Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú

My grandmother was born in 1839/40. This sampler hung in my family home and as children we used to sing the hymn depicted, then intone the legend -Rachel Jones, Ebbw Vale Company's School, 1852.
The Ebbw Vale Iron and Steel Co. was a prominent force in S Wales and had several Company Stores and Schools. The legend on this sampler is a reminder of the practice which kept the workers in thrall to the firms. In the 1852 Census Rachel's mother, a widow, was stated to have been an "Iron Stone Stacker", which also reminds us of the work that women, and children, had to do at that time in order to earn money to maintain themselves.
We need such reminders in these days, when we so easily complain about about our lot.