Museums

10 magnificent museums spread along the banks of the River Severn, pay tribute to what happened in this great valley almost three hundred years ago. As you wander through the Gorge you are constantly reminded of the role that this area played at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution and why it is now a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Blists Hill Victorian Town

Step back in time and join the 'Victorian' townsfolk as they go about their daily lives in this recreation of a small community at the end of Queen Victoria’s reign. A visit to the bank allows you to change your modern money for old fashioned currency to spend in the town’s shops and local pub.

Enginuity

Let your imagination take over at Enginuity, the hands-on interactive centre that unravels the workings of everyday objects using a simulated X-ray machine, lets you pull a 10 ton locomotive or generate electricity from flowing water, build an earthquake proof tower or challenge the robotic arm.

Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron

This museum celebrating the history of early iron making sits opposite the furnace used by the Darby family to help shape the industrial world. The museum now houses a spectacular collection of fine art casting, which gives legacy to the great skills of the Coalbrookdale Company craftsmen and the versatility of Iron.

Darby Houses

The Darby family's historic homes, Rosehill House and Dale house provide an insight into the gracious lives of the family as you read extracts from their family papers and the dressing up in Quaker costume available at Rosehill House. Open 10am - 5pm until 06 November 2011.

Museum of the Gorge

This Gothic style warehouse situated on the banks of the River Severn where goods from the Coalbrookdale Company once began their journey to the rest of the world now explains the significance of the area and why it ranks as a World Heritage Site.

 Coalport China Museum

Across the river from Jackfield you’ll find the Coalport China Museum home to the famous firm until 1926 and filled with the national collections of Coalport and Caughley in the original buildings.

Jackfield Tile Museum

Housed in the original Craven Dunnill Factory, Jackfield Tile Museum celebrates the decorative tiles that once graced the Empire. The museum consists of classic galleries, period room settings, hands-on workshops and a fully operational tile manufacturing and restoration business that was once the world centre of the tile industry.

Broseley Pipeworks

This factory closed its doors in 1957 and today is a wonderfully preserved time capsule of ancient local history. Once famed for its clay pipes that were exported worldwide, now tools lie on benches, clay is stacked in the yard as if the workers left moments before your arrival. Open 1pm - 5pm Monday 23 May 2011 - Sunday 25 September 2011.

Ironbridge and Tollhouse

Built by Abraham Darby III and now recognised as one of the great symbols of the Industrial Revolution, the remarkable structure still dominates the small town that bears its name. The Tollhouse is now open every weekend during the local school summer holidays or by prior arrangement for groups and school parties.

Tar Tunnel

Stroll alongside part of the Shropshire canal, don a hard hat and walk underground in the Tar Tunnel, where an amazing source of natural bitumen was discovered 200 years ago. Over 200 years ago natural bitumen trickled like treacle into pools. It was turned into pitch, lamp black and rheumatics remedies. Open 10.30am-4pm until 06 November 2011.