Blists Hill's Victorian residents gear up for a dust up at annual spring clean

This weekend, the house-proud townsfolk of Blists Hill Victorian Town will set to work cleaning their homes and shops to bring in the new season.

Spring cleaning was a necessity for the Victorians. Once a year the chimneys would be swept clear of the soot and dirt built up from a winter of use, and the house would be scrubbed and cleaned from top to bottom.

All the furniture would be moved out, thoroughly cleaned polished and replaced. Curtains or drapes would be washed and rehung. Walls would be washed or brushed, and carpets and rugs would be taken outside and beaten - all without the modern labour-saving gadgets we have today.

On Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 April, visitors will be able to see the townsfolk hard at work and pick up some tips and advice on traditional ways to clean the home.

But it won’t be all work and no play - with all the furniture moved out onto the street, the big clean provides a great opportunity for kids and adults to take part in a game of musical chairs.

Lauren Collier, head of interpretation at the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, said: “Spring cleaning would have been a daunting task for the women of the Gorge, who were seen as responsible for keeping the home clean.

"Just a normal clean of a Victorian home would seem challenging to us today, but the Gorge was a dirty place, with factories, furnaces and industry endlessly pumping out soot, smoke and filth.

"Dirt would be brought into the home by family members working at local mines, factories and furnaces and by children playing on muddy unpaved roads.

"At this event, visitors will get a flavour of the immense work involved in keeping Victorian homes and shops clean.”

More information can be found online at: ironbridge.org.uk