Ditherington
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Ditherington is a district within the town of Shrewsbury, county town of Shropshire. It is the 4th most deprived ward in Shropshire (not including Telford and Wrekin).
Recently there has been much regeneration work in the southern part of Ditherington, which is close to Shrewsbury town centre. Various residential developments have occurred.
The Flaxmill (also locally known as the "Maltings") there is the oldest iron framed building in the world and is seen as the "grandfather of skyscrapers". It is presently derelict, but is currently in the hands of English Heritage, who are maintaining it. In the long-term, it is hoped that the building will be able to make sufficient money to be self-supporting, but reaching this stage will require much investment.
The Flaxmill was designed by William Strutt and built in 1797. It effectively overcame much of the problem of fire damage from flammable atmosphere, by using a fireproof combination of cast iron columns and cast iron beams, a system which later developed into the modern steel frame which made skyscrapers possible. The building was later converted to a maltings (hence its more commonly-used local name), and as a consequence many windows were bricked up. It is currently a Grade I listed building.
The Shrewsbury and Newport Canal terminated in Ditherington, but no longer exists. This may also one day be restored.
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