Ironbridge Gorge

The Ironbridge Gorge is a deep gorge formed by the River Severn in Shropshire, England. The area was originally called the Severn Gorge.

Ironbridge Gorge

UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Iron Bridge
Location	Ironbridge, United Kingdom
Criteria	Cultural: i, ii, iv, vi
Reference	371
Inscription	1986 (10th Session)
Area	547.9 ha
Website	www.ironbridge.org.uk
Coordinates	52°37′35″N 2°28′22″W
Location of Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire Show map of Shropshire Ironbridge Gorge (the United Kingdom) Show map of the United Kingdom

The area was made a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, because the industrial revolution started around here in the mid-1700s.^[1]

Ironbridge Gorge has mines, factories, workers' housing, and the transport infrastructure that was created in the gorge during the Industrial Revolution. Coke production in the area helped start the Industrial Revolution. The Iron Bridge was the world's first bridge built from iron.

History

The gorge takes its name from its famous "Iron Bridge", the first iron bridge of its kind in the world.^[1] It is a monument to the industry that began there. The bridge was built in 1779 to link the industrial town of Broseley with the smaller mining town of Madeley and the growing industrial centre of Coalbrookdale.

The Iron Bridge was the first arch bridge in the world to be made out of cast iron.^[1] a material which was previously far too expensive to use for large structures. However, a new blast furnace nearby lowered the cost. This encouraged local engineers and architects to solve a long-standing problem of a crossing over the river.

There are two reasons the site was so useful to the early industrialists. The raw materials, coal, iron ore, limestone and clay, for the manufacture of iron, tiles and porcelain are exposed or easily mined in the gorge. Second, the deep and wide river allowed easy transport of products to the sea.^[2][3]

Gallery

• 
  Blast Furnaces at Blists Hill
• 
  Part of the Ironbridge Gorge museum complex

Related pages

• List of World Heritage Sites of the United Kingdom
• Coalbrookdale

References

1. UNESCO, "Ironbridge Gorge"; retrieved 2012-4-24.
2. Thomas E. 1999. Coalbrookdale and the Darby family: the story of the world's first industrial dynasty. York : Sessions/Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust. ISBN 1-85072-217-X
3. Trinder B. 2000. The industrial revolution in Shropshire. 3rd ed, Chichester: Phillimore. ISBN 1-86077-133-5

Other websites

Media related to Ironbridge Gorge at Wikimedia Commons

52°37′35″N 2°28′22″W