A piece of genius: world's first cast-iron building is fit for the future

By Jim Dunton2023-02-01T07:00:00

When Historic England took on restoration of an 18th-century flax mill, the plan was to preserve a piece of history and give a unique industrial building a new sense of purpose

Quizzers of the world take note: the grand-daddy of all skyscrapers is not to be found in Chicago, New York or Philadelphia. According to government heritage adviser Historic England, it is located in the county town of Shropshire, where a complex £28m programme of refurbishment and shoring up, designed to secure the 1797 structure for at least another 100 years, has just completed.

Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings is some distance from the town’s medieval heart, in a loop of the River Severn, upstream of Abraham Darby’s 1779 cast-iron bridge over the river around 13 miles to the south-east. Located well away from the town centre, the casual observer may spot little more remarkable than a well-preserved industrial structure given a new lease of life.

Already registered? Login here

To continue enjoying Building.co.uk, sign up for free guest access

Existing subscriber? LOGIN

Stay at the forefront of thought leadership with news and analysis from award-winning journalists. Enjoy company features, CEO interviews, architectural reviews, technical project know-how and the latest innovations.

Limited access to building.co.uk
Breaking industry news as it happens
Breaking, daily and weekly e-newsletters

Get your free guest access SIGN UP TODAY

Subscribe now for unlimited access

Subscribe to Building today and you will benefit from:

Unlimited access to all stories including expert analysis and comment from industry leaders
Our league tables, cost models and economics data
Our online archive of over 10,000 articles
Building magazine digital editions
Building magazine print editions
Printed/digital supplements

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

View our subscription options and join our community