Robert Bakewell (1682–1752) was an English smith. He took an apprenticeship in London as an iron worker and became an extremely skilled ironsmith.
Life
He was born in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire in 1682. In 1706 he started working at Melbourne Hall for Thomas Coke while living in the town of Melbourne. In the gardens at the hall, a wrought ironarbour created by Bakewell can still be seen today: it is known locally as 'the Birdcage'.
Following an affair with local woman Elizabeth Fisher, which resulted in the birth of a son, Bakewell Fisher, he moved from Melbourne to Derby, where he set up a workshop and forge at Oake's Yard in St Peter's Street. Later, he married Mary Cokayne and had a family of three sons and three daughters. He died in 1752 and is buried in St Peter's Church, Derby.