Thesaurus

Comprises river valleys, low ridges and plains; remains include several Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age objects and a 1st-century Roman fortress; was long object of English-Welsh border disputes; large iron-producing area since Industrial Revolution; the world's first cast-iron bridge was built at Ironbridge in 1779; the area is now mainly agricultural. The rapidly developing area around Telford new town became an independent unitary authority (Telford and Wrekin) in 1998.