Museums · South Wales
Blaenavon Ironworks
In or near Argoed.
Blaenavon Ironworks — former ironworks transformed into a museum.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1.5 h–3 h
- Best time of year
- Year-round
- Nearest railway station
- Blaenavon High Level · 1.0 km
- Paid entry
- Family-friendly
- Wheelchair accessible
Getting there & planning your visit
To visit Blaenavon Ironworks, the nearest railway station is Blaenavon High Level, which is 1 km away. The postcode for sat-nav is NP4 9RN. Entry is paid, and the site is wheelchair accessible.
About
Blaenavon Ironworks is a museum in the United Kingdom. Records date its origin to 1789. Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Owned by Cadw. Managed by Cadw. Wikidata describes it as: "former ironworks transformed into a museum". Coordinates: 51.7770°, -3.0892°.
Photo gallery
Protected designations
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: River Wye SSSI
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
Blaenavon Ironworks is a former industrial site which is now a museum in Blaenavon, Wales. The ironworks was of crucial importance in the development of the ability to use cheap, low quality, high sulphur iron ores worldwide. It was the site of the experiments by Sidney Gilchrist Thomas and his cousin Percy Gilchrist that led to "the basic steel process" or "Gilchrist–Thomas process". The ironworks is on the outskirts of Blaenavon, in the borough of Torfaen, within the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, a World Heritage Site. The site is under the care of Cadw, the Welsh Government's historic environment service.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
Evidence of ironworking in the South Wales Valleys dates from the Roman period. In the 17th century, the Hanburys of Pontypool undertook tinplate manufacture in the area around Blaenavon. The land was the property of Lord Abergavenny, known as Lord Abergavenny's Hills, and in 1788 Henry Nevill, 2nd Earl of Abergavenny granted a renewal of the lease on 12,000 acres to three Midlands businessmen, Thomas Hill, his brother-in-law Thomas Hopkins and Benjamin Pratt. The commercial advantage of the area was that the three essential elements for iron production, coal, iron ore and limestone, all outcropped on the land surface in the western valleys, allowing for their much easier, horizontal,…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 51.7770, -3.0892
- District
- Torfaen
- Parish
- Blaenavon
- Postcode
- NP4 9RN
- Parliamentary constituency
- Torfaen
- Established
- 1789
- Nearest railway station
- Blaenavon High Level — 1 km
- Opening
- Nov-Mar Fr-Su 10:00-16:00, Apr-Oct Mo-Su 10:00-17:00
- Official site
- www.visitblaenavon.co.uk
Sources
- wikidata: Q74136 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Blaenavon Ironworks (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Blaenafon Ironworks-24May2008.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Blaenavon Ironworks?
- Blaenavon Ironworks is in South Wales, United Kingdom (postcode NP4 9RN), in the parish of Blaenavon.
- What is Blaenavon Ironworks?
- Blaenavon Ironworks — former ironworks transformed into a museum.
- How do I get to Blaenavon Ironworks?
- The nearest railway station is Blaenavon High Level, about 1.0 km away. Drivers can use postcode NP4 9RN.
- When was Blaenavon Ironworks built?
- Built or established in 1789.
- Who runs Blaenavon Ironworks?
- Blaenavon Ironworks is operated by Cadw.
- Is Blaenavon Ironworks a listed building?
- Blaenavon Ironworks is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
- Is Blaenavon Ironworks a protected site?
- Yes — Blaenavon Ironworks is part of the River Wye SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- How do I get to Blaenavon Ironworks?
- The nearest railway station is Blaenavon High Level, about 1.0 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode NP4 9RN.