The Journal
Stories, history and guides from the Ironbridge Gorge
Long-form local journalism from the Ironbridge Gorge: history features, photo archives, pub and food guides, walks and weekly what's-on round-ups.
Ironbridge
Bower Yard: Riverside Industry & Community
[[cols]] 1882 [[ ]] 1903 [[ ]] 1927 [[ ]] 2024 [[/cols]] Bower Yard [[cols]] Once alive with smoke, hammering and laughter, Bower Yard was one of the most industrious corners of…
Ironbridge
Fords and Ferries in Ironbridge
Crossings of the Severn Gorge The River Severn has always been both a barrier and a lifeline, and nowhere more so than in the Ironbridge Gorge. For centuries, before the great i…
Ironbridge
Motor Racing in The Gorge
Motor Racing in the Ironbridge Gorge, 1908–1911 The steep banks of the Severn Gorge briefly became a stage for cutting edge Edwardian motorsport. Between 1908 and 1911, both sid…
Guides
Pubs of the Gorge
Every pub, their music, roasts and history in one place.
Where to Eat & Drink
Cafés, restaurants, breakfasts, roasts and dietary guides.
Walks & Trails
Riverside paths, woodland routes and viewpoints.
This Week in the Gorge
Our Sunday-to-Sunday round-up of everything on.
The Archive
Photographs, documents and themed collections.
Visitor Information
Parking, buses, toilets and practical local know-how.
All stories
Ironbridge
Ironbridge and Broseley Station
Ironbridge & Broseley Station: Then and Now Ironbridge and Broseley station once stood proudly on the Severn Valley Railway line, serving both the town of Broseley and the town…
Ironbridge
The Square
Ironbridge Market Square – Butter, Chemists, and Change [[cols]] It’s hard to picture now, with cafés, shops, and cars packed in around the edge, but Ironbridge Market Square wa…
Ironbridge
Waterloo Street
Waterloo Street, Ironbridge – from thriving shops to bulldozers These photos trace the rise, decline, and transformation of one of Ironbridge’s busiest streets. 1950s – A thrivi…
Ironbridge
Tontine Hill
Tontine Hill – from crowded shops to open slopes [[cols]] It’s hard to imagine today, but Tontine Hill once looked very different. Instead of grass banks and open views, both si…
Ironbridge
The Toll house
The Iron Bridge Toll House The Iron Bridge opened to traffic on 1 January 1781, the first bridge in the world built entirely from cast iron. Its Tollhouse, built in red brick wi…
Ironbridge
Museum of the Gorge
On The Wharfage in Ironbridge stands a building that has reinvented itself more times than most towns manage in a century. Today we know it as the Museum of the Gorge. Soon, it…
Ironbridge
The Malt House (formerly The Talbot Inn)
[[cols]] The riverside building we know today as The Malthouse (formerly the Talbot Inn) hides centuries of history behind its whitewashed frontage. Concealed within is a sixtee…
Ironbridge
32A High Street (Chip shop) — building history
Overview Today this familiar High Street building is home to Ironbridge’s chip shop, but its story stretches back much further. 32 and 32A High Street are Grade II listed buildi…
Coalport
Coalport bridge and toll houses.
Coalport Bridge and its Toll Houses [[cols]] Coalport, set deep in the Ironbridge Gorge, has always been about crossings — turnpike roads, iron spans, and toll gates that took y…
Coalport
Coalport & Jackfield Memorial Bridge
The Coalport & Jackfield Memorial Footbridge Before there was a bridge, there was a boat. [[cols]] For over 120 years, a small ferry carried workers and families across the Seve…
Coalport
Coalport Incline Plane
The Hay Inclined Plane: From Industry to Heritage Perched above the River Severn, the Hay Inclined Plane remains one of Britain’s finest feats of early industrial engineering. C…
Coalport
Coalport Canal
Coalport Canal: The Little Waterway That Powered an Empire [[cols]] In the curve of the Ironbridge Gorge, a narrow strip of water glides past the Coalport China Museum. The refl…
Jackfield
The Maws factory history
One Valley, Many Legacies Walk along the Severn at Jackfield and you’re treading on the bones of the British tile industry. In the late nineteenth century, within little more th…
Jackfield
The Free Bridge of Jackfield
The Story of the Free Bridge and Jackfield Bridge [[cols]] For centuries, the people of Jackfield, Coalbrookdale, Madeley and Broseley had only three options to cross the River…
Jackfield
Jackfield Landslip
The Jackfield Landslide of 1952 – A Village on the Move [[cols]] Jackfield, a riverside community near Ironbridge, is no stranger to the ground shifting beneath its feet. [[ ]]…
Names of the Gorge
Names of the Gorge
Names of the Gorge: From Clearings to Iron [[cols]] Before there was an Ironbridge, before Coalport’s wharf or the clatter of Jackfield’s tile works, the map of this part of Shr…
Pubs of Madeley Parish
Pubs of Madeley Parish
Introduction The old parish of Madeley once drank its way through more pubs than some towns twice its size. The 1849 Tithe Award alone lists at least twenty six inns and beerhou…
Ironbridge
Bower Yard: Riverside Industry & Community
[[cols]] [[ ]] [[ ]] [[ ]] [[/cols]] Bower Yard Once alive with smoke, hammering and laughter, Bower Yard was one of the most industrious corners of the Ironbridge Gorge — a pla…
Ironbridge
Fords and Ferries in Ironbridge
Crossings of the Severn Gorge The River Severn has always been both a barrier and a lifeline, and nowhere more so than in the Ironbridge Gorge. For centuries, before the great i…
Ironbridge
Motor Racing in The Gorge
Motor Racing in the Ironbridge Gorge, 1908–1911 The steep banks of the Severn Gorge briefly became a stage for cutting edge Edwardian motorsport. Between 1908 and 1911, both sid…
Ironbridge
The Square
Ironbridge Market Square It's hard to picture now, but Ironbridge Market Square was once the beating heart of the town. After the Iron Bridge opened in 1781, the old Madeley mar…
Ironbridge
Waterloo Street
Waterloo Street, Ironbridge These photos trace the rise, decline, and transformation of one of Ironbridge's busiest streets. 1950s — A thriving row: Beddoes & Son warehouse, Woo…
Ironbridge
Tontine Hill
Tontine Hill It's hard to imagine today, but Tontine Hill once looked very different. Instead of grass banks and open views, both sides of the hill were tightly packed with shop…
Ironbridge
The Toll house
The Iron Bridge Toll House The Iron Bridge opened to traffic on 1 January 1781, the first bridge in the world built entirely from cast iron. Its Tollhouse, built in red brick wi…
Ironbridge
Museum of the Gorge
On The Wharfage in Ironbridge stands a building that has reinvented itself more times than most towns manage in a century. Today we know it as the Museum of the Gorge. Soon, it…
Ironbridge
The Malt House (formerly The Talbot Inn)
The riverside building we know today as The Malthouse (formerly the Talbot Inn) hides centuries of history behind its whitewashed frontage. Concealed within is a 16th century ti…
Ironbridge
32A High Street (Chip shop) — building history
Overview Today this familiar High Street building is home to Ironbridge's chip shop, but its story stretches back much further. 32 and 32A High Street are Grade II listed buildi…
Coalport
Coalport bridge and toll houses.
Coalport Bridge and its Toll Houses Coalport, set deep in the Ironbridge Gorge, has always been about crossings — turnpike roads, iron spans, and toll gates that took your money…
Coalport
Coalport & Jackfield Memorial Bridge
The Coalport & Jackfield Memorial Footbridge Before there was a bridge, there was a boat. [[cols]] For over 120 years, a small ferry carried workers and families across the Seve…
Coalport
The Hay Inclined Plane
The Hay Inclined Plane: From Industry to Heritage Perched above the River Severn, the Hay Inclined Plane remains one of Britain's finest feats of early industrial engineering. C…
Coalport
Coalport Canal
Coalport Canal In the curve of the Ironbridge Gorge, a narrow strip of water glides past the Coalport China Museum. Today it feels timeless, but this calm half mile once throbbe…
Jackfield
The Maws factory history
One Valley, Many Legacies Walk along the Severn at Jackfield and you're treading on the bones of the British tile industry. In the late 19th century, within little more than a m…
Jackfield
The Free Bridge of Jackfield
The Story of the Free Bridge and Jackfield Bridge For centuries, the people of Jackfield, Coalbrookdale, Madeley and Broseley had only three options to cross the River Severn: t…
Jackfield
Coalport & Jackfield Memorial Bridge
A safer, permanent crossing between Jackfield and Coalport, built in 1922 as a memorial to local men lost in the Great War. See the full story in the Coalport section.
Jackfield
Jackfield Landslip
The Jackfield Landslide of 1952 – A Village on the Move [[cols]] Jackfield, a riverside community near Ironbridge, is no stranger to the ground shifting beneath its feet. [[ ]]…
Themes
Names of the Gorge
Names of the Gorge: From Clearings to Iron Before there was an Ironbridge, before Coalport's wharf or the clatter of Jackfield's tile works, the map of this part of Shropshire l…
Themes
Pubs of Madeley Parish
Introduction The old parish of Madeley once drank its way through more pubs than some towns twice its size. The 1849 Tithe Award alone lists at least twenty six inns and beerhou…
Ironbridge
32A High Street (Chip Shop) — Building History
Overview Today this familiar High Street building is home to Ironbridge's chip shop, but its story stretches back much further. 32 and 32A High Street are Grade II listed buildi…
Ironbridge
The Malt House (formerly The Talbot Inn)
The riverside building we know today as The Malthouse (formerly the Talbot Inn) hides centuries of history behind its whitewashed frontage. Concealed within is a sixteenth centu…
Ironbridge
Tontine Hill
Tontine Hill – from crowded shops to open slopes It's hard to imagine today, but Tontine Hill once looked very different. Instead of grass banks and open views, both sides of th…
Ironbridge
Waterloo Street
Waterloo Street, Ironbridge – from thriving shops to bulldozers These photos trace the rise, decline, and transformation of one of Ironbridge's busiest streets. 🏪 1950s – A thr…
Ironbridge
The Square
Ironbridge Market Square – Butter, Chemists, and Change It's hard to picture now, with cafés, shops, and cars packed in around the edge, but Ironbridge Market Square was once th…
Ironbridge
Iron bridge & Broseley Station
Iron bridge & Broseley Station: Then and Now Iron bridge & Broseley station once stood proudly on the Severn Valley Railway line, serving both the town of Broseley and the town…
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