George Pearce Baldwin

George Pearce Baldwin was born on 17 May 1789 in Broseley, Shropshire. In the early 19th century, he relocated to Worcestershire, where he established himself as an iron founder in Stourport-on-Severn. He was the son of Thomas Baldwin and Mary Gough.

He married Anne Hill on 16 April 1812. Together, they had two children: Pearce Baldwin, born on 20 July 1813 and died on 6 April 1861, and William Hill Baldwin, born on 8 March 1817 and died on 11 May 1863. After the death of his first wife, Baldwin married Sarah Chalkley Stanley, the daughter of Reverend Jacob Stanley, on 4 October 1822.

From his second marriage, Baldwin had several children: George Baldwin (8 April 1824 – 17 October 1824) who died in infancy; George Baldwin (16 March 1826 – 5 March 1881); Stanley Baldwin (4 February 1828 – 21 September 1907); Sarah Anne Baldwin (19 April 1830 – 15 December 1919); Edward Baldwin (26 May 1832 – 26 April 1848); Mary Jane Baldwin (16 January 1834 – 18 January 1908); Lucilla Baldwin (16 March 1836 – November 1916); Eliza Baldwin (2 September 1837 – July 1914); and Alfred Baldwin (4 June 1841 – 13 February 1908). Alfred Baldwin was the father of Stanley Baldwin, who became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Following George Pearce Baldwin’s death on 1 October 1840, his sons Pearce and William, along with their uncle Enoch Baldwin, assumed control of the Wilden Ironworks in 1849. The ironworks incorporated the historically significant Wilden Forge, originally built in 1647 by Thomas Foley. Historically, the ironworks had been operated primarily by members of the Foley family until 1776, after which various tenants managed it. In 1870, the youngest half-brother of Pearce and William, Alfred Baldwin, took over the Wilden Works. This enterprise laid the financial foundation for the Baldwin family's later prosperity.

References and external links related to the history of the Wilden Ironworks and the Baldwin family's involvement are available, including archived materials detailing the industrial estates and family history.