Industrial Heritage Guide

recommended industrial museums and other industrial heritage sites


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huge working spinning mule, producing woollen yarn, a historic schoolhouse, a millworker's house and 1920s style village store

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one of the finest industrial museums in Europe, exploring the history of the jute industry, with interactive and computer generated displays

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  • family-friendly
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  • free admission
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  • open year round
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go 300ft underground and see the hidden world of the miner on a real underground tour

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the best preserved blast furnace complex of its period and type in the world and is one of the most important monuments to have survived from the early part of the industrial revolution

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with 70 acres of woodlands, ancient monuments, industrial and farming history and children friendly interactive displays

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this superb museum covering a multitude of perspectives from fine art to engineering and archeology to history

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authentic 18th century scythe works with waterwheels and tilt hammers. The house, workshops, crucible steel furnace, waterwheels and dam create a unique atmosphere of life in centuries long past

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  • needlecraft

Cromford Mills is the home of Sir Richard Arkwright’s first mill complex. Boasting powered machinery, a large workforce and factory village, this site became the model for others throughout Britain and abroad

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with a number of steam and diesel vintage locomotives and passing through the imposing Blaenavon Industrial Landscape

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  • free admission
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this is the ideal starting point for your visit to the area with traditional and video displays explaining the history of the coal mining area

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mentioned as far back as 300BC and is strongly woven into the lives of the Cornish people. This is the sole tin mine still producing tin items

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celebrates the history of a long lost industry and the stories of the everyday people involved in mining

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producing the famous Westmorland Green Slate, which has been extracted for centuries and offering a wealth of adventure experiences

Jennings Brewery

Cockermouth

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this traditional brewery has nearly 200 years of brewing experience using pure Lakeland water drawn from the brewery’s own well

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offering a fascinating insight into 18th Century mining, complete with recreated miners' cottages and a tour of a real mine

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  • maritime heritage
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formerly a Royal Navy dockyard and now the most complete dockyard museum from the Age of Sail with inter-active exhibits for all ages

Tower Bridge

London SE1

  • editors' choice!
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Iconic bridge in the City of London, with spectacular views from the high-level walkways and visits to the original steam-powered engine rooms

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historic dual-purpose viaduct and aqueduct. The outcrop affords a spectacular panoramic view of the surrounding landscape.

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set in a former Victorian sewerage works with displays of beam engines, showcasing Leicester's industrial, technological and scientific heritage

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underground journey through former slate mine, with three underground caverns of cathedral proportions and a crystal clear subterranean lake

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