The world’s oldest industrial heritage in the UK

Many conveniences we enjoy today can trace their roots to technologies developed during the Industrial Revolution. This period of rapid industrialisation began in Great Britain, where many innovations were pioneered such as new construction materials, manufacturing methods, and lifestyle improvements.

Much of the world’s oldest industrial heritage is located in the UK and so we have curated a list highlighting some of it. We aim to grow this list over time. Is there something we should include in this list? Get in touch and let us know.

The world’s oldest engines

Title	Name	Engineer	Date	Location	County	Notes
Replica of world’s first practical steam engine	Atmospheric Engine	Thomas Newcomen	1986	Black Country Living Museum, Dudley	West Midlands	The only full size replica of the first steam engine with practical application used in 1712 to pump water at the Coneygree Colliery 1 km away.
World’s oldest surviving modified steam engine	Newcomen Memorial Engine	Thomas Newcomen	c.1725	Dartmouth Visitor Centre	Devon	The engine was modified retaining original parts from 1725. Used to pump water at multiple collieries and the Coventry Canal.
World’s oldest working engine	Smethwick Engine	James Watt (Boulton & Watt)	1779	Thinktank, Birmingham	West Midlands	Used to pump water at the Smethwick summit on the Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line. Still bought into steam at the Thinktank Museum. Also the world’s oldest working steam engine.
World’s oldest surviving steam locomotive	Puffing Billy	William Hedley	c.1814	Science Museum	London	Built for coal haulage at Wylam Colliery, Northumberland with a maximum speed of 5 mph. Rebuilt with different wheel configurations during its operational life. Was an important influence on George Stephenson and the development of steam locomotives.

The world’s oldest railway heritage

Title	Name	Engineer/Designer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s oldest surviving single-arch railway bridge	Causey Arch	Ralph Wood	1725	Causey	County Durham	Carried the horse-drawn wooden Tanfield Waggonway across the Causey Burn.
World’s oldest continually working railway	Middleton Railway	Charles Brandling	1758-Present	Leeds	West Yorkshire	Originally constructed as a horse-drawn wooden waggonway. Converted into standard gauge for steam locomotives. Continues to operate as a heritage railway. Was also the first railway line to be authorised by an Act of Parliament.
World’s oldest surviving railway tunnel	Fritchley Tunnel	Benjamin Outram	1793	Fritchley	Derbyshire	Carried the horse-drawn Butterley Gangroad (plateway) under a road junction. Once delivered limestone from local quarries to the Cromford Canal. Southern part of the tunnel altered in 1840s to accommodate steam locomotives. Tunnel is currently buried.
World’s oldest surviving iron railway bridge	Pont-y-Cafnau	Watkin George	1793	Merthyr Tydfil	Merthyr Tydfil County Borough	Carried the Gurnos Tramroad (plateway) over the River Taff delivering limestone into the Cyfarthfa Ironworks.
World’s oldest surviving railway viaduct	Laigh Milton Viaduct	William Jessop & Thomas Hollis	1812	Kilmarnock	East Ayrshire	Carried the horse-drawn Kilmarnock & Troon Plateway across the River Irvine.
World’s oldest surviving iron railway bridge to carry a steam locomotive	Gaunless Bridge	George Stephenson	1823	Locomotion, Shildon	County Durham	Carried a branch of the Stockton & Darlington Railway serving Witton Park Colliery. Also the world’s first bridge to use an iron truss.
World’s first railway to run a steam locomotive	Merthyr Tramroad	George Overton (Railway) Richard Trevithick (Locomotive)	1802-1888	Merthyr Tydfil	Merthyr Tydfil County Borough	Originally constructed to deliver finished iron from and raw materials to the Penydarren and Plymouth ironworks. The first experiment with a steam locomotive occurred on the line in 1804 as part of a bet to carry ten tons of iron nearly 10 miles.
World’s oldest working railway bridge	Skerne Bridge	George Stephenson	1825	Darlington	County Durham	Built to carry the Stockton & Darlington Railway over the River Skerne, now part of the Tees Valley Line.
World’s oldest working railway viaduct	Bassaleg Viaduct	George Overton	1826	Newport	Gwent	Built to carry the horse-drawn Rumney Railway over the River Ebbw. Now carries a standard gauge freight railway.
World’s oldest surviving railway station	Liverpool Road	George Stephenson	1830	Manchester	Greater Manchester	Original terminus of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway, the first inter-city railway in the world.
World’s oldest continually working railway station site	Perry Barr	George Stephenson & Joseph Locke	1837	Birmingham	West Midlands	Originally built for the Grand Junction Railway. The station has been rebuilt several times during its existence.
World’s oldest working underground railway station	Baker Street	John Fowler	1863	City of Westminster	London	One of the original stations of the Metropolitan Railway, the ancestor of the London Underground.
World’s oldest working electric railway	Volk’s Electric Railway	Magnus Volk	1883	Brighton	East Sussex	Built and still operated as a seafront tourist attraction.
World’s oldest working electric tram line with original rolling stock	Manx Electric Railway	Frederick Saunderson	1893		Isle of Man	Runs 17 miles between Douglas and Ramsey via Laxey. Cars 1 and 2 are original and still operate.

The world’s oldest waterway aqueducts

Title	Name	Engineer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s oldest surviving iron aqueduct	Pont-y-Cafnau	Watkin George	1793	Merthyr Tydfil	Merthyr Tydfil County Borough	Carried the Cyfartha Leat over the River Taff via dual aqueducts into the Cyfarthfa Ironworks to power a great waterwheel.
World’s oldest surviving navigable iron aqueduct	Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct	Thomas Telford	1796	Longdon-on-Tern	Shropshire	Carried the Shrewsbury Canal over the River Tern.
World’s oldest working navigable iron aqueduct	Stalybridge Aqueduct	Benjamin Outram	1800	Newport	Gwent	Carries the Huddersfield Narrow Canal over the River Tame. Also known as the Stakes Aqueduct.
World’s first and only swing aqueduct	Barton Swing Aqueduct	Edward Leader Williams	1894	Barton upon Irwell	Greater Manchester	Carries the Bridgewater Canal over the Manchester Ship Canal. Replaced the Barton Aqueduct, the first navigable aqueduct in England.

The world’s oldest road bridges

Title	Name	Engineer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s first iron road bridge and oldest working iron bridge	Iron Bridge	Thomas Farnolls Pritchar	1779	Ironbridge	Shropshire	Former toll bridge carrying a road over the River Severn. Cast at Coalbrookdale Ironworks. Currently restricted to carrying pedestrians. International symbol of the Industrial Revolution.
World’s oldest iron road bridge still carrying vehicles	Cound Arbour Bridge	Thomas Telford (Unconfirmed)	1797	Cound	Shropshire	Cast at Coalbrookdale Ironworks.
World’s oldest working chain suspension bridge	Union Chain Bridge	Captain Samuel Brown	1820	Horncliffe & Fishwick	Northumberland & Scottish Borders	Former wrought iron toll bridge carrying a road over the River Tweed on English & Scottish border.
World’s first suspension road bridge	Menai Suspension Bridge	Thomas Telford	1826	Newport	Gwynedd & Isle of Anglesey	Carries the A5 London to Holyhead road over the Menai Straits. The bridge is the first of its kind because construction started before the Union Chain Bridge.

The world’s oldest utility heritage

Title	Name	Engineer/Designer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s first domestic residence lit by piped gas	Murdoch House	William Murdoch	1792-94	Redruth	Cornwall	Gas was piped into the living room for illumination from a retort in the back yard. The house was gutted by fire in 1922 destroying historical traces. Now functions as a community events venue.
World’s first industrial building lit by piped gas	Soho Foundry	William Murdoch	1798	Birmingham	West Midlands	The foundry manufactured steam engines. The site also included the world’s first gas holder, which has since been demolished.
World’s oldest gasworks remains	Dolphinholme Worsted Mill	Samuel Clegg	1811	Dolphinholme	Lancashire	Includes the world’s oldest gas holder remains. Built for a textile mill that was spending a fortune on candles.
World’s oldest surviving gas holder	Gas Holder No. 2	John Kirkham	1829-30	Fulham	London	Built for the Fulham Gasworks. Considered to have been the largest in the world being about twice the diameter of most large gas holders at the time. Now a central feature of a communal green space.
World’s first domestic property that was powered by hydroelectricity	Cragside	William Armstrong	1878	Rothbury	Northumberland	A water-powered Siemens dynamo generated electricity for a laundry, an early dishwasher, a dumb waiter, a hydraulic lift, and a rotisserie. Now owned by the National Trust.
World’s first domestic property lit by the incandescent electric light bulb	Underhill	Joseph Swan	c.1880	Gateshead	Tyne and Wear	The home of Joseph Swan and the site of his experiments that led to the development of the electric light bulb. Now used as a retirement home.

The world’s oldest maritime heritage

Title	Name	Engineer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s second oldest lighthouse structure	Dover Pharos	Unknown	c.46	Dover	Kent	Built by Romans to guide their fleets from France. Converted to church belfry in the Middle Ages. Also the tallest Roman structure in the UK.
World’s first commercial wet dock	Liverpool Old Dock	Thomas Steers	1715	Liverpool	Merseyside	Permitted ships to dock during low tide. Was filled in and built upon before being rediscovered during the construction of a shopping complex.
World’s oldest commissioned naval vessel	HMS Victory		1765	Portsmouth	Hampshire	Participated in the Battle of Trafalgar as Lord Nelson’s flagship. Also the vessel he died on. Now functions as a museum ship.
World’s oldest working lighthouse at sea	Bell Rock Lighthouse	Robert Stevenson	1810	East Scottish coast near Arbroath		Built on a submerged rock notorious for shipwrecks. Described as one of the Seven Wonders of the Industrial World due to the sheer challenge of construction.
World’s oldest surviving cast iron pier	Gravesend Town Pier	William Tierney Clark	1834	Gravesend	Kent	Used for alighting passengers on steam packet ferry services into London. Fell into disuse around 1900 after the arrival of the railways. Restored in 2002. Currently used by river bus services into London.
World’s oldest surviving iron steamship	SS Great Britain	Isambard Kingdom Brunel	1843	Bristol	Bristol	The first ship to be built of iron with screw propeller. She was the largest passenger ship in the world from 1845 to 1853. Now functions as a museum ship.
World’s first lighthouse with an electrical lamp	South Foreland Upper Lighthouse	John Yenn (Lighthouse Architect) Frederick Hale Holmes	1793 (Lighthouse Built) 1858 (Electric Lamp Fitted)	St Margarets Bay	Kent	Original lighthouse was built in 1793 with an oil lamp. Then used for a trial running a carbon arc lamp. Decommissioned in 1988. Now owned by the National Trust.
World’s first purpose-built electric lighthouse	Souter Lighthouse	William Armstrong	1871	Whitburn	Northumberland	Specifically designed and built to run an light powered by alternating electric current. Also the site of Guglielmo Marconi’s pioneering experiments in wireless radio transmissions. Decommissioned in 1988. Now owned by the National Trust.

Other world’s oldest industrial heritage

Title	Name	Engineer	Date	Location	County	Notes
World’s oldest working clock	Salisbury Cathedral Clock	Unknown	c.1386	Salisbury Cathedral	Wiltshire	A faceless verge and foliot clock that operates using a system of gears and weights. It was originally located in a bell tower that was demolished in 1790. It lay undiscovered until 1928. It was restored in 1956 with reproduced parts.
World’s oldest working church bells	St Lawrence Church	Unknown	c.1440s	Ipswich	Suffolk	Has the oldest ring of five church bells in the world with the oldest dating from the 1440s. Ringing stopped in 1985 when the bell tower was declared no longer stable. In 2009, they were moved further down the tower and once again brought into use.
World’s first iron-framed building	Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings	Charles Bage	1797	Shrewsbury	Shropshire	Built using rows of cast iron columns with cast iron beams and wrought iron tie rods supporting brick flooring. Often referred to as the “grandfather of skyscrapers” due to its pioneering construction methods. The 5 storey complex initially served as a flax mill and later as a malting facility for brewing.