While England was at war with her American colonies, this first cast-iron bridge was built in 1779 to show off a wonderful new building material. Lacking experience with cast iron, the builders erred on the side of sturdiness and constructed it as if made of wood, using traditional timber-jointing techniques instead of iron rivets. (The rivets you see are from later repairs.) Now the valley’s centerpiece, the bridge was used by cars into the 1960s.

Walk across the span, then visit the Iron Bridge Tollhouse (free, at the southern end of the bridge), which offers a good introduction to the valley’s history. Above the entryway, read the fee schedule and notice the subtle slam against royalty. (England was not immune to the revolutionary sentiment inhabiting the colonies at this time.) Pedestrians paid half a penny to cross; poor people crossed for less by coracle—a crude tub-like wood-and-canvas shuttle ferry. Cross back to the town and enjoy a pleasant walk downstream along the towpath. Where horses once dragged boats laden with cargo, locals now walk their dogs.

About a five-minute walk from the bridge, this free but skippable museum hosts temporary exhibits. But the building itself, the Old Severn Warehouse (nicknamed the “Warehouse of the World”), is notable as the place where iron goods were brought from nearby furnaces and loaded onto barges to be shipped to Bristol...and, from there, around the globe. You can still see the cart tracks leading down to the water.

Nearby: Farther upstream from the museum parking lot is the fine riverside Dale End Park, with picnic areas and a playground.

This immersive open-air folk museum, a re-creation of a circa 1900 working-class town, thrills kids and kids at heart. You’ll wander through 50 acres of commerce, industry, and chatty locals. It’s particularly lively (with everything open and lots of docents—and engaged kids) on weekends and in summer; off-peak times can be sleepy, with some buildings closed. Compared to other open-air museums in Britain, it’s refreshingly compact and manageable. Pick up the Blists Hill guidebook for a good step-by-step rundown.

Cost: £27, includes free site map.

Eating in Blists Hill: Options for lunch include a café, pub, fish-and-chips shop, bakery, and cafeteria.

Visiting Blists Hill: The experience begins with an educational movie showing Victorians at noisy, hot, and difficult work. After climbing some stairs and walking through a door, you’re transported back in time. Energetic docents in period clothes staff shops and work machinery straight from 1900. Pop in to say hello to the banker, the blacksmith, and the cashier in the candy shop. Swing by the pub to see how the local Ironbridge football team is faring this year. How long will it take for a letter to reach London? Asking questions and chatting with the “Victorians” is encouraged.

Stop by the pharmacy and check out the squirm-inducing setup of the dentist’s chair—it’ll make you appreciate modern dental care. Down the street, a candlemaker explains how a “nodding donkey” works, shows why candles have two wicks, and reveals why miners used green candles instead of white ones.

Just as in Victorian days, the village has a working pub, a greengrocer’s shop, and a snorty, slippery pigsty. On your way down to the ironworks, drop in on the Duke of Sutherland’s cottage, with an outdoor privy tucked in the back. At the vast ironworks you can imagine newly forged goods being loaded onto a barge in the adjacent warehouse. And don’t miss the explanation of the “winding engine” at the Blists Hill Mine (demos throughout the day).

At the back of the park, you can hop aboard a train and enter a clay mine, complete with a sound-and-light show illustrating the dangers of working underground (small charge, 15 minutes). Nearby, the Hay Inclined Plane was used to haul loaded tub boats between the river and the upper canal. Today, a passenger-operated lift hauls visitors instead (if it’s working, just press the button to call for it). At the top, you can walk along the canal back to the town.

This museum fills an old porcelain factory along the river, directly downhill from Blists Hill. You’ll see fine samples of china that was made here, learn how to identify the top-quality Caughley porcelain, walk through a long workshop where craftspeople demonstrate various aspects of porcelain production (molds, flowers, printing, glazing, painting, and gilding), and walk inside a cavernous bottle kiln, so-called for its iconic shape. While not for everyone, the museum appeals to fans of England’s storied porcelain-making history.

Cost: £12.

While most area museums focus on the grit and brawn of the Industrial Revolution (iron, coal, and so on), the sleepy Jackfield Tile Museum looks at the softer side of Severn Valley innovation. Located in the tiny village of Jackfield (a mile downriver from Ironbridge), the museum spreads out among several buildings in an old brick industrial complex where tiles are still produced. The highlight is seeing re-created spaces showing off the many uses and styles of tile—including a pub, a bathroom, and London’s Covent Garden Tube station. (Jackfield is proud that its tile covers many of London’s Underground stations—and even a part of the Palace of Westminster.) The modern Fusion art center next door suggests that tile’s heyday isn’t over.

Cost: £12.

The Coalbrookdale neighborhood is the birthplace of modern technology—locals like to claim it’s where mass production was invented. The museum and furnace are located on either side of a parking lot, tucked under a rail trestle. The Coalbrookdale Inn—a classic pub—is just up the hill in front of the museum.

Cost: Museum-£12, Furnace-free.

Visiting the Museum: The fresh, well-presented museum works hard to explain all facets of iron—which has been used to make tools since ancient times and makes up 95 percent of all industrial metal. Your visit starts with a quick primer on iron ore and iron tools. From there, head up to the top floor and work your way down, chronologically, through the history of iron here in the Severn Valley. You’ll wander among original items from Coalbrookdale’s boom time, see a detailed model of the Iron Bridge, and learn about the critical role Quakers (like Darby) played in the Industrial Revolution. On the middle floor are several Victorian-age iron items—from a gigantic cast-iron anchor to delicately crafted benches and sculptures—and a map showing where Coalbrookdale iron was exported (as far east as Australia, and as far west as Hawaii).

Abraham Darby Furnace: Across from the museum, standing like a shrine to the Industrial Revolution, is Darby’s blast furnace, sitting inside a big glass pyramid and surrounded by evocative industrial-age ruins. It was here that in 1709 Darby first smelted iron, using coke as fuel. To me, “coke” is a drink, and “smelt” is the past tense of smell...but around here, these words recall the event that kicked off the modern Industrial Age and changed the world (see the sidebar).

Enginuity is a hands-on funfest for kids. Riffing on Ironbridge’s engineering roots, this converted 1709 foundry is a science fair of water contraptions, pumps, magnets, and more. Learn the impact a dam has on the cycle of water, discover how a blast engine works, and power a steam engine. Mixed in among all this interactive entertainment is a collection of vintage machines.

Cost: £12, across the parking lot from the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron.

Abraham Darby, who figured out how to smelt iron in his big furnace, lived with his family in these two homes up on a ridge overlooking the Coalbrookdale Museum (go under the rail bridge and head uphill). Although Quakers, they were the area’s wealthiest residents by far. Touring their homes, you’ll learn a bit about their lifestyles and about Quakers in general.

The 18th-century Darby mansion, Rosehill House, is decorated and furnished as the family home would have been in 1850. It features a collection of fine china, furniture, and trinkets from various family members. If the gilt-framed mirrors and fancy china seem a little ostentatious for wealth-shunning Quakers, keep in mind that these folks were rich beyond reason, and—as docents will assure you—considering their vast wealth, their home was relatively modest. At the end of the tour is a collection of period clothes: You’re welcome to dress up as a humble Quaker or a fashionable dandy.

The adjacent Dale House, dating from the 1710s, is older than Rosehill, but almost completely devoid of furnishings.

Cost: £6.50.