Walsall

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Map sources for Walsall at grid reference SP0198
Map sources for Walsall at grid reference SP0198
New Art Gallery Walsall
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New Art Gallery Walsall

Walsall is an industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Walsall is a part of the West Midlands conurbation, is traditionally within the county of Staffordshire, and is sometimes described as part of the Black Country.

Walsall is the administrative headquarters of the Walsall Metropolitan Borough. In the 2001 census, the town had a population of 170,994 with the surrounding borough having a population of 252,800. Neighbouring towns in the borough include Willenhall, Bloxwich and Aldridge.

Contents

[edit] History

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The name Walsall is thought to have derived from the words "Walh halh", meaning "valley of the foreigners" (referring to the Celts). Walsall is first referenced as 'Walesho' in a document dated 1002, however it is not referenced in the Doomsday Book. By the first part of the 13th century, Walsall was a small market town, with the weekly market being introduced in 1220. The Mayor of Walsall was created as a political position in the 14th century. Walsall is known as "the town of a hundred trades".

Queen Mary's Grammar School was founded by Mary I of England in 1554, and the school carries the queen's personal badge as its emblem; the Tudor Rose and the sheaf of arrows of Catherine of Aragon tied with a Staffordshire knot.

The industrial revolution changed Walsall from a village of 2,000 people in the 16th century to a town of over 86,000 in approximately 200 years. It is a local story, although perhaps not accurate, that Walsall declined a railway line, which was later given to Birmingham, now England's second city. Walsall finally received a railway line in 1847, 48 years after canals reached the town.

Walsall suffered greatly in the hands of the town planners in the 1970s with much good old and medieval property being flattened to make way for a concrete town centre like so many other Midland towns. The town further suffers with misguided attempts to reverse this damage to this day with ill thought out office and retail zone schemes brought about by external experts. The two new Asda and Tesco superstores, together with council apathy and a scheme to reduce and relocate, will finally see the end of the once famous Walsall Market, which was once the reason for the town's existence.

[edit] Neighbourhoods

[edit] Economy

Walsall has had many industries, from coal mining to metal working, but in the late 19th century the coal mines ran dry, and Walsall became internationally famous for the leather trade. Walsall still manufactures the Queen's handbags, and Walsall leather products have been found as far afield as Italy, which prompted some embarrassment when a husband gave one to his wife as a present after a business trip, when she realised she immediately assumed that the handbag had been bought when the husband returned. Walsall is the traditional home of the English saddle manufacture industry, thus the nickname of Walsall FC: The Saddlers. Apart from leather goods, other industries in Walsall include iron and brass founding, limestone quarrying, small hardware, plastics, electronics, chemicals, and aircraft parts.

[edit] Transport

Walsall has two Bus stations, St Pauls and Bradford Place. Services from St Pauls leave Walsall in many directions; there are services south-east to Birmingham; west to Wolverhampton, Willenhall and Bloxwich; north to Cannock and Brownhills; and east to Sutton Coldfield and Aldridge, with many to the latter. In addition, more infrequent services to Lichfield are run. St Pauls is also home to the Walsall Information Centre. Bradford Place operates buses mainly to the south and south-west, to West Bromwich, Oldbury, Dudley and Stourbridge.

Walsall also has a busy railway station; services operate to Birmingham, Shrewsbury via Wolverhampton, and Stafford. See Walsall railway station for more details.

[edit] Politics

The local council is presently Conservative controlled. The Mayor is Conservative Councillor Barbara McCracken. For further details, see Metropolitan Borough of Walsall.

[edit] Facilities and culture

[edit] Arboretum and Illuminations

The Arboretum officially opened on May 4, 1874 by the wealthy Hatherton family. It was hoped that the park would provide, "a healthy change from dogfights, bull-baiting and cockfights," however the 2d (old pence) admission was not popular with the public and within seven years the council took over ownership to provide free admission. [1] Over the years the Arboretum has seen many events and changes, including the beginnings of the Walsall Arboretum Illuminations as an annual event in 1951. [2]

Originally white bulbs in trees for courting couples in the autumn, the 1960's and 70's saw the them purchase their lights second hand from Blackpool, but over they years they have been increasingly made 'in house' - indeed they all are now, and it has been said that Blackpool is no longer willing to sell lights to Walsall as it is too much of a competitor.

Currently, the Walsall Illuminations are the one of the biggest in the country with up to sixty thousand bulbs and the need for year-round planning. [3] Although the event had attracted an estimated 250,000 people in 1995, lack of growth beyond this figure has raised the prospect of major redevelopment. [4]

[edit] Art & Exhibitions

The New Art Gallery Walsall opened in the year 2000. It contains a large number of works by Jacob Epstein as well as works by Van Gogh, Monet, Turner, Renoir and Constable.

Near to the Art Gallery and St Pauls Bus Station, Walsall College can be found. The Town is also the home to one of the University of Wolverhampton's Halls of residence accommodating students studying teaching and sports related subjects.

Walsall Leather Museum documents the town's leather industry.

One of the more amusing pieces of public art which has been on display in the town centre was the infamous concrete hippo, which once stood proudly opposite the statue of Sister Dora, but has now been replaced by a water fountain, the hippo lurking in the corner of the square.

[edit] Sports

Walsall's football club, Walsall F.C., The Saddlers, was founded in 1888 when Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. merged. They won their first game against Aston Villa F.C.. The club currently play in Football League Two and are managed by newly appointed Richard Money.

[edit] Trivia

Pork scratchings are the most famous local snack.

A local landmark is Barr Beacon, which is reportedly the highest point following its latitude Eastwards until the Ural Mountains of Russia. There was a plaque on the summit attesting to this, unfortunately it has been repeatedly stolen.

Walsall is also famous for its relationship to John Wesley and Francis Asbury who began the Methodist movement in the United States. The latter was born in Handsworth, Birmingham and lived for a large part of his life close to the Sandwell/Walsall border.

Walsall is home to the Red Lion public house that still stands in Park Street. In 1881 the publican John Holden bred a Staffordshire Bull Terrier called Pilot. The animal was exported to America by Charlie Lloyd. [5] Pilot gained fame in America And Sired 99% of all the American pitbull terrier's that you see today. Charlie Lloyd&CH Pilot [Image:http://img122.imageshack.us/img122/5010/lloydpilotgk1.jpg]

[edit] Famous people

  • Mark Oakley -- Screenwriter.
  • Boy George -- Another famous musical resident of 'The Beechdale', who spent much of his youth in the town as well as renting a flat for a time on High Street in the town centre.
  • Sister Dora -- Born in Yorkshire but for a time lived locally. She is honoured, for her compassion, by a statue in the centre of town, next to the legendary concrete hippopotamus (known locally as George).
  • Rachel Unitt -- England Women's football star. Born in Bentley.
  • Erin O'Connor -- English fashion model. Born and brought up in Walsall.

[edit] Twin Towns

France Mulhouse since 1953.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Walsall Virtual Arboretum. Walsall MBC.
  2. ^ Walsall Illuminations 2006. Walsall MBC.
  3. ^ Walsall Illuminations 2005. BBC.
  4. ^ Final chance for Illuminations. Express and Star.
  5. ^ Charlie Lloyd’s Pilot. Paw Village Database.
  6. ^ "Comic creator: John Byrne". URL retrieved 25 July 2006.

Heavy Metal legends Judas Priest are also from the area.

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../w/a/l/Walsall.html"