The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust is an
industrial heritage
Industrial heritage refers to the physical remains of the history of technology and industry, such as manufacturing and mining sites, as well as power and transportation infrastructure. Another definition expands this scope so that the term a ...
organisation which runs ten
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...
s and manages multiple historic sites within the
Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site in
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
, England, widely considered as the birthplace of the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
.
The Gorge includes a number of settlements important to industrial history and with heritage assets, including
Ironbridge
Ironbridge is a large village in the borough of Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, England. Located on the bank of the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, it lies in the civil parish of The Gorge. Ironbridge developed beside, a ...
,
Coalport
Coalport is a village in Shropshire, England. It is located on the River Severn in the Ironbridge Gorge, a mile downstream of Ironbridge. It lies predominantly on the north bank of the river; on the other side is Jackfield.
The settlement wa ...
and
Jackfield
Jackfield is a village in Shropshire, England, lying on the south bank of River Severn in the Ironbridge Gorge, downstream from Ironbridge.
Like many of the settlements in the area, it is notable for its place in the Industrial Revolution.
Hi ...
along the
River Severn
, name_etymology =
, image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG
, image_size = 288
, image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle
, map = RiverSevernMap.jpg
, map_size = 288
, map_c ...
, and also
Coalbrookdale
Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge.
This is where iron ore was first s ...
and
Broseley
Broseley is a market town in Shropshire, England, with a population of 4,929 at the 2011 Census and an estimate of 5,022 in 2019. The River Severn flows to its north and east. The first The Iron Bridge, iron bridge in the world was built in 17 ...
. The area was among the first sites in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to be declared a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
in 1986.
Museums
The ten museum sites run by the Trust, collectively known as The Ironbridge Gorge Museums are:
#
Blists Hill Victorian Town
Blists Hill Victorian Town is an open-air museum built on a former industrial complex located in the Madeley area of Telford, Shropshire, England. The museum attempts to recreate the sights, sounds and smells of a Victorian Shropshire town ...
, including the
Hay Inclined Plane
The Hay Inclined Plane is a canal inclined plane in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, with a height of . It was located at the end of the Shropshire Canal, part of a network of canals that linked the industrial region of east Shropshire wit ...
#
Broseley Pipeworks
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Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron
#
Coalport China Museum
The Coalport China Museum is one of the ten Ironbridge Gorge Museums administered by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust. The museum is based in the village of Coalport within the Ironbridge Gorge on the northern bank of the River Severn in Shrop ...
#
Tar Tunnel
The Tar Tunnel is an abandoned tunnel located on the north bank of the River Severn in the Ironbridge Gorge at Coalport, England. It is one of ten Ironbridge Gorge Museums attractions administered by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust.
Miners s ...
#
Darby Houses
The Darby Houses museum is one of ten Ironbridge Gorge Museums administered by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust. It is based in the village of Coalbrookdale in the Ironbridge Gorge, in Shropshire, England within a World Heritage Site, the birt ...
#
Enginuity
Enginuity is an interactive design and technology centre in Coalbrookdale, Shropshire, England. It is the newest of the ten museums operated by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust
The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust is an industrial heritage ...
#
Iron Bridge and Tollhouse
#
Jackfield Tile Museum
Jackfield Tile Museum is a museum which presents the history of the British decorative tile industry between 1840 and 1960, the period in which this factory and that of Maw & Co nearby played an important part in this industry. The museum lie ...
#
Museum of the Gorge
The Trust
The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust was established in 1968
to preserve and interpret the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the Ironbridge Gorge. It is an independent educational
charity
Charity may refer to:
Giving
* Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons
* Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing
* C ...
.
From 1970 it absorbed the Coalbrookdale Museum, now the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron, which had been established in 1959.
The museum staff manage 35 historic sites within the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site, including ten museums. The sites also include archaeological sites, two chapels, housing, two
Quaker burial grounds, a research library, a tourist information centre, woodland, and two
youth hostel
A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ...
s.
Ironbridge International Institute for Cultural Heritage
The Ironbridge International Institute for Cultural Heritage, formerly the
Ironbridge Institute
The Ironbridge Institute is a centre offering postgraduate and professional development courses in cultural heritage, located in the Ironbridge Gorge region of Shropshire, England.
The institute is located in Coalbrookdale, just outside Ironbri ...
, is a centre for cross-disciplinary research, postgraduate teaching and policy engagement based at the
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingha ...
.
References
External links
Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust website
{{authority control
Ironbridge Gorge
Museums in Shropshire
Coalbrookdale
Industry museums in England
Open-air museums in England
Archaeological museums in England
History of Shropshire
Industrial archaeology
Industrial Revolution in England
European Route of Industrial Heritage Anchor Points
Charities based in Shropshire
Museums established in 1967
Organizations established in 1967
1967 establishments in England