Toneworks tours resume at 200-year-old industrial site

The Toneworks opened in 1790 and closed in the 1980s

Free tours of a 230-year-old former textile factory will resume in 2024.

The historic Toneworks in Wellington, Somerset, was central to the region's textile industry in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.

Tours of the site took place in 2023 and proved popular, prompting Wellington Town Council and Somerset Council to offer more.

The Toneworks opened in 1790 and continued to produce textiles until it finally closed in the 1980s.

Some of the old machinery at the Toneworks is still in place

Tours are free of charge, but donations are welcomed and will go towards the cost of the tours, as will sales of photographic books of the site, the council said.

The tours will take place on 8 and 12 April, 12, 23, 29 May and 11, 21 June.

Wellington Town Clerk, Dave Farrow, said: "We are very excited to be able to continue these tours into 2024 and hope people from near and far will take advantage of this rare opportunity to see a piece of Wellington history."