Henry Schneider statue

Henry Schneider arrived in town as a young speculator in 1839. Looking for deposits of iron ore he was just about to give up when in 1850 he discovered huge deposits of hematite. This was to change the face of Barrow forever. To transport the ore he and other investors founded the Furness Railway with the first section of track opening in 1846. It was soon clear money could be made by steel making and along with James Ramsden they oversaw the construction of the largest steelworks in the world at that time. The Industrial Revolution of the area had started. The original population of Barrow in 1851 was 700, by 1881 it had rose to 47,000.