Abraham Darby's Coalbrookdale furnace reopens after 'vital' conservation work

Abraham Darby's Grade I-listed furnace in Coalbrookdale has reopened after undergoing conservation work.

The Old Furnace at the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron has officially reopened, ten months after vital conservation work began.

The site is considered one of the birthplaces of the Industrial Revolution, as it is the first recorded location where coke - instead of charcoal - was used successfully to smelt iron.

In 1959, the Old Furnace was excavated to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Darby's first smelting.

Work on the site’s tent cover structure, which has protected it since 1981, has been ongoing since November last year.

Prior to work beginning, the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust said the back wall of the Old Furnace was “in poor condition with numerous areas of plant growth, disturbed high-level masonry and eroded pointing.”

Upon the site reopening on Monday (September 7), a spokesperson for the National Trust said: “This Scheduled Ancient Monument has been undergoing vital conservation work to restore a tent cover structure.

“This will protect the furnace from the elements, reducing its exposure and stress from increasingly wet winters, hotter summers, and fluctuating temperatures (freeze/thaw).”