Genuine AoS bathing facilities!

Carronade as featured on HMS Victory

I have had builders in for the last two weeks. They have gone now and in their place I have a shiny new bathroom complete with genuine Age of Sail bathing facility! Sadly not a deck shower complete with nekkid Lieutenant Hornblower but a bath made by the Carron Company. Y'know, the company who made the carronades.

The Carron Company iron foundry was established in Falkirk on the banks of the River Carron in 1759. By 1814, thanks to lucrative munitions contracts from the British Army and Navy, as well as the armed forces of many other nations, it grew to become the largest ironworks in Europe, employing over 2000 workers. When the bottom fell out of the market for light weight short range guns towards the end of the 19th century the company diversified into making cast iron baths, decorative ironwork, post boxes and, eventually, those iconic red telephone boxes. In the 1960's the Carron Company started manufacturing stainless steel products and in the 1980's developed acrylic baths.

Telephone box as featured in Local Hero

Sadly in the early eighties the company went into receivership but it was bought out and still trades from Falkirk under the name Carron Phoenix. The company appears to be proud of it's 18th century heritage and the unique roll it played in decisive historical events such as the Battle of Trafalgar and there is a rather entertaining little history page on the Carron Bathrooms website which lists the company history as follows:

1759 - Carron Company founded in the same year as poet Robert Burns was born.
1815 - Carronade Cannons critical to Nelsons' success at The Battle Of Trafalgar.
1888 - Carron products were displayed at the International Exhibition.
1965 - First acrylic bath manufactured.

It rather amuses me that there there is no explanation as to how they went from making cannons to baths, as if it was the most natural thing in the world! I think it's rather cool that this company has survived for over 250 years and I can confirm that they make really rather swanky baths!

Carronite bath as featured at Chez Anteros ;)