The River Severn which separates St.John's from the rest of Worcester has played a crucial part in the beginning's and developments of the city. Its tidal bore enabled Worcester to flourish as an inland port and up until about 180 years ago this great waterway - once known as 'The King's high stream of Severn'- was alive with commercial traffic. Only the coming of the railway ended the city's dependency for prosperity on the river. But the Severn always has been, and always will be, a force to be reckoned with for Worcester people - to admire and enjoy, and from time to time to fear .... 

The Severn Tunnel between New Passage and Portskewett carries the railway under the estuary and forms the most direct railway route between the south of England and South Wales. The tunnel was completed  in 1886 at a cost of £2 million after many difficulties from flooding. It is the longest..........

Generally clean in quality, the Severn is a salmon river and also supports almost every kind of freshwater fish found in British rivers, including trout and barbel. The tidal waters of the river......

For centuries the Severn was the most important river for traffic to and from the West Midlands. It was almost certainly used by the Romans for trading purposes. An Act of Parliament in 1430 ......

The Severn Basin is irregular in shape, its topography and geology show great variety. Several geological systems are represented in the cathment area of the river..

The Severn is subject to large and rapid rises in water level. On the lower reaches of the non-tidal part of the river, the rise occasioned by flood is often of the order of 20 feet, while the maximum tidal variation at Avonmouth can be 48 feet. This is greater than that of any other river in the British Isles and is exceeded only in one other place in the world the Bay of Fundy in Canada....

The River Severn is a clean, fast-flowing river set in a pastoral background of picturesque countryside and rolling hills.

The name Severn is said to have been derived from Sabrina, a tragic water nymph reputed to have been drowned in its waters. In its upper reaches of Powy's, it is sometimes known as the Hafren.....