Soho House

During the last two weeks each Year 8 form has visited Soho House, the former home of world renown industrial entrepreneur, Matthew Boulton. Students enjoyed a guided tour of the house learning about Matthew Boulton, the Soho Manufactory and the Lunar Society.

They were able to explore the Georgian mansion and see what life would have been like for the Boulton family who lived there. Students explored the house, taking in many rooms, notably the Lunar room where the Lunar Society met. Members included great thinkers and businessmen of the time such as Josiah Wedgwood, Erasmus Darwin and even Benjamin Franklin.

Further exploration of the house included the kitchens, cellars and bedrooms which were all set out as they would have been in the eighteenth century. The students were able to see many artefacts that were created in Soho, such as ormolu candelabras, astronomical clocks and the coins that were minted in Soho demonstrating how important Handsworth and Birmingham was in starting the industrial revolution. We also used a number of maps to see what Handsworth was like during Boutlon’s time – very different to today!

I hope the students enjoyed learning about our local History and how important Birmingham was when looking at this time period.