Wortley Top Forge Industrial Museum

Forge Lane,
Thurgoland,
South Yorkshire
S35 7DN

Tel: 0114 2887576

Wortley Top Forge is one of the oldest water powered heavy ironworks in the country. It is surrounded by trees in beautiful wooded countryside in a loop of the River Don.

Wortley Ironworks was originally on two sites, Low
Forge, lower down the valley and now in a ruinous state; and Top Forge, now in the care of the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society and currently undergoing renovation.

The site is maintained and run by volunteers

There are many things to see on the site, although the main attraction is the Forge building that contains the furnace, helve hammers, waterwheels and cranes. Other buildings on the site include the Blacksmith's Shop, where demonstrations are sometimes given and the Foundry building, where casting used to take place.

This building and the upstairs of the Blacksmith's is home to an amazing collection of machines and engines, many of which still work and are demonstrated. A miniature railway has been built around the site and rides are given, to both children and adults, a delight for any train fans.