Coalbrookdale

The Coalbrookdale Bridge was the first bridge made of iron. It was erected in 1779 over the river Severn by the local industrialist Abraham Darby III. His ancestor the quaker Abraham Darby I invented the coke iron production technique, which triggered the Great Iron Revolution in the 18th century. The region around Coalbrookdale and the Darby family are therefore very important for the Industrial Revolution in the 18th as well as the 19th centuries. Today the Coalbrookdale Bridge remains a symbol for the British Industrial history and it is also on the list of world heritage sites in Britain.

First Iron Bridge

Sources:

"Ironbridge Gorge." UNESCO World Heritage Centre, http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/371.

"History: Coalbrookdale MUSEUM of IRON and DARBY HOUSES." Ironbridge, http://www.ironbridge.org.uk/our_attractions/coalbrookdale_museum_of_iron/history/. Archived article: https://web.archive.org/web/20110222234620/https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/our_attractions/coalbrookdale_museum_of_iron/history/.

Müller, Werner.dtv-Atlas Baukunst. Band 2 Baugeschichte von der Romantik bis zur Gegenwart, München: dtv, 2005.