tromans.

Jews Harps are mentioned by the Rev George Barrs Curate of St Giles in his memoir ' here also the manufacture of jews harps is carried on and sometimes employs a considerable number of persons'. In the 1912 Kelly directory the Hawes Lane Tromans can be found in Long Lane Blackheath with the entry John and George Tromans Long Lane Blackheath - Jews Harp Makers. after this the trail disapears but someone researching the same name told me that at one time most of Shell Corner (long Lane) was owned by the Tromans family. I also have an article enclosed here from the Birmingham Voice headlined ' City Export was something to Harp on about', the article goes on to say there was a firm in Curzon St Birmingham which made jews harps until 1946 its name was M Tromans and Co , it had existed since 1700 and had been passed down from farther to son for more than 5 generations. In 1935 they were making 100000 per week and couldnt keep up with demand. Is there a connection between this firm and Rowley.

Whilst looking at the 1841 cencus for Newtown I found the following entry for John Barnsley - ' John Barnsley 60. Jews Harp Maker, wife Rosehannah 60 son John 20, daughter Caroline 20, son Robert 1.. This must have been a prominent family because the start of this portion of the cencus reads ' all that part of the parish of Dudley called Newtown being the southern boundry commencing at John Barnsleys house' etc.There is an entry nearby for Isaac Troman 60, Jews Harp maker and his wife (also named Rosehannah). I believe these to be Ferdinandos Grandparents, they also feature in the St Giles and Park Lane registers. Whilst looking for Rosehannahs birth i found what i believe to be entries for both wives, they were both christened at the Chapelry of Brierley Hill and both named Homer, although my Rosehannah was illegitimate. I like to think that both Rosehannahs were cousins? and that Isaac was linked to John Barnsley in some way.

I dont know anything else about John Barnsley but I do think the Company still exists in Brierley Hill making Lifting gear.

In various trade directories for Birmingham from 1862 onwards there is listed Barnsley, Roland, Greg - Reliance Works, Ledsom St Jews Harp makers together with Troman Bros (Timothy and david) 154 Gt Brook St Birmingham. Did these people migrate from Rowley/Newtownto set up shop in Birmingham? there was certainly a David and a Timothy in Rowley Village jews Harp Makers. I couldnt find the Barnsleys after 1883 but the Troman Bros eventually turned into M Troman and Co and was still in Gt Brook St in 1942 and 1949 but had dissapeared by 1951. Also M Troman was a woman by the name of Millicent (shades of Eliza Tinsley) and I assume was the wife or daughter of David or Timothy.

The above article was written before I discovered the booklet written by Derek Troman in 1953 as described below.

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David and Phoebe Troman; from Rowley Village to Birmingham.

Between 1834 and 1841 a Jews Harp maker from Rowley Village along with his family moved to Duddeston a hamlet in the Parish of Aston, near Birmingham to continue his trade in what was fast becoming the workshop of England. The man was David Troman, his wife Phoebe; and their children, John; Timothy, Sarah; William; Benjamin; David jnr and Sarah. We know this because David is recorded as a Jews Harp maker in Rowley village in 1818, 1822 and 1834, his children were baptised at St Giles and the family subsequently appear on the 1841 census returns for Duddeston. In 1953 a descendant of David wrote a small booklet explaining the history and manufacture of Jews Harps and the story of the family, the following is a transcription of the final two chapters.

“In 1935 the Department of Commerce of the United States, reported that all the Jews Harps of the World were then being made by one firm in Birmingham, England, that one order from the United States to his firm was for 160000 instruments, and that the firm in question, though making 100000 per week, was unable to keep up with the world demand, owing to a lacck of skilled tongue setters. What they omitted to say was that the name of the firm was Troman and Co; Gt Brook St, Birmingham.

At the end of the eighteenth century, there came, to what we now know as the Black Country, one Trautmann, a deserter from the Prussian army. He came from Saxony, where the manufacture of Jews Harps and Harmonicas was in full swing, and settled among the nailers at Rowley. His name became Troman and under the influence of the nailers methods of working, he commenced to make Jews Harps. His sons carried on the trade, some transferring to the Brass industry. In 1839 when Britain was becoming the world’s work-shop a grandson of Trautmann, journeyed to Birmingham from Rowley, on a carriers cart, bringing his family with him – all sixteen of them. They settled in, first AB Row and later Prospect Row. As was the custom in those days, the wives also worked in the shops; side by side with the men. This wife was no exception, but she specialised in highly polished, steel toys and was considered quite an expert. Of these sixteen children, seven were boys, and these sons later opened their own forms in various parts of Birmingham, with the exception of two – one fell from a cart and was run over by the wheel; the other died after eating a surfeit of pancakes. One son Peter started making Jews harps in premises in Heneage Street; William in Avon St, Sparkhill; and David, Benjamin and Frederick, the remaining three took premises at 154, 155 and 156 Gt Brook St. In 1875 the partnership renewed the lease but later dissolved leaving my Grandfather, David Troman, to carry on until 1930, when he retired, his sons refused to carry on the business. A cousin of David, M Troman, a descendant of Peter, was in business a little further along Gt Brook St., and continued there until 1951, when due to material shortages, he closed down. Since 1930 his was the only firm manufacturing Jews Harps in the World. At the end of the 19^th century my Grandfather was supplying America, in the face of German opposition because of the advent of malleable iron to this country, Schmitt the great German manufacturer had been to America where he was regarded as the maker of the best Jews Harps. The American firm of Strauss, Musical instrument factors, imported Harps marked, Smith, England made by David Troman, and thy captured the American market from Schmitt. In time the more modern methods of manufacture of the British Jews Harps makers, enabled them to capture even the German markets; and a German factor, Gebrudersshuster received Harps from David Troman at the magnificent price of three shillings per gross.

With the 1914-18 war came shortages of material; and modern repetitive machinery; but the decline had started. David refused to use machinery but M Troman installed many machines. Unfortunately the machine made Jews Harps became characterless, toneless toys, and they slowly sank into the category of trash until their death. There are few youngsters today who know what a Jews Harp is, and fewer still are the number of adults, who can play them.

The first Jews Harps produced in this Country by the Troman family were influenced by the nailers methods. They were forged not cast, as were the latest models. The forging was from ¼” square wire, about eight or ten inches long, tapered at both ends, like an old forged nail. This piece of wire was then bent round an oval block, in a vee shaped groove, then bent back round two pegs, set an inch and a half apart and about half an inch away from the oval block. The resultant keyhole -like shape, was the frame of the Harp; to this was added the tongue, hammered flat, from round, spring wire, attached by filing a groove in the curve of the frame, slightly under-cutting, and hammer welding it in.

As time progressed, new methods were evolved and a new era began, with malleable iron casting. Casting was originally done in the workshops but eventually it was found to be cheaper to have casings done by some outside firm, who specialised in it. When done on the premises, the frame- castings were placed in pots with haematite ore, and fired for three weeks to make them malleable, this entailed rising at 4am to light or make up the fires. Often they worked till very late at night. When the castings were cold they were put in revolving barrels known as shaking barrels, with leather scrap and oil. The leather scrap came from Walsall and was known as “Mosings” – pronounced “mousings”.

The tongues were cut on a press to a long, tapering shape the size being depend upon the size of the Jews Harp frame. It is interesting to note that the press upon which they were cut, in David Troman’s workshop was probably the original one from Rowley; for the thread of the shaft was brazed on wire, showng that it was made before the lathe came to the Midlands. It is more likely that the frame of the press was made in the anchor forges of Cradley or Rowley.

The tongues were hammered at their wider end, to give them a certain amount of spring, or width of spring. Making use of materials at hand, bundles of tongues were put into the heating furnace the bundles being made from a number of tongues placed in a Harp frame and tempered blue. After tempering came pickling in acid to remove the scales. The two components, frame and tongue were now ready for assembly.

For he better quality Harps, the tongues were filed to a feather edge at a bench on a peg, similar to a jewellers peg. In fact it was an elm block about 6 inches long and two inches deep, with a file cut, down the centre and screwed to a bench.

The stool on which the assembler sat, also bore a resemblance to a silversmiths stool, as did the tree-trunk with slightly domed stake, set in a hole in the top. This was surrounded by a flat steel on the tree-trunk top. This steel became indented on each side of the head, in time, as the setter dropped his hammer first on one side, then on the other. The tongue was first hammered on the wide end to give it a “U” section, and this was dropped into the undercut slot, in the casting, with the apex of the “U” uppermost. When given a sharp blow with the hammer, the edges of the tongue were forced into the undercuts, and welded in. Thus the tongue was attached to the frame. But one must remember that the two ends of the frame were still quite a distance from the tongue and had to be hammered up to the tongue. These two processes of welding and hammering up, were known as “knocking in” and “knocking up”.

The turning up of the tongue and the finishing were the last things to be done. Many types were decorated with file cuts on the faces, electro plating was also popular in gold, silver,copper, tin and brass, although for many years, a tinning pot and brass dip was kept at Gt Brook St. The most common finish was blueing and varnishing, the Harps being on a hot plate, thus acquiring their blue colour.

And now this little instrument has passed into the world of dead and dying crafts. No longer does old Bill Troman of Club Buildings, Rowley, with hands so large that he was paid in crowns, tramp into Birmingham twice a week, to deliver his out-work, of filed up castings to Gt Brook St, and with my father and uncle sons of David Troman, will go the secrets of a forgotten craft.

Derek H Troman. 1953.”

We are indebted to Louise Troman a descendant of David and Derek for permission to quote from the above. There are various inaccuracies in the account which will be explained in future updates. This is an ongoing project and the above is the first stage of publication only. We would be grateful for any comments or further information.

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Observations on Derek Tromans text.

“In 1935 the Department of Commerce of the United States, reported that all the Jews Harps of the World were then being made by one firm in Birmingham, England, that one order from the United States to his firm was for 160000 instruments, and that the firm in question, though making 100000 per week, was unable to keep up with the world demand, owing to a lack of skilled tongue setters. What they omitted to say was that the name of the firm was Troman and Co; Gt Brook St, Birmingham.

The Company mentioned above is M (Millicent) Troman & Co. Millicent (nee Truman) married Peter Troman, a distant cousin, son of Peter Troman and Charlotte Stapenhill and Grandson of Timothy Troman, son of David who moved from Rowley village in 1839.

All the Jews Harps were not being made by this one firm as stated above, at the time the Forward Manufacturing Company of Birmingham were also making Jews Harps in large quantities and Jews Harps were also produced in Germany and Austria and Czechoslovakia before the second world war.

At the end of the eighteenth century, there came, to what we now know as the Black Country, one Trautmann, a deserter from the Prussian army. He came from Saxony, where the manufacture of Jews Harps and Harmonicas was in full swing, and settled among the nailers at Rowley. His name became Troman and under the influence of the nailers methods of working, he commenced to make Jews Harps.

The above cannot be substantiated,the first mention of Jews Harp makers we can find in Rowley is 1740 and the name Troman appears in the St Giles parish register as early as 1641, as Troman is almost certainly an occupational name deriving from the old English word Trump or Tromp or the German Maultrommel, the deserter if he existed must have arrived far earlier than stated above, the Birmingham Voice in an article said that by the early 1700 jews harp making had become a Troman family business and intriguingly enough in 1729 a son of Samuel and Ann Troman ancestor of David named a son “Captain” and this name persisted for generations to come. Its also true that Jew’s harps were made in Austria and Germany as early as 1700 and indeed still are today.

His sons carried on the trade, some transferring to the Brass industry. In 1839 when Britain was becoming the world’s work-shop a grandson of Trautmann, journeyed to Birmingham from Rowley, on a carriers cart, bringing his family with him – all sixteen of them. They settled in, first AB Row and later Prospect Row.

This was David Troman and his wife Phoebe Jews Harp maker from Rowley Village, he was not a grandson of Trautman as we can trace his line in the St Giles register, the link to Trautman must have been far earlier, he is mentioned as being in Rowley in Trade Directories of 1822 and 1834 but by the Cencus of 1841 he is in Aston with his family in A B Row. There are however only six children mentioned in the St Giles baptisms and no further additions can be found. Other Jews Harpers did however move from Rowley to Aston, namely Rowland Greg Barnsley, Simeon Jones, and Isaac Watts, all prominent Rowley names who could be related by marriage and this could account for the discrepancy. Stories can often get garbled in the telling for instance the transfer to the Brass industry mentioned above did not occur until the family had moved to Birmingham, when one of Davids sons became a brass founder.

As was the custom in those days, the wives also worked in the shops; side by side with the men. This wife was no exception, but she specialised in highly polished, steel toys and was considered quite an expert. Of these sixteen children, seven were boys, and these sons later opened their own forms in various parts of Birmingham, with the exception of two – one fell from a cart and was run over by the wheel; the other died after eating a surfeit of pancakes. One son Peter started making Jews harps in premises in Heneage Street; William in Avon St, Sparkhill; and David, Benjamin and Frederick, the remaining three took premises at 154, 155 and 156 Gt Brook St.

David’s sons who were baptised at St Giles were; John (1813); Timothy (1815); William (1821); Benjamin (1825); David (1827); there were also two daughters Sarah (1816 died 1823) and another Sarah (1831 died same year). we can find no other baptisms and no other children are mentioned on subsequent Census records. Peter, mentioned in the above extract, was in fact a son of Timothy and Grandson of David, We can find no evidence of Fredericks relationship at present, although he is mentioned as a partner in Troman Bros in 1896. He is more likely to be the fourth son of David Jnr . David Jnr and Benjamin and Timothy were sons of David, and John David’s eldest son, who became a brass founder and bedstead maker, is not mentioned in the above extract.

In 1875 the partnership renewed the lease but later dissolved leaving my Grandfather, David Troman, to carry on until 1830, when he retired, his sons refused to carry on the business.

David was a great, great, Grandson of the original David via his son David (1827), the owner of the workshop illustrated in the booklet and who “refused to use machinery”

A cousin of David, M Troman, a descendant of Peter, was in business a little further along Gt Brook St., and continued there until 1951, when due to material shortages, he closed down. Since 1930 his was the only firm manufacturing Jews Harps in the World.

M Troman was Millicent Troman widow of Peter Troman who another great, great, grandson of the original David via his son Timothy (1815)

At the end of the 19^th century my Grandfather was supplying America, in the face of German opposition because of the advent of malleable iron to this country, Schmitt the great German manufacturer had been to America where he was regarded as the maker of the best Jews Harps. The American firm of Strauss, Musical instrument factors, imported Harps marked, Smith, England made by David Troman, and they captured the American market from Schmitt. In time the more modern methods of manufacture of the British Jews Harps makers, enabled them to capture even the German markets; and a German factor, Gebrudersshuster received Harps from David Troman at the magnificent price of three shillings per gross.

With the 1914-18 war came shortages of material; and modern repetitive machinery; but the decline had started. David refused to use machinery but M Troman installed many machines. Unfortunately the machine made Jews Harps became characterless, toneless toys, and they slowly sank into the category of trash until their death. There are few youngsters today who know what a Jews Harp is, and fewer still are the number of adults, who can play them.

To quote the “Birmingham Voice” “so what put an end to this Birmingham monopoly? for one thing, since the majority of jew’s harps were for sale in America, Australia and South Africa, they began to make them for themselves, for another, bth during and after the war Troman’s was finding it difficult to get hold of castings, by 1946 the firm was finding it hard even to keep its three tongue setters (the most skilled part of the job) busy and no doubt the rise of the record player did not help either.”