Wortley Top Forge

The oldest surviving heavy iron forge in the world

  • Wortley Top Forge in about 1904 – before production ceased in about 1910.

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  • The kitchen yard – complete with the washhouse and the tin bath on a nail in the wall – is a sun-trap and a possible picnic area.

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  • Our largest breast-shot water wheel drives a tilt hammer which forged wrought iron railway axles in Victorian times.

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  • Wortley Top Forge is a Scheduled Ancient Monument to the Iron Industry of South Yorkshire. It is also an Industrial Museum with many working exhibits.

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About the forge

Top Forge is a Water Powered Heavy Iron Forge whose history can be traced back to at least 1640. The … Read more...

Planning a visit

  Top Forge is now open for our 2025 season   We are Open - Sundays and Bank Holiday … Read more

Through the ages

The history of the forge can be traced back to 1640, and it was still working until around 1910. The … Read more...

Volunteering

Jobs to be done at Wortley are unbelievably diverse; in the Summer there is gardening, grass cutting … Read more...