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The tar is made from the remains of long dead animals
The tar in the Tunnel is actually natural bitumen. Natural bitumen is formed from the remains of tiny plants and animals which were alive millions of years ago and were buried by sediments at the bottom of seas and lakes.
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Tar from the Tunnel was used for medicinal purposes
As you walk down the Tar Tunnel you might find yourself shying away from the tar that still trickles down the Tunnel's walls. It may seem to be the last thing you would deliberately rub onto your skin. But in the late 18th and 19th centuries tar from the Tunnel was made into 'British Oil', which was used to treat rheumatism and skin complaints such as scurvy.
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The Tar Tunnel was used as an unusual dinner venue
During the 1970s several banquets were held in the Tar Tunnel. This might seem a bit of a squash in the narrow section of Tunnel you can see today, but in fact the banquets were held in a much wider section of the Tunnel beyond the locked iron gate. This section, which is about 270 yards (247 metres) into the Tunnel, was created to allow trains of wagons going in opposite directions to pass. Eating in the damp cold Tunnel would certainly be an atmospheric experience.
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Great vats of tar were boiled up outside the Tunnel
Most of the tar collected in the Tar Tunnel was converted into pitch which could be used to preserve timber and treat ropes. To turn the tar into pitch it had to be boiled in large cauldrons which were sunk into the ground outside the entrance to the Tunnel
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The Tar Tunnel is the only place in the Ironbridge Gorge where you can still go underground.
The Ironbridge Gorge and its surrounding area were once riddled with underground tunnels, shafts and pits. These were all man-made and were dug for mining coal, clay and other minerals. The existence of large quantities of raw materials in the local area was one of the reasons why industry first came to this part of Shropshire. Today most of these shafts and tunnels have been filled in or blocked off. The Tar Tunnel is only place where you can venture underground, so grab a helmet and set out to explore a different side to the Ironbridge Gorge.
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