city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
,
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distric ...
and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrates ...
to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians".
Historically
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
part of
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...
, the city grew initially as a
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...
specialising in the
wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...
trade. In the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
, it became a major centre for coal mining, steel production, lock making, and the manufacture of cars and motorcycles. The economy of the city is still based on engineering, including a large
aerospace
Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and ast ...
industry, as well as the
service sector
The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
.
Toponym
The city is named after
Wulfrun
__NOTOC__
Wulfrun(a) (-) was an Anglo-Saxon (early English) noble woman of Mercia and a landowner who held estates in Staffordshire.
Today she is particularly remembered for her association with ''Hēatūn'', Anglo-Saxon for "high or principal ...
, who founded the town in 985, from the
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons happened wit ...
''Wulfrūnehēantūn'' ("Wulfrūn's high or principal enclosure or farm"). Before the
Norman Conquest
The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...
, the area's name appears only as variants of ''Heantune'' or ''Hamtun'', the prefix ''Wulfrun'' or similar appearing in 1070 and thereafter. Alternatively, the city may have earned its original name from ''Wulfereēantūn'' (" Wulfhere's high or principal enclosure or farm") after the Mercian King, who according to tradition established an abbey in 659, though no evidence of an abbey has been found. The variation ''Wolveren Hampton'' is seen in medieval records, e.g. in 1381.
History
A local tradition states that King
Wulfhere of Mercia
Wulfhere or Wulfar (died 675) was King of Mercia from 658 until 675 AD. He was the first Christian king of all of Mercia, though it is not known when or how he converted from Anglo-Saxon paganism. His accession marked the end of Oswiu of North ...
founded an
abbey
An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns.
The c ...
of St Mary at Wolverhampton in 659.
Wolverhampton is recorded as being the site of a decisive battle between the unified Mercian Angles and West Saxons against the raiding Danes in 910, although sources are unclear as to whether the battle itself took place in Wednesfield or Tettenhall, although those places were not within Wolverhampton's boundaries at the time. The Mercians and West Saxons claimed a decisive victory, and the field of Woden is recognised by numerous place names in Wednesfield.
In 985, King Ethelred the Unready granted lands at a place referred to as ''Heantun'' to Lady Wulfrun by royal charter, and hence founding the settlement.
In 994, a
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...
was consecrated in Wolverhampton for which Wulfrun granted land at
Upper Arley
Upper Arley () is a village and civil parish near Kidderminster in the Wyre Forest District of Worcestershire, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, the village had a population of 741 at the 2011 census.
Amenities
The Arley railw ...
in Worcestershire,
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
,
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
, Wednesfield,
Pelsall
Pelsall is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, West Midlands, England. Forming part of the borough's border with Staffordshire, Pelsall is located 4 miles north of central Walsall, midway between the towns of Bloxwich and Brown ...
Wall
A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including:
* Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the s ...
Featherstone
Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, two miles south-west of Pontefract. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in 2011 it had a population of 15,244. Featherstone railway stat ...
. This became the site for the current St. Peter's Church. A statue of Lady Wulfrun, sculpted by Sir Charles Wheeler, can be seen on the stairs outside the church.
Wolverhampton is recorded in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
in 1086 as being in the
Hundred
100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101.
In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...
. The lords of the manor are listed as the canons of St Mary (the church's dedication was changed to St Peter after this date), with the tenant-in-chief being
Samson
Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...
,
William the Conqueror
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...
's personal chaplain. Wolverhampton at this date is a large settlement of fifty households.
In 1179, there is mention of a market held in the town, and in 1204 it had come to the attention of King John that the town did not possess a Royal Charter for holding a market. This charter for a weekly market held on a Wednesday was eventually granted on 4 February 1258 by Henry III.
It is held that in the 14th and 15th centuries that Wolverhampton was one of the "staple towns" of the woollen trade, which today can be seen by the inclusion of a woolpack on the city's coat of arms, and by the many small streets, especially in the city centre, called "Fold" (examples being Blossom's Fold, Farmers Fold, Townwell Fold and Victoria Fold), as well as Woolpack Street and Woolpack Alley.
In 1512, Sir Stephen Jenyns, a former
Lord Mayor of London
The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...
and a twice Master of the
Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors
]
The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 110 Livery company, livery companies of the City of London.
The Company, originally known as the ''Guild and Fraternity of St John the Baptist in the City of London'', was founded prio ...
, who was born in the city, founded
Wolverhampton Grammar School
Wolverhampton Grammar School is a co-educational independent school in Wolverhampton, England.
History
Initially a grammar school for boys, WGS was founded in 1512 by Sir Stephen Jenyns, a master of the ancient guild of Merchant Taylors, who ...
, one of the oldest active schools in Britain.
From the 16th century onwards, Wolverhampton became home to a number of metal industries including lock and key making and iron and
brass
Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wi ...
working.
Wolverhampton suffered two Great Fires: the first in April 1590, and the second in September 1696. Both fires started in today's Salop Street. The first fire lasted for five days and left nearly 700 people homeless, whilst the second destroyed 60 homes in the first five hours. This second fire led to the purchase of the first
fire engine
A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to a ...
within the city in September 1703.
On 27 January 1606, two farmers, Thomas Smart and John Holyhead of Rowley Regis, were executed on High Green, now Queen Square, for sheltering two of the
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sough ...
ters, Robert Wintour and Stephen Littleton, who had fled to the Midlands. The pair played no part in the original plot nevertheless suffered a traitor's death of being
hanged, drawn and quartered
To be hanged, drawn and quartered became a statutory penalty for men convicted of high treason in the Kingdom of England from 1352 under King Edward III (1327–1377), although similar rituals are recorded during the reign of King Henry III ...
on butcher's blocks set up in the square a few days before the execution of
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes (; 13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was born and educated ...
and several other plotters in London.
There is also evidence that Wolverhampton may have been the location of the first working
Newcomen Steam Engine
The atmospheric engine was invented by Thomas Newcomen in 1712, and is often referred to as the Newcomen fire engine (see below) or simply as a Newcomen engine. The engine was operated by condensing steam drawn into the cylinder, thereby creat ...
in 1712.
19th century
A few years before she began her reign,
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
visited Wolverhampton in the 1830s and described it as "a large and dirty town" but one which received her "with great friendliness and pleasure". In Victorian times, Wolverhampton grew to be a wealthy town mainly due to the huge amount of industry that occurred as a result of the abundance of coal and iron deposits in the area. The remains of this wealth can be seen in local houses such as Wightwick Manor and The Mount (both built for the prominent varnish and paint manufacturers, the Mander family) as well as Tettenhall Towers. All three are located in the western fringe of Wolverhampton, in the areas known as Wightwick and Tettenhall. Many other houses of similar stature were demolished in the 1960s and 1970s.
Wolverhampton gained its first parliamentary representation as part of the
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...
, when it was one of 22 large towns that were allocated two members of parliament. A local mob attacking electors who voted or intended to vote for the
Tory
A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...
dragoon
Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...
s being called in to end the intimidation. Wolverhampton was incorporated as a
municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
on 15 March 1848 under the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 (5 & 6 Will 4 c 76), sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and ...
before becoming a
county borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...
supporter who was also the longest-serving MP in parliamentary history. Lord Wolverhampton, Henry Hartley Fowler was MP for Wolverhampton at the turn of the century.
The railways reached Wolverhampton in 1837, with the first station located at Wednesfield Heath, now Heath Town, on the
Grand Junction Railway
The Grand Junction Railway (GJR) was an early railway company in the United Kingdom, which existed between 1833 and 1846 when it was amalgamated with other railways to form the London and North Western Railway. The line built by the company w ...
. This station was demolished in 1965, but the area exists as a nature reserve just off Powell Street.
Wolverhampton railway works
Wolverhampton railway works was in the city of Wolverhampton in the county of Staffordshire, England. It was almost due north of the city centre, and is commemorated with a small display of level crossing gates and a plaque. Known as the Staf ...
was established in 1849 for the
Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway
The Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway was authorised in 1846. It agreed to joint construction with others of the costly Wolverhampton to Birmingham section, the so-called Stour Valley Line. This work was dominated by the hostile London and North ...
and became the Northern Division workshop of the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
in 1854.
In the 19th century, the city saw much immigration from
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
and
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
, the latter following the Great Famine. In 1866, a statue was erected in memory of Prince Albert the Prince Consort, the unveiling of which brought Queen Victoria back to Wolverhampton. The unveiling of the statue was the first public appearance Queen Victoria made after the funeral of her husband. A archway made of coal was constructed for the visit. The Queen was so pleased with the statue that she knighted Wolverhampton's mayor at the time, an industrialist named John Morris. Market Square, originally named High Green, was renamed Queen Square in honour of the visit. The statue replaced a Russian cannon captured during the Siege of Sevastopol in 1855, and remains standing in Queen Square. The statue is known locally as "The Man on the Horse".
The Stafford Street drill hall was completed in 1890.
20th century
Wolverhampton had a prolific bicycle industry from 1868 to 1975, during which time a total of more than 200 bicycle manufacturing companies existed there, but today none exist at all. These manufacturers included Viking, Marston, Sunbeam, Star, Wulfruna and Rudge. The last volume manufacturers of bicycles left Wolverhampton during the 1960s and 1970s – the largest and best-known of which was Viking Cycles Ltd, whose team dominated the UK racing scene in the 1950s (Viking's production of hand-built lightweight racing and juvenile bicycles exceeded 20,000 units in 1965). Closures of other smaller cycle makers followed during the 1980s including such well-known hand-builders as Percy Stallard (the former professional cyclist) and Jack Hateley.
Wolverhampton High Level station (the current main railway station) opened in 1852, but the original station was demolished in 1965 and then rebuilt.Wolverhampton Low Level station opened on the Great Western Railway in 1855. The site of the Low Level station, which closed to passengers in 1972 and completely in 1981, has since been redeveloped with much of the original station incorporated into a hotel. An Aldi store opened nearby in 2019.
In 1918,
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
, the British Prime Minister, announced he was calling a General Election at "The Mount" in Tettenhall Wood. Lloyd George also made his "Homes fit for heroes" speech at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre in the same year. It was on the idea of "Homes fit for heroes" that Lloyd George was to fight the 1918 "Coupon" General Election.
Mass
council housing
Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...
development in Wolverhampton, to rehouse families from slum housing, began after the end of the
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, with new estates at Parkfields (near the border with Coseley) and Birches Barn (near Bantock Park in the west of Wolverhampton) being built, giving the city some 550 new council houses by 1923, although this was a fraction of the number of new council houses required. The first large council housing development in Wolverhampton was the Low Hill estate to the north-east of the city, which consisted of more than 2,000 new council houses by 1927 and was one of the largest housing estates in Britain at the time. Mass council housing development in Wolverhampton continued into the 1930s, mostly in the north of the city in the Oxley and Wobaston areas and on the new
Scotlands Estate
The Scotlands Estate is a residential area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England.
The area was built between 1935 and 1937 as council housing to rehouse families from town centre slums. It formed an effective extension to the nearby Low H ...
in the north-east. However, council house building halted in 1940 following the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
in September the previous year.
Wolverhampton St George's (in the city centre) is now the northern terminus for the
West Midlands Metro
The West Midlands Metro (originally named Midland Metro) is a light-rail/tram system in the county of West Midlands, England. Opened on 30 May 1999, it currently consists of a single route, Line 1, which operates between the cities of Birmi ...
light rail system. An extension to the railway station is due to open in 2022, the opening being delayed until the new railway station is completed. Wolverhampton was one of the few towns to operate surface contact trams and the only town to use the Lorain Surface Contact System.
Trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...
es appeared in 1923, and in 1930 for a brief period the Wolverhampton trolleybus system was the world's largest trolleybus system. The last Wolverhampton trolleybus ran in 1967, just as the railway line through the High Level station was converted to electric operation.
England's first automatic
traffic light
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
s could be seen in Princes Square in 1927. The modern traffic lights at this location have the traditional striped poles to commemorate this fact. Princes Square was also the location of the United Kingdom's first pedestrian safety barriers, which were erected in 1934. On 2 November 1927, the
A4123 A41 may refer to:
* A41, War Office Inventions Branch
* ''A41'' (album), a studio album by All-4-One
* Queen's Pawn Game, Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings code
* Samsung Galaxy A41, a smartphone
* Vultee XA-41, an American World War II attack proto ...
New Road was opened by the then-Prince of Wales (later
Edward VIII
Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 1 ...
) linking the city with
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
. The New Road was designed as an unemployment relief project and was the United Kingdom's first purpose-built intercity highway of the twentieth century.
Sir Geoffrey Le Mesurier Mander, a member of the Mander family, was Liberal MP for Wolverhampton East from 1929 to 1945, distinguished for his stance against
appeasement
Appeasement in an international context is a diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict. The term is most often applied to the foreign policy of the UK governme ...
and as a supporter of the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference th ...
. He was known as "the last of the Midland radicals". More recent members have included the
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
mavericks Enoch Powell and Nicholas Budgen. Powell was a member of Edward Heath's Tory shadow cabinet from 1964, until he was dismissed in April 1968 following his controversial Rivers of Blood speech in which he warned of massive civil unrest if mass immigration of black and Asian
commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
inhabitants continued. At the same period, Sikh bus drivers and conductors were demonstrating in Wolverhampton against the Transportation Committee's regulations requiring uniform caps and thus prohibiting turbans. In 2005, former
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
councillor and MP for
Wolverhampton South East
Wolverhampton South East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Members of Parliament
B ...
,
Dennis Turner
Dennis Turner, Baron Bilston (26 August 1942 – 25 February 2014) was a British Labour Co-operative politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Wolverhampton South East from 1987 to 2005.
Early life
Turner was born in Bradley in t ...
entered the House of Lords as Lord Bilston.
After the end of World War II in 1945, the council erected 400 prefabricated bungalows across Wolverhampton, and built its first permanent postwar houses at the Underhill Estate near
Bushbury
Bushbury is a suburban village and ward in the City of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, England. It lies two miles north-east of Wolverhampton city centre, divided between the Bushbury North and Bushbury South and Low Hill wards. Bushbury ...
in the late 1940s. The 1950s saw many new houses and flats built across Wolverhampton as the rehousing programme from the slums continued, as well as the local council agreeing deals with neighbouring authorities Wednesfield Urban District and Seisdon Rural District which saw families relocated to new estates in those areas. The 1960s saw the rehousing programme continue, with multi-storey blocks being built on a large scale across Wolverhampton at locations including
Blakenhall
Blakenhall is a suburb and ward in Wolverhampton, England.
Toponymy and history
Blakenhall's name, according to toponymists comes from the Old English 'blæc', meaning 'black' or dark coloured, & 'halh' meaning 'nook' or 'corner'. It was dev ...
,
Whitmore Reans
Whitmore Reans is in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north-west of the city centre, in the city council's Park and St Peter's wards.
History
The name 'Whitmore' is said by toponymists to come from the Old Engli ...
and Chetton Green. The later part of the decade saw the Heath Town district almost completely redeveloped with multi-story flats and maisonette blocks. By 1975, by which time Wolverhampton had also taken in the majority of the Borough of
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
,
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
and Coseley, almost a third of Wolverhampton's population lived in council housing, but since that date social housing has been built on a minimal scale in the area, and some of the 1919–1975 developments have since been demolished.
As well as the many new council estates which sprang up around Wolverhampton during the 20th century, several older parts of the town were redeveloped for new council housing during the 1960s and early 1970s. The most notable example is the Heath Town area, where almost all of the 19th century buildings were demolished during the 1960s and replaced by four tower blocks and several blocks of maisonettes. However, the state housing at Heath Town quickly became unpopular and by the 1980s the area was plagued with crime and unemployment. The first regeneration projects on the estate began during the 1990s, and in 2017 some of the maisonette blocks were demolished. A similar redevelopment took place around the same time in Blakenhall, where new shops and five tower blocks were built in a 1960s redevelopment area. However, all of these buildings were demolished between 2002 and 2011 and have since been replaced with new private and social housing.
Large numbers of black and Asian immigrants settled in Wolverhampton in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, mostly settling in the
Blakenhall
Blakenhall is a suburb and ward in Wolverhampton, England.
Toponymy and history
Blakenhall's name, according to toponymists comes from the Old English 'blæc', meaning 'black' or dark coloured, & 'halh' meaning 'nook' or 'corner'. It was dev ...
Whitmore Reans
Whitmore Reans is in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north-west of the city centre, in the city council's Park and St Peter's wards.
History
The name 'Whitmore' is said by toponymists to come from the Old Engli ...
and Heath Town areas. Wolverhampton is home to a large proportion of the
Sikh
Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
community, who settled there during the period (1935–1975) from the Indian state of
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...
. Today, the Sikh community in Wolverhampton is roughly 9.1% of the city's population.
In 1974, as a result of local government reorganisation, Wolverhampton became a
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distric ...
, transferring from Staffordshire into the newly formed West Midlands county. Wolverhampton was granted city status on 31 January 2001 – an honour that had been unsuccessfully applied for in 1953, 1966, 1977, 1985 and 1992 – making it one of three "Millennium Cities". Wolverhampton also made an unsuccessful application for a Lord Mayor in 2002.
Many of the city centre's buildings date from the early 20th century and before, the oldest buildings being
St Peter's Church St. Peter's Church, Old St. Peter's Church, or other variations may refer to:
* St. Peter's Basilica in Rome
Australia
* St Peter's, Eastern Hill, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
* St Peters Church, St Peters, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
...
(which was built in the 13th century but has been largely extended and refurbished since the 15th century, situated on Lichfield Street) and a framed timber 17th-century building on Victoria Street which is now one of just two remaining in the area which was heavily populated by them until the turn of the 20th century. This building was originally a residential property, but later became the Hand Inn public house. It was completely restored in 1981 after a two-year refurbishment project and has been used by various businesses since then including as a second-hand book shop.
On 23 November 1981, an F1/T2 tornado touched down in
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council. It is the most northerl ...
to the north of Wolverhampton, and later moved over Wolverhampton city centre and surrounding suburbs, causing some damage.
The
Wolverhampton Ring Road
The A4150 Wolverhampton Inner Ring Road is a ring road that encircles the city centre of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, England. The circumference of the road is around . Technically, the route is listed as an "Inner Ring Road", althoug ...
circumnavigates the city centre linking the majority of the city's radial routes. It was constructed in sections between 1960 and 1986, and carries the number A4150, although this is only marked on one road sign.
The centre of Wolverhampton has been altered radically since the mid-1960s, with the Mander Centre (plans for which were unveiled on 15 April 1965) being opened in two phases, the first in 1968 and the second in 1971. Several refurbishments have taken place since. The Wulfrun Centre, an open shopping area, was opened alongside the Mander Centre's first phase in 1968, but has been undercover since a roof was added in the late 1990s.
Central Wolverhampton police station was built just south of the city centre on Birmingham Road during the 1960s, but operations there were cut back in the early 1990s when a new larger police station was built on Bilston Street on land which became vacant a decade earlier on the demolition of a factory. This was officially opened by
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...
, on 31 July 1992.
The city centre had several cinemas during the 20th century. The last of these was the ABC Cinema (formerly the Savoy), which closed in 1991 after 54 years. It was then converted into a nightclub, with part of the site being converted into the offices of a
recruitment agency
An employment agency is an organization which matches employers to employees. In developed countries, there are multiple private businesses which act as employment agencies and a publicly-funded employment agency.
Public employment agencies
On ...
in 2005. The building was demolished in 2019 t make way for an extension to the City of Wolverhampton College's Metro One campus.
A modern landmark in the city centre is the Crown Court on Bilston Street, which opened in 1990 as the town's first purpose-built crown court.
21st century
A few department store chains including
Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks's or Marks & Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home ...
and
Next
Next may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Next'' (1990 film), an animated short about William Shakespeare
* ''Next'' (2007 film), a sci-fi film starring Nicolas Cage
* '' Next: A Primer on Urban Painting'', a 2005 documentary film
Lit ...
have stores in the centre of Wolverhampton. Beatties, a
House of Fraser
House of Fraser (also operating as Frasers) is a British department store group with 44 locations across the United Kingdom, which is now part of Frasers Group. It was established in Glasgow, Scotland in 1849 as Arthur and Fraser. By 1891, it ...
Debenhams
Debenhams plc was a British department store chain operating in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and grew to 178 locations across those countries, also owning the Danish ...
opened a 3-floor department store in the Mander Centre in 2017, but has now closed. Rackhams had a store on Snow Hill for some 25 years until 1992. This building was then divided between a Netto supermarket and the local archives service, but by 2006 its future was under threat as part of the proposed Summer Row retail development. This led to the closure of the Netto supermarket in June 2007 and the relocation of the archives service to the Molineux Hotel building in 2008. The building has since been demolished toward a development push from the Local Authority at various sites around the city. The site is now home to a relocated outdoor market.
Following the closure of the Mander Centre branch of
Tesco
Tesco plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues an ...
and relocation of
Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...
, the only remaining supermarket in the central shopping area is
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...
. Outside the Ring Road were major branches of
Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...
,
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...
and
Waitrose
Waitrose & Partners (formally Waitrose Limited) is a brand of British supermarkets, founded in 1904 as Waite, Rose & Taylor, later shortened to Waitrose. It was acquired in 1937 by employee-owned retailer John Lewis Partnership, which still se ...
. The Waitrose store, originally a branch of Safeway which Morrisons were forced to sell off as part of the acquisition of the supermarket chain, closed at the end of trading on 31 December 2020. The store was sold to
Tesco
Tesco plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues an ...
which opened in June 2021.
Aldi
Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when ...
have two stores close to the city centre: one just off the
A4123 A41 may refer to:
* A41, War Office Inventions Branch
* ''A41'' (album), a studio album by All-4-One
* Queen's Pawn Game, Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings code
* Samsung Galaxy A41, a smartphone
* Vultee XA-41, an American World War II attack proto ...
Birmingham Road and a newer branch close to the former Wolverhampton Low Level railway station in Sun Street.
In 2021, a
blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term ...
was erected in memory of British immigrant rights activist
Paulette Wilson
Paulette Wilson (20 March 195623 July 2020) was a British immigrant rights activist who fought her own deportation to Jamaica and brought media attention to the human rights violations of the Windrush scandal.
Biography
Wilson was born in the ...
, a member of the Windrush generation. The plaque was launched with campaigners including
Claire Darke
Claire Darke is a British Labour Party politician, who served as the Mayor of Wolverhampton. She is Councillor for Park Ward and was first elected in 2008 as a Liberal Democrat. She is the longest continuously serving female Mayor of Wolverham ...
at the Wolverhampton Heritage Centre. The Centre is a cornerstone of the area's local Caribbean community and was formerly the constituency office of Enoch Powell where the infamous Rivers of Blood speech was written.
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
On 20 February 2021, it was announced as part of the government's levelling up strategy, that what is now the
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government i ...
would be the first government department to have a headquarters based outside of London. Five hundred posts, including those of senior civil servants, will be moving to Wolverhampton by 2025.
On 23 February 2021, the then Secretary of State, Robert Jenrick, announced he was hopeful that staff would be working in Wolverhampton by the summer of 2021. He also announced that they were considering building a new office development in or around the city centre to house the new headquarters. The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, suggested it should be within walking distance of local newspaper '' Express & Star'', where he previously did work experience.
As DLUHC looks set to relocate some 500 members of staff to Wolverhampton, Robert Jenrick officially opened its new Wolverhampton offices at the recently completed i9 office development on 10 September 2021. At the opening of the new office development the Secretary of State was joined by the leader of
City of Wolverhampton Council
City of Wolverhampton Council is the governing body of the city of Wolverhampton, England. It was previously known as Wolverhampton Metropolitan Borough Council (WMBC) prior to the award of city status in 2000, and also as Wolverhampton City Co ...
Ian Brookfield and the West Midlands Mayor, Andy Street.
Art and culture
From the 18th century, Wolverhampton was well known for production of japanned ware and steel jewellery. The renowned 18th- and 19th-century artists Joseph Barney (1753–1832), Edward Bird (1772–1819), and
George Wallis
George Wallis (1811–1891) was an artist, museum curator and art educator. He was the first Keeper of Fine Art Collection at South Kensington Museum (later the Victoria & Albert Museum) in London.
Early years
George Wallis, son of John Wa ...
(1811–1891) were all born in Wolverhampton and initially trained as japanned ware painters.
The School of Practical Art was opened in the 1850s and eventually became a close associate of the Art Gallery. Among its students and teachers were Robert Jackson Emerson (1878–1944), Sir Charles Wheeler (Emerson's most famous pupil and the sculptor of the fountains in
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...
), Sara Page who established her studio in Paris, and many other artists and sculptors recognised locally and nationally.
Wolverhampton Art Gallery was established in 1884, whilst
Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
The Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, commonly known as The Grand, is a theatre located on Lichfield Street, Wolverhampton, UK, designed in 1894 by Architect Charles J. Phipps. It is a Grade II Listed Building with a seating capacity of 1200.
189 ...
was opened in 1894.
There is a Creative Industries Quarter in Wolverhampton, just off Broad Street, with facilities ranging from the newly opened Slade Rooms, to the art house cinema the Light House Media Centre and the Arena Theatre, which is part of the
University of Wolverhampton
The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mech ...
.
Wolverhampton has a strong history in the ornate cast iron safe painting industry from the Victorian era. Numerous companies, such as Chubb Lock and Safe Company, hired, taught and expanded their artistic status to international reputation, whereby a safe became truly a work of art with fine script and hand-painted designs, highly collectible today. Even in the United States, one can find their preserved masterpieces to this day. The building was converted into a National Historic Registered Landmark Treasure in 1992, which now houses a cinema, art galleries, nightclub, business offices and a large stained glass rotunda in its foyer. It is among the few canal street factories so well known in the "Black Country" that has been preserved.
Wolverhampton's biggest public art display took place between July and September 2017; Wolves in Wolves saw the installation of 30 wolf sculptures in the city centre and West Park, with the sculptures auctioned off to raise money for charity.
Exhibitions
As its wealth and influence grew, Wolverhampton both took part in notable exhibitions and hosted them.
The Great Exhibition
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition which took pl ...
of 1851, at
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibit ...
papier-mâché
upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti
upright=1.3, Papier-mâché Catrinas, traditional figures for day of the dead celebrations in Mexico
Papier-mâché (, ; , literally "chewed paper") is a composite material consisting of p ...
products all manufactured in Wolverhampton.
Following successful exhibitions at Mechanics' Institutes in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...
and many northern towns, Wolverhampton held an exhibition that was the brain child of
George Wallis
George Wallis (1811–1891) was an artist, museum curator and art educator. He was the first Keeper of Fine Art Collection at South Kensington Museum (later the Victoria & Albert Museum) in London.
Early years
George Wallis, son of John Wa ...
, an artist employed by the firm of Ryton and Walton. The exhibition was held in the Mechanics' Institute in Queen Street and showed fine art, furniture, and decorated trays, as well as a variety of ironwork, locks and steel toys.
On 11 May 1869 The Earl Granville opened the Exhibition of Staffordshire Arts and Industry in a temporary building in the grounds of Molineux House.
The largest and most ambitious exhibition was the Arts and Industrial Exhibition which took place in 1902. Although housing only one international pavilion, from Canada, the scope and scale of the exhibition mirrored all the advances in other exhibitions of its time. The exhibition site featured several halls housing machinery, industrial products, a concert hall, two bandstands, a restaurant, and a fun fair with thrill rides and a water chute. Its opening, by the
Duke of Connaught
Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom that was granted on 24 May 1874 by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to her third son, Prince Arthur. At the same time, he was also ...
, was received with hopeful enthusiasm, unfortunately not matched by the weather, which contributed to a £30,000 loss, equivalent to nearly £2M at today's value.
Geography
Wolverhampton lies northwest of its larger near-neighbour
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
, and forms the second largest part of the
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the towns of Sutton Coldfield, Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge and Halesowen in the English West Midland ...
. To the north and west lies the
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...
and
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
countryside.
Wolverhampton city centre falls outside of the area traditionally known as the
Black Country
The Black Country is an area of the West Midlands county, England covering most of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be the centre. It became industrialised during its ...
, although some areas such as the town and former borough of
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
side of Wolverhampton fall within the Black Country
coalfield
A coalfield is an area of certain uniform characteristics where coal is mined. The criteria for determining the approximate boundary of a coalfield are geographical and cultural, in addition to geological. A coalfield often groups the seams of ...
s, leading to confusion as to whether the entire city falls within the region. Modern usage has tended towards using the term to refer to the western part of the
West Midlands county
West Midlands is a metropolitan county in the West Midlands Region, England, with a 2021 population of 2,919,600, making it the second most populous county in England after Greater London. It was created in 1974 by the Local Government Act ...
, excluding Birmingham,
Solihull
Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blyth ...
and
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
. Examples would be UK Government regional bodies such as the Black Country Development Corporation, under whose remit the city fell.
The city lies upon the
Midlands Plateau
The Midlands Plateau is a plateau covering approximately 3,200 km2 in the Midlands of England, bounded by the Rivers Severn, Avon and Trent.
The plateau is made up of three subdivisions: the Birmingham Plateau forms the central core, sep ...
at 163 m (535 ft) above sea level. There are no major rivers within the city, although the
River Penk
The River Penk is a small river flowing through Staffordshire, England. Its course is mainly within South Staffordshire, and it drains most of the northern part of that district, together with some adjoining areas of Cannock Chase, Stafford, W ...
River Trent
The Trent is the third-longest river in the United Kingdom. Its source is in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through and drains the North Midlands. The river is known for dramatic flooding after storms and ...
River Severn
, name_etymology =
, image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG
, image_size = 288
, image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle
, map = RiverSevernMap.jpg
, map_size = 288
, map_c ...
. This means that the city lies astride the main east–west
watershed
Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...
of England.
The geology of the city is complex, with a combination of
Triassic
The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest per ...
and
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carboniferou ...
Keuper
The Keuper is a lithostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) in the subsurface of large parts of west and central Europe. The Keuper consists of dolomite, shales or claystones and evaporites that were deposited during the Middle and Lat ...
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...
, and Upper and Middle
Coal measures
In lithostratigraphy, the coal measures are the coal-bearing part of the Upper Carboniferous System. In the United Kingdom, the Coal Measures Group consists of the Upper Coal Measures Formation, the Middle Coal Measures Formation and the Lower Coa ...
. There is also an area of
dolerite
Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro,
is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grain ...
intrusions.
Climate
Wolverhampton's climate is oceanic ( Köppen ''Cfb'') and therefore quite temperate, with average maximum temperatures in July being around , and with the maximum daytime temperature in January being around .
The
Met Office
The Meteorological Office, abbreviated as the Met Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and is led by CEO Penelop ...
Penkridge
Penkridge ( ) is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire District in Staffordshire, England. It is to the south of Stafford, north of Wolverhampton, west of Cannock and east of Telford. The nearby town of Brewood is also not far away ...
, about north of the city.
Areas of the city
As with much of the locality, the majority of areas in Wolverhampton have names that are of
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th ...
(
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons were a cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons happened wit ...
) origin, with a few exceptions such as Penn (pre-English Brittonic place name) and Parkfields, Park Village, Lanesfield etc. (modern place names of the last couple of hundred years).
Localities in the City of Wolverhampton include:
* Aldersley
* All Saints
* Ashmore Park†
*
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
†
*
Blakenhall
Blakenhall is a suburb and ward in Wolverhampton, England.
Toponymy and history
Blakenhall's name, according to toponymists comes from the Old English 'blæc', meaning 'black' or dark coloured, & 'halh' meaning 'nook' or 'corner'. It was dev ...
Bushbury
Bushbury is a suburban village and ward in the City of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, England. It lies two miles north-east of Wolverhampton city centre, divided between the Bushbury North and Bushbury South and Low Hill wards. Bushbury ...
Chapel Ash
Chapel Ash is a small area in Wolverhampton surrounded by the City Centre, Whitmore Reans & Merridale.
The area is most noted for being the home of Marston's, where the Park Brewery produces the well-known Banks's range of ales
History
Owing ...
*
Claregate
Claregate is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is north west of Wolverhampton city centre, within the Tettenhall Regis ward.
History
As a distinct residential area, Claregate has only existed since the pre and post war ho ...
Dunstall Hill
Dunstall Hill is an inner-city area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is located on the north of the city centre within the St Peter's ward.
Dunstall Park
Wolverhampton Racecourse, called ''Dunstall Park'' has been based at Dunst ...
Essington
Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England, located near the city of Wolverhampton and towns of Walsall, Bloxwich, Cannock and Brewood. The villages of Cheslyn Hay, Great Wyrley, Coven, Penkridge and Featherston ...
††
*
Ettingshall
Ettingshall is an area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England, and is a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. The population of this ward taken at the 2011 census was 13,482.
History
Historically part of Staffordshire, Ettingshall was ment ...
†
*
Fallings Park
Fallings Park is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, and a ward of Wolverhampton City Council. It is situated in the northeast of the city, bordering South Staffordshire and the Wednesfield North, Heath Town, Bushbury South and Low Hi ...
*
Finchfield
Finchfield is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is located south-west of the city centre, within the Tettenhall Wightwick Ward between the Merry Hill and Tettenhall Regis Wards of Wolverhampton City Council. Many of the s ...
*
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council. It is the most northerl ...
*
Goldthorn Park
Goldthorn Park is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands. It is situated to the south of the city centre within the Blakenhall ward.
It mostly consists of nearly 2,000 private houses built in the 1920s and 1940s. The original plan for the e ...
†
*
Gorsebrook
Gorsebrook is an historic area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, located alongside the Stafford Road between the areas of Dunstall, Oxley and Bushbury.
Place name and origins
The first mention of Gorsebrook is in the 985 AD Charter where K ...
*
Graiseley
Graiseley is both an inner-city area of Wolverhampton, situated immediately to the south-west of the city centre, and the name of a ward of Wolverhampton City Council.
Place-name
The most likely origin of the Graiseley name is from the Old Engli ...
Lanesfield
Lanesfield is a district now within the boundaries of Wolverhampton, specifically in the city council's Spring Vale ward. Lanesfield lies within the Ancient Manor of Sedgley and was a rural village for many years until the growth of the Black Co ...
Lower Penn
Lower Penn is a village in South Staffordshire, situated to the south-west of Wolverhampton, West Midlands.
The Civil Parish covers the area of the historic Parish of Penn that is not now covered by the city of Wolverhampton and thus covers ...
††
*
Merridale
Merridale is an area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the south-west of the city centre, on the border of the city council's Graiseley and Park wards.
Origins and history
The place name, Merridale, can be trac ...
Monmore Green
Monmore Green is an area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated about to the south-east of the city centre, in the East Park ward.
It is where Monmore Green Stadium is situated, which is home to the Wolverhampton Wolves sp ...
Park Village
Park Village is an inner city area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated in the north-east of the city on the A460 Cannock Road, which at that point is the border between the city council's Bushbury South and Low Hill and ...
*
Pendeford
Pendeford is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is situated north-north-west of the city centre, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council. At the 2011 Census, the population o ...
Penn Fields
Penn Fields is an area to the south west of the City of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, within the Graiseley ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class o ...
*
Perton
Perton is a large village and civil parish located in the South Staffordshire District, Staffordshire, England. It lies 3 miles to the south of Codsall and 4 miles west of Wolverhampton, where part of the village is almost contiguous with ...
Scotlands Estate
The Scotlands Estate is a residential area of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England.
The area was built between 1935 and 1937 as council housing to rehouse families from town centre slums. It formed an effective extension to the nearby Low H ...
*
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
Warstones
Warstones is a suburban area of Wolverhampton, England, situated to the south-west of the city centre and is home to a huge local football club called Warstones Wanderers. Mullin is the founder and chairman of the club.
Warstones has three s ...
Whitmore Reans
Whitmore Reans is in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north-west of the city centre, in the city council's Park and St Peter's wards.
History
The name 'Whitmore' is said by toponymists to come from the Old Engli ...
*
Wightwick
Wightwick ( ) is a part of Tettenhall Wightwick ward in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is named after an ancient local family the "de Wightwicks". It is on the western fringe of Wolverhampton and borders the rural South Staffordshire ...
†
*
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
Woodcross
Woodcross is a residential area of Coseley, West Midlands, England. It is set within the City of Wolverhampton, though the area traditionally existed within the boundaries of Sedgley and later Coseley until 1966.
History
The first known re ...
†
; Notes :†–Partial Municipal Boroughs or Urban Districts added to Wolverhampton County Borough in 1966 and communities within these. These Urban Districts were split between Wolverhampton and other local authorities. Those parts within the present City of Wolverhampton local council area are considered by the ONS to be part of the Wolverhampton Urban sub-division.
:††–Areas within the Wolverhampton Urban Sub-division but administered by
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settle ...
District Council.
Nearby places
Cities
*
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
*
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
*
Hereford
Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester, England, Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. ...
*
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...
*
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
*
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
Towns
*
Bewdley
Bewdley ( pronunciation) is a town and civil parish in the Wyre Forest District in Worcestershire, England on the banks of the River Severn. It is in the Severn Valley west of Kidderminster and southwest of Birmingham. It lies on the Riv ...
*
Brewood
Brewood is an ancient market town in the civil parish of Brewood and Coven, in the South Staffordshire district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. Located around , Brewood lies near the River Penk, eight miles north of Wolverhampton ci ...
*
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
Histor ...
*
Cannock
Cannock () is a town in the Cannock Chase district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It had a population of 29,018. Cannock is not far from the nearby towns of Walsall, Burntwood, Stafford and Telford. The cities of Lichfield and Wolverh ...
*
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
*
Halesowen
Halesowen ( ) is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the county of West Midlands, England.
Historically an exclave of Shropshire and, from 1844, in Worcestershire, the town is around from Birmingham city centre, and fro ...
*
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a large market and historic minster town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester. Located north of the River Stour and east of the River Severn, in the 2011 census, it ha ...
Rugeley
Rugeley ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Cannock Chase District in Staffordshire, England. It lies on the north-eastern edge of Cannock Chase next to the River Trent; it is situated north of Lichfield, south-east of Stafford, nor ...
*
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
*
Solihull
Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blyth ...
*
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in th ...
*
Stone
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
*
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The ...
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
*
Tipton
Tipton is an industrial town in the West Midlands in England with a population of around 38,777 at the 2011 UK Census. It is located northwest of Birmingham.
Tipton was once one of the most heavily industrialised towns in the Black Country, w ...
*
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
*
Wednesbury
Wednesbury () is a market town in Sandwell in the county of West Midlands, England. It is located near the source of the River Tame. Historically part of Staffordshire in the Hundred of Offlow, at the 2011 Census the town had a population of 3 ...
*
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
Bobbington
Bobbington is a village and civil parish in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England, about west of Wombourne. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 506, increasing to 588 at the 2011 Census.
Bobbington is just ...
Codsall
Codsall is a large village in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. It is situated 4.5 miles northwest of the city of Wolverhampton and 13 miles east-southeast of Telford. It forms part of the boundary of the Staffordshi ...
*
Coven
A coven () is a group or gathering of witches. The word "coven" (from Anglo-Norman ''covent, cuvent'', from Old French ''covent'', from Latin ''conventum'' = convention) remained largely unused in English until 1921 when Margaret Murray promot ...
*
Essington
Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England, located near the city of Wolverhampton and towns of Walsall, Bloxwich, Cannock and Brewood. The villages of Cheslyn Hay, Great Wyrley, Coven, Penkridge and Featherston ...
*
Featherstone
Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, two miles south-west of Pontefract. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in 2011 it had a population of 15,244. Featherstone railway stat ...
Himley
Himley is a small village and civil parish in the English ceremonial county of Staffordshire, situated 4 miles west of Dudley and 5 miles southwest of Wolverhampton. At the time of the 2011 Census, Himley had a population of 802.It is most n ...
Lower Penn
Lower Penn is a village in South Staffordshire, situated to the south-west of Wolverhampton, West Midlands.
The Civil Parish covers the area of the historic Parish of Penn that is not now covered by the city of Wolverhampton and thus covers ...
Penkridge
Penkridge ( ) is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire District in Staffordshire, England. It is to the south of Stafford, north of Wolverhampton, west of Cannock and east of Telford. The nearby town of Brewood is also not far away ...
*
Perton
Perton is a large village and civil parish located in the South Staffordshire District, Staffordshire, England. It lies 3 miles to the south of Codsall and 4 miles west of Wolverhampton, where part of the village is almost contiguous with ...
Swindon
Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon unitary authority area had a population ...
*
Tong Tong may refer to:
Chinese
* Tang Dynasty, a dynasty in Chinese history when transliterated from Cantonese
* Tong (organization), a type of social organization found in Chinese immigrant communities
*''tong'', pronunciation of several Chinese ch ...
green belt
A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which h ...
within its boundary, as a part of the wider West Midlands Green Belt. This is scattered around the western half of the city, in the form of green wedges, due to it being highly urbanised. The green belt is in place to prevent further
urban sprawl
Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...
, and preserve greenfield areas. Areas covered include:
*Moseley Parklands
*Land by Grassy Lane at Wood Hayes
*Ashmore Park
*Goldthorn/Lower Penn Green
*Holy Trinity Church, Ettingshall Park
*The Grange, Wergs
*Beacon Hill Cemetery
*Land south of Pattingham
*Aldersley School
*Perton Road/Boundary Farm
*South Staffs Golf Course
*Highfields School
*Pennwood Lane
*Smestow Valley/Valley Park
*Goldthorn/Lower Penn Green
Government
The vast majority of Wolverhampton is governed locally by City of Wolverhampton Council, although some smaller parts of the urban area are governed by
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settle ...
District Council.
The area administered by the City Council is represented in the national United Kingdom parliament by three MPs representing
Wolverhampton South West
Wolverhampton South West is a constituency created in 1950 represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Stuart Anderson of the Conservative Party.
It was represented by the Conservative Party for 47 years after its ...
,
Wolverhampton South East
Wolverhampton South East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Members of Parliament
B ...
and
Wolverhampton North East
Wolverhampton North East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. It is currently represented by ...
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distric ...
, meaning that its City Council is effectively a
unitary authority
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
, and therefore is single-tier and provides all services to the district that a borough and county council would together. South Staffordshire District Council is a two-tier authority, with some services provided by
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...
County Council.
The council offices are in the Wolverhampton Civic Centre, which is located in St Peter's Square in the city centre. The city council's motto is 'Out of darkness cometh light'.
The Labour Party currently control the council and have been in majority on the council since 1974, with the exceptions of 1978–1979, 1987, 1992–1994 and 2008–2010. The Labour party won 18 out of 20 council seats that were up for election in 2016.Labour Councillor
Claire Darke
Claire Darke is a British Labour Party politician, who served as the Mayor of Wolverhampton. She is Councillor for Park Ward and was first elected in 2008 as a Liberal Democrat. She is the longest continuously serving female Mayor of Wolverham ...
was the Mayor of Wolverhampton for 2019–21.
Civic history
Wolverhampton gained the beginnings of modern local government in 1777, when the Wolverhampton Improvement Act was passed by Parliament. This allowed for the establishment of 125 Town Commissioners who undertook a variety of local improvement work such as punishing bear baiting, improving drainage, widening streets and by the end of the century street lighting had been provided at every street corner and over the doorway of every inn, and water supply had been improved by the sinking of ten new wells and the provision of a great water tank in the market place. Policing had been improved with the appointment of ten watchmen and attempts were also made to regulate the markets and inspect hazardous food.Wolverhampton parliamentary borough was created by the
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...
, which included areas currently located with the Metropolitan Boroughs of
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
,
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
and
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ...
such as
Wren's Nest
The Wren's Nest is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Dudley Metropolitan Borough, north west of the town centre of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. It is one of the most important geological locations in Brita ...
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
. It was one of 22 large towns that returned two members of parliament. Under the
Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict., c. 23) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equal ...
West Midlands Constabulary
The West Midlands Constabulary was a police force in the West Midlands of England.
It was created on 1 April 1966 under the Police Act 1964, with the re-organisation of the Black Country area as the five contiguous county boroughs of Dudley, ...
, which covered not only Wolverhampton but the County Boroughs of
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
,
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
,
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
and Warley took over its duties and was headquartered in the city. This force was then replaced in 1974 with the West Midlands Police.
Wolverhampton was incorporated as a
municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1848 under the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 (5 & 6 Will 4 c 76), sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and ...
. and the first meeting of the Council took place on 22 May 1848. The town was then made a
County Borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
in 1889 under the
Local Government Act 1888
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
* Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...
.
In 1933, the boundaries of the borough expanded, taking in areas from
Cannock Rural District
Cannock was a rural district in Staffordshire, England from 1894 to 1974.
It was created by the Local Government Act 1894, based on the Cannock rural sanitary district, and had the town of Cannock on its eastern border. In 1934 it was expanded ...
and Seisdon Rural District, with very little of the surrounding urban area being affected, with only Heath Town Urban District being abolished.
The bulk of the
urban district
Urban district may refer to:
* District
* Urban area
* Quarter (urban subdivision)
* Neighbourhood
Specific subdivisions in some countries:
* Urban districts of Denmark
* Urban districts of Germany
* Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (his ...
s of Bilston (a borough itself after 1933), Tettenhall and Wednesfield were added to the borough in 1966, along with the northern section of the urban district of Coseley and parts from the north of
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
and the west of
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
. The vast majority of these areas were traditionally part of the Parish of Wolverhampton, and were part of the original Parliamentary Borough.
Wolverhampton was one of only two County Boroughs (the other being
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
) to have no changes made to the boundary during the 1974 reorganisation of local government, the borough already having a population larger than the 250,000 required for education authorities. This contrasted with both the
Redcliffe-Maud Report
The Redcliffe-Maud Report (Cmnd. 4040) was published in 1969 by the '' Royal Commission on Local Government in England'', under the chairmanship of Lord Redcliffe-Maud. Although the commission's proposals were broadly accepted by the Labour gove ...
, and the initial White Paper for the 1974 reformsHMSO. ''Local Government in England: Government Proposals for Reorganisation''. Cmnd. 4584 where large areas of the present
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settle ...
district were to be added to the borough. During the 1974 reforms it was placed within the West Midlands Metropolitan County.
Wolverhampton was also a
Royal Peculiar
A royal peculiar is a Church of England parish or church exempt from the jurisdiction of the diocese and the province in which it lies, and subject to the direct jurisdiction of the monarch, or in Cornwall by the duke.
Definition
The church pa ...
covering a large area.
Honorary Aldermen
The Local Government Act 1972 (Section 249) provides for appointment of Honorary Aldermen. The names of Honorary Aldermen are inscribed on a roll of honour board. This is situated on the ground floor of the Wolverhampton Civic Centre.
*Former Councillor Hodson, January 1999
*Former Councillor Howells, January 1999
*Councillor D Seiboth, October 2000
*Councillor N. G. Davies, September 2002
*Councillor Carpenter, September 2002
*Councillor A. Hart, December 2007
*Councillor R. Hart, December 2008
*Councillor T. Bowen, November 2009
*Former Councillor Surjan Singh Duhra, July 2011
*Former Councillor Paddy Bradley, September 2012
*Former Councillor John Davis, September 2012
Police
The main police station for Wolverhampton is based on Bilston Street in the city centre. Wolverhampton Borough Police became part of
West Midlands Constabulary
The West Midlands Constabulary was a police force in the West Midlands of England.
It was created on 1 April 1966 under the Police Act 1964, with the re-organisation of the Black Country area as the five contiguous county boroughs of Dudley, ...
in 1966. Policing is currently delivered by West Midlands Police.
List of Freemen of the City of Wolverhampton
Below is a list of people granted the title 'Freeman of Wolverhampton':
*Right Honourable
Henry Hartley Fowler
Henry Hartley Fowler, 1st Viscount Wolverhampton, (16 May 183025 February 1911) was a British solicitor and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 until 1908 when he was raised to the peerage. A member of the Wesleyan Met ...
William Highfield Jones
Wolverhampton-born William Highfield Jones JP (7 January 1829 – 25 March 1903) was a successful industrialist, local politician, author and benefactor who, with two of his brothers, built one of the largest businesses in Wolverhampton, Jone ...
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
MP, 23 November 1918
* Field Marshal Earl Haig of Bemersyde, 16 October 1919
*Alderman Albert Baldwin Bantock, 9 November 1926
*Alderman Levi Johnson, 9 November 1926
*Alderman Thomas William Dickinson, 18 July 1938
*Alderman Thomas Austin Henn, 7 October 1943
*Alderman Alan Davies, 29 October 1945
*Sir
Charles Arthur Mander
Sir Charles Arthur Mander, 2nd Baronet JP, DL, TD (25 June 1884 – 25 January 1951) was a public servant, philanthropist, and manufacturer, as managing director of Mander Brothers, the family paint, varnish and inks business established in 1 ...
, 29 October 1945
*Joseph Harold Sheldon (1920–1964), 24 March 1958. Pediatrician, see
Freeman–Sheldon syndrome
Freeman–Sheldon syndrome (FSS) is a very rare form of multiple congenital contracture (MCC) syndromes ( arthrogryposes) and is the most severe form of distal arthrogryposis (DA). It was originally described by Ernest Arthur Freeman and Joseph ...
Jack Hayward
Sir Jack Arnold Hayward (14 June 1923 – 13 January 2015) was an English businessman, property developer, philanthropist, and president of English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Biography
Early life
The only son of Charles William ...
, 9 July 2003
*Veterans of the
Princess Irene Brigade
During the Second World War, the Royal Netherlands Motorized Infantry Brigade, later known as the Princess Irene Brigade ( nl, Prinses Irene Brigade) was a Dutch military unit initially formed from approximately 1,500 troops, including a small gro ...
who were members of the
Dutch Army
The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, 19 August 2006
*
Dennis Turner, Baron Bilston
Dennis Turner, Baron Bilston (26 August 1942 – 25 February 2014) was a British Labour Co-operative politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Wolverhampton South East from 1987 to 2005.
Early life
Turner was born in Bradley in t ...
, The Lord Bilston, 20 December 2006
*
Hugh Porter
Hugh William Porter MBE (born Wolverhampton, England, 27 January 1940) is one of Britain's greatest former professional cyclists, winning four world titles in the individual pursuit - more than any other rider - as well as a Commonwealth Games ...
, 17 December 2008
*
Rachael Heyhoe Flint
Rachael Heyhoe Flint, Baroness Heyhoe Flint, ( Heyhoe; 11 June 1939 – 18 January 2017) was an English cricketer, businesswoman and philanthropist. She was best known for being captain of England from 1966 to 1978, and was unbeaten in six T ...
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and ...
The 2021 Census gives the Wolverhampton Urban Subdivision as the second largest in the
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the towns of Sutton Coldfield, Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge and Halesowen in the English West Midland ...
. The figure given for Wolverhampton is 263,727. The proportion of females within the city (50.9%) is slightly higher than that of males (49.1%).
Wolverhampton has an ethnically diverse population; 60.6% of the city's population were white in the 2021 census, 21.2% were Asian, 9.3% were
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...
, 5.3% were mixed, and 3.6 were from another ethnic group.
Based upon the 2021 census, Wolverhampton has a Christian population of 43.8%. The proportion of Wolverhampton residents professing no religion was 27.8%. Of religious groupings,
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
has the second largest following in Wolverhampton, accounting for 12% of the population in 2021, increased from 9.1% in the 2011 census, meaning the city has the largest percentage of Sikhs in England and Wales, and the third largest community numerically. The proportion of people following
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...
was 5.5%, whilst
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
was followed by 3.7%, the figure for
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
was 0.3%.
Wolverhampton is within the top 11% of local council areas in England and Wales (excluding London Boroughs) for public transport use for travelling to work at 16% of the total. 63% used private transport, either as a driver or passenger, 13% cycled or travelled on foot, whilst 8% worked from home.
Car ownership is lower than the average for England and Wales with 35.2% of households not owning a car, compared with 26.8% nationally. Single car ownership is in line with national averages (Wolverhampton 42.9%, England and Wales 43.8%), while the proportion of households owning more than one car is lower than the national average.
As of the
2021 United Kingdom census
The decennial 2021 censuses of England and Wales and of Northern Ireland took place on 21 March 2021, and the census of Scotland took place on 20 March 2022. The censuses were administered by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in England a ...
, with Wolverhampton's high
British Asian
British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British citizens of Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with 6.9% of the population identifying as Asian/Asian Bri ...
population, the
British Muslim
Islam is the second largest religion in the United Kingdom, with results from the 2011 Census giving the total population as 2,786,635, or 4.4% of the total UK population,British Hindus and Sikh communities are more numerous than the national average.
Population change
The tables below detail the population change since 1750, separating that of the city itself and the geographical area now administered by Wolverhampton City Council.
Ethnicity of the borough
Religion
Economy
Traditionally, Wolverhampton's economy has been dominated by iron, steel,
automobiles
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded ...
, engineering and manufacturing industries. Many of the traditional industries in the city have closed or dramatically downsized over the years. However, by 2008 the economy was dominated by the
service sector
The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
, with 74.9% of the city's employment being in this area. The major subcomponents of this sector are in public administration, education and health (32.8% of the total employment), while distribution, hotels and restaurants take up 21.1%, and finance and IT takes up 12.7%. The largest non-service industry was that of manufacturing (12.9%), whilst 5.2% of the total employment is related to the tourism industry.
The largest single employer within the city is Wolverhampton City Council. which has over 12,000 staff Other large employers within the city include:
* Banking: Birmingham Midshires (Headquarters)
* Building materials:
Tarmac Tarmac may refer to:
Engineered surfaces
* Tarmacadam, a mainly historical tar-based material for macadamising road surfaces, patented in 1902
* Asphalt concrete, a macadamising material using asphalt instead of tar which has largely superseded tar ...
and Carvers Builders Merchant
* Education:
University of Wolverhampton
The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mech ...
Carillion
Carillion plc was a British multinational construction and facilities management services company headquartered in Wolverhampton in the United Kingdom, prior to its liquidation in January 2018.
Carillion was created in July 1999, following ...
(Headquarters). Entered liquidation January 2018.
* Brewing:
Marston's
Marston's plc is a British pub and hotel operator. Founded by John Marston in 1834, it is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Marston's disposed of its brewing operations in 2020, selling the assets to a newly formed joint venture with the Ca ...
House of Fraser
House of Fraser (also operating as Frasers) is a British department store group with 44 locations across the United Kingdom, which is now part of Frasers Group. It was established in Glasgow, Scotland in 1849 as Arthur and Fraser. By 1891, it ...
New Cross Hospital
New Cross Hospital is a hospital in the Heath Town district of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is located to the east of the city centre in Wednesfield and is managed by the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust.
History
The hospital has ...
i54
i54 South Staffordshire is a UK technology-based business park located at Junction 2 on the M54 Motorway in the West Midlands, on the boundary of South Staffordshire and Wolverhampton.
i54 South Staffordshire is a £50 million joint ...
business park, Wolverhampton. Unveiled by Her Majesty, the plant produces 2.0-litre 4-cylinder Ingenium diesel and petrol engines. Having already been expanded once before, in 2015 it was announced that the factory would be doubling in size to 200,000 sq m (2,152,782 sq ft), costing $450 million. This expansion would see the workforce double from 700 to 1,400.
Goodyear
Goodyear opened a large factory on Stafford Road,
Fordhouses
Fordhouses is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated to the north of the city centre, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Bushbury North ward of Wolverhampton City Council. It is the most northerl ...
, in 1927. However, it was decided in December 2003 that tyre production at the plant would be discontinued with the loss of more than 400 jobs. This came after some 2,000 job losses at the plant since 1997. The end of production came in 2004 but the factory remained open for tyre moulding and tractor tyre production.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
The varied success of
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club' ...
since the club's formation in 1877 has also contributed to the economy of Wolverhampton. The club's greatest successes came between 1949 and 1960, when it won the league title three times and the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
twice, as well as hosting a series of high-profile friendly matches against Europe's leading club sides, also competing in two early editions of the
European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
. During this era, Wolves frequently attracted crowds of between 40,000 and 50,000. Wolves went on to win the
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by t ...
in 1974 and again in 1980, spending all but three seasons outside the top division of English football during the first 35 years of postwar league football, and continued to attract strong crowds but the 1980s saw a sharp decline in the club's fortunes, with three consecutive relegations, a sharp fall in attendances, and debts of more than £2million which almost put the club out of business. This decline also came at a time when the economy of Wolverhampton was struggling due to the early 1980s recession. Wolves enjoyed a surge in the late 1980s with two consecutive promotions, thanks largely to the prolific scoring of striker Steve Bull, and an upturn in attendances which also provided a boost to the local economy – as did the club's increased support during the 1990s, during which time the stadium was extensively rebuilt and its facilities improved, with its new features including a restaurant and office space. In 2018, Wolves won promotion to the
FA Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
for the third time in 15 years, and a year later reached its first
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
semi-final since 1998, and further redevelopment of the stadium is planned.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
On 20 February 2021, it was announced as part of the government's levelling up strategy that The
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government i ...
(MHCLG), would be the first government department to have headquarters outside of London. It is expected that 500 posts including Senior Civil Servants would relocate to Wolverhampton by 2025.
Tallest buildings
Regeneration
In recent years, Wolverhampton City Council have embarked on many city improvements and regeneration schemes. One such project was "Summer Row", a new £300 million retail quarter for Wolverhampton city centre. The project would have involved clearing existing buildings, and in 2006 a
compulsory purchase order
A compulsory purchase order (CPO; , ) is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for p ...
was issued to over 200 owner / occupiers in the surrounding area. Construction of Summer Row was originally earmarked for 2008, with a completion date listed as 2010, but the 2008 recession put the project on hold.
In January 2011, the Summer Row project was formally cancelled as the CPO expired before the council found the necessary financial backing for the project.
Mander Centre Redevelopment
Debenhams
Debenhams plc was a British department store chain operating in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and grew to 178 locations across those countries, also owning the Danish ...
, who were listed as the anchor store of Summer Row, announced they were still keen in opening a department store in Wolverhampton. It was revealed they would open an anchor store in a £35 million redevelopment of the Mander Centre. To be completed in 2017, the 90,000 sq.ft store would create 120 jobs. The redevelopment would also see the Mander Centre be fully refurbished and reconfigured. A number of larger stores would be created, replacing smaller ones. The reconfiguration saw the relocation of the toilets, escalators and elevators. The lower Central arcade was removed and Tesco and TJ Hughes were demolished to make way for 3-storey Debenhams store. Debenhams closed in January 2020. In 2019 Wilkinson relocated into the Mander Centre, closing a smaller store in Snow Hill. B & M Stores opened in part of the former BHS store at the same time.
Wolverhampton Interchange Project
Wolverhampton's Interchange Project is a major redevelopment of the city's east side area worth around £120 million.
* Phase 1, which was completed in 2012, consisted of demolishing the old bus station and replacing it with a new £22.5 million station. This phase also included a new footbridge across the ring road towards the railway station, highway and pedestrian works, new offices for
Centro
Centro may refer to:
Places Brazil
*Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
* Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
*Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Duq ...
and a
Sainsbury's
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company ...
convenience store.
* Phase 2 which was completed in late 2015, involved the construction of the £10.6 million i10 building adjacent to the new bus station. The building contains 12,400 sq.ft of leisure and retail space on the ground floor and 36,000 sq.ft of office space above.
* Phase 3 began in early 2016 on expanding the train station's
multi-storey car park
A multistorey car park ( British and Singapore English) or parking garage (American English), also called a multistory, parking building, parking structure, parkade (mainly Canadian), parking ramp, parking deck or indoor parking, is a bui ...
. Completed in December 2016, the car park increased in capacity from 450 to over 800 spaces. The expansion of the multi-storey car park will include a new cycle and motorcycle parking, short stay parking, passenger drop off point and a taxi rank adjacent to the car park. A new entrance will be created.
* Phase 4 involved construction of a new development on the opposite side of Railway Drive to the i10 and is known as i9. The offices are used by the Department for Levelling Up, part of the National Government.
Transport
Road
Wolverhampton city centre forms the main focal point for the road network within the northwestern part of the
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the towns of Sutton Coldfield, Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge and Halesowen in the English West Midland ...
, and out into the rural hinterland of
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...
and
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
. The road network within the boundaries of the city council area is entirely maintained by Wolverhampton City Council, whilst those parts of the urban area outside the city council area have their networks maintained by
Staffordshire County Council
Staffordshire County Council is the top-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, England.
62 councillors sit on Staffordshire County Council. Staffordshire operates a cabinet-style council
In England, local auth ...
A449
The A449 is a major road in the United Kingdom. It runs north from junction 24 of the M4 motorway at Newport in South Wales to Stafford in Staffordshire.
The southern section of the road, between Ross on Wye and Newport forms part of the tru ...
on the northern fringes of the urban area which are maintained by the Highways Agency.
Major historical improvements to the city's road network include
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE, (9 August 1757 – 2 September 1834) was a Scottish civil engineer. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scot ...
's Holyhead Road (now part of A41), which was constructed between 1819 and 1826 to improve communications between London and
Holyhead
Holyhead (,; cy, Caergybi , "Cybi's fort") is the largest town and a community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales, with a population of 13,659 at the 2011 census. Holyhead is on Holy Island, bounded by the Irish Sea to the north, and i ...
, and hence to Ireland. The majority of work within the city saw improvement to the contemporary network, though both the Wellington Road in
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
and the cutting at the Rock near Tettenhall were newly constructed for the road, although the improvements at The Rock were constructed by the local Turnpike Trust rather than Telford himself. In 1927, the
A4123 A41 may refer to:
* A41, War Office Inventions Branch
* ''A41'' (album), a studio album by All-4-One
* Queen's Pawn Game, Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings code
* Samsung Galaxy A41, a smartphone
* Vultee XA-41, an American World War II attack proto ...
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
-Wolverhampton New Road was constructed as both an unemployment relief project, and to relieve pressure on Telford's road through the
Black Country
The Black Country is an area of the West Midlands county, England covering most of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be the centre. It became industrialised during its ...
. It was the first purpose built inter-city road in the United Kingdom within the 20th century, and was said to be the longest stretch of new road in Britain since the Romans. It took just three years to complete and cost £600,000. Also in 1927, the first automatic
traffic light
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
s in the United Kingdom were installed in Princes Square in the city centre. Princes Square was also the location of the United Kingdom's first pedestrian safety barriers, which were erected in 1934.
In 1960, plans were announced to build a
Ring Road
A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
around the centre of Wolverhampton. By the end of the 1960s, more than half of the Ring Road had been completed, stretching from Snow Hill to Stafford Street (via Penn Road, Chapel Ash and Waterloo Road), followed a few years later by a section between Snow Hill and Bilston Street. However, the final section between Bilston Street and Stafford Street (via Wednesfield Road) was not completed until 1986. An outer ring road was also planned but only a small section was ever built, this being Wobaston Road in Pendeford.
Wolverhampton is near to several motorways, with four being located within of the city centre. The first to be constructed in the area was the M6, which opened in sections between 1966 and 1970, and connects the city with the north-west of England (including
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...
and
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
), Scotland as well as
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
and
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
to the east, and London via the M1. Together with the M5, which opened in the area in 1970 and links the city with the south-west of England, and London via the M40, the two motorways form a north–south bypass for the city.
The section of M6 motorway nearest to the city is one of the busiest within the UK, and to relieve congestion on this stretch, the M6 Toll which bypasses both the Wolverhampton and
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
sections of the M6 motorway was opened in 2003.
The
M54 motorway
The M54 is a 23-mile (37 km) east-west motorway in the counties of Shropshire and Staffordshire, England. It is also referred to as the Telford motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the town of Telford. It cost £65  ...
forms a northern bypass to the city, passing just within the fringes of the urban area, and links the city with
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
,
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. It opened in 1983.
In addition to the motorways presently constructed, there have also been several proposed near to the city that have not been constructed, or have been constructed to a lower standard. Included within these are the ''Bilston Link Motorway'', which was first proposed in the 1960s and was eventually constructed to a lower standard in the 1980s as the A454/ A463
Black Country Route
The Black Country Route is a road in the West Midlands region of England.
Original plans for an urban motorway were drawn up in 1962 to ease congestion in the Black Country towns of Bilston and Willenhall, as well as giving the residents of D ...
; and the ''Western Orbital'' or ''Wolverhampton Western Bypass'', which was first proposed in the 1970s as a bypass for the western side of the city and the wider
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the towns of Sutton Coldfield, Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge and Halesowen in the English West Midland ...
. Currently proposed by the Highways Agency is the ''M54 to M6 / M6 (Toll) Link Road''. The route was initially proposed in the 2000s to relieve the overloaded sections of A460 and
A449
The A449 is a major road in the United Kingdom. It runs north from junction 24 of the M4 motorway at Newport in South Wales to Stafford in Staffordshire.
The southern section of the road, between Ross on Wye and Newport forms part of the tru ...
near the city, and to replace a section of the cancelled Western Orbital. Whilst it appears in the current roads programme, a date for the start of construction has not been set.
Rail
Wolverhampton is well connected by rail to other parts of England and Wales. However, while Priestfield and Bilston are connected by a tram line, the suburbs in the south, west and north of Wolverhampton are no longer served by rail - in particular the Tettenhall, Penn and Compton areas and Dunstall Park for the race course. Wednesfield no longer has any rail connections, with and being its closest railway stations.
Wolverhampton's first railway opened in 1837, with the opening of the
Grand Junction Railway
The Grand Junction Railway (GJR) was an early railway company in the United Kingdom, which existed between 1833 and 1846 when it was amalgamated with other railways to form the London and North Western Railway. The line built by the company w ...
, the first long-distance line in Great Britain. The main station for the city was, however, not located in the city centre but at Wednesfield Heath, now Heath Town on the east side of the city. This station was considered to be a First Class station, though its location was obviously not ideal and it became a goods station after passenger services ceased in 1873. The station buildings were demolished in 1965, but the main station area is now a nature reserve just off Powell Street, called Station Fields and part of the edge of the northbound platform is still in situ. The track running through the station site is, however, still in use.
The first station in the city centre was opened by the
Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway
The Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway was authorised in 1846. It agreed to joint construction with others of the costly Wolverhampton to Birmingham section, the so-called Stour Valley Line. This work was dominated by the hostile London and North ...
in 1849. This station was only intended to be temporary and was located on the north side of Wednesfield Road, beside Broad Street Basin. The station was constructed as the opening of Wolverhampton High Level was delayed. The station closed in 1852 and was demolished in the mid-1970s. In addition to the temporary station,
Wolverhampton railway works
Wolverhampton railway works was in the city of Wolverhampton in the county of Staffordshire, England. It was almost due north of the city centre, and is commemorated with a small display of level crossing gates and a plaque. Known as the Staf ...
were also established in 1849 by the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway and became the Northern Division workshop of the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
in 1854.
The permanent station on the line finally opened on 24 June 1852 and was initially known as ''Wolverhampton General''; it was renamed as ''Wolverhampton Queen Street'' in 1853 and finally Wolverhampton High Level in 1855. The station was initially a joint station between the
Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway
The Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway was authorised in 1846. It agreed to joint construction with others of the costly Wolverhampton to Birmingham section, the so-called Stour Valley Line. This work was dominated by the hostile London and North ...
and the
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom.
In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lo ...
, though there were problems in the relationships between the two companies; the station became solely LNWR in 1854, before the
Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway
The Midland Railway branches around Walsall were built to give the Midland Railway independent access to Wolverhampton, and to a colliery district at Brownhills. The Midland Railway had a stake in the South Staffordshire Railway giving it acces ...
(later part of the
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...
) gained access to the station in 1867. The original High Level station was demolished in 1965, as part of the electification of the
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
and was replaced by the buildings on the present site but which are in the process of being demolished.
Two years after the opening of the High Level station, the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway (OWW) opened their city centre station immediately to the east of High Level. Initially called ''Wolverhampton Joint'', it was renamed Wolverhampton Low Level in 1856. As well as the OWW, the station also served the
Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Dudley Railway
The Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Dudley Railway was an English railway company promoted to connect those places by rail. It was authorised by Parliament in 1846. It became apparent that it would be advantageous to merge with the Great Western Ra ...
and the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway. As the first two companies were supported by the
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
,
broad gauge
A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways.
Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union ( C ...
track was laid to the station, meaning that Wolverhampton Low Level became the most northerly station on the broad gauge network before being converted to standard gauge in 1869. Despite being featured in the second
Beeching Report Beeching is an English surname. Either a derivative of the old English ''bece'', ''bæce'' "stream", hence "dweller by the stream" or of the old English ''bece'' "beech-tree" hence "dweller by the beech tree".''Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames' ...
, ''The Development of the Major Railway Trunk Routes'' in February 1965 as being on a line earmarked for further investment, services were withdrawn progressively from Low Level starting in 1967, soon after it had been transferred administratively from the
Western Region of British Railways
The Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right on completion of the "Organising for Quality" initiative on 6 April 1992. The Region consisted principally of ex-Great We ...
to the London Midland region. London services were transferred to the newly electrified High Level station. Low Level was converted into a Parcels Concentration Depot in 1970 and the final passenger services were withdrawn in 1972. These services (to and from Birmingham Snow Hill) were only suspended and never legally withdrawn by
British Rail
British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four (British ra ...
and so technically the station is still open.
There were also a number of suburban stations in Wolverhampton – including
Dunstall Park
Dunstall is a small village and civil parish in the borough of East Staffordshire, Staffordshire, England. It lies between Burton upon Trent and Barton-under-Needwood. The population of the parish at the 2001 census was 215, decreasing to 20 ...
and
Bushbury
Bushbury is a suburban village and ward in the City of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, England. It lies two miles north-east of Wolverhampton city centre, divided between the Bushbury North and Bushbury South and Low Hill wards. Bushbury ...
Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway
The Midland Railway branches around Walsall were built to give the Midland Railway independent access to Wolverhampton, and to a colliery district at Brownhills. The Midland Railway had a stake in the South Staffordshire Railway giving it acces ...
Oxford-Worcester-Wolverhampton Line
The Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway (OW&WR) was a railway company in England. It built a line from Wolvercot JunctionThe nearby settlement is spelt ''Wolvercote'' and a later station on the LNWR Bicester line follows that spelling. ...
. Today, all of the suburban rail stations within the city have been closed, although Coseley,
Codsall
Codsall is a large village in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. It is situated 4.5 miles northwest of the city of Wolverhampton and 13 miles east-southeast of Telford. It forms part of the boundary of the Staffordshi ...
and Bilbrook are just outside the boundaries. Also, some of the seven West Midlands Metro tram stations in the city are near or directly replace these former suburban stations.
The former High Level station, now simply known as Wolverhampton station, is today one of the principal stations on the
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
Birmingham New Street
Birmingham New Street is the largest and busiest of the three main railway stations in Birmingham city centre, England, and a central hub of the British railway system. It is a major destination for Avanti West Coast services from , and vi ...
and
Manchester Piccadilly
Manchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. Opened as Store Street in 1842, it was renamed Manchester London Road in 1847 and became Manchester Piccadilly in 1960. Located to the south-east of Manchester city ...
, as well as most other major cities in the UK. In addition to the long-distance services, there are many local services including those on the
Cambrian Line
The Cambrian Line ( cy, Llinell y Cambrian), also known as the Cambrian Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell y Cambrian) and Cambrian Coast Line ( cy, Llinell Arfordir y Cambrian), is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Abe ...
into
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
and
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in th ...
and
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
.
The 1960s buildings of the station have now been demolished, following a lengthy delay, and are being replaced with a more modern station building. Phase 1 opened in Spring 2020, which saw the creation of a new entrance. Phase 2 saw the demolition of the remainder but construction of the replacement was delayed due to the COVID-19 restrictions. This new station includes a stop on the Metro tram line which should also open in September 2021.
Buses
Buses in the city are run commercially by a number of bus operators, the largest provider of services is National Express West Midlands. As well as serving suburbs of the city, buses from the centre of Wolverhampton also provide a direct link with the city of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
and connections to
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
,
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
,
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
,
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The ...
,
Cannock
Cannock () is a town in the Cannock Chase district in the county of Staffordshire, England. It had a population of 29,018. Cannock is not far from the nearby towns of Walsall, Burntwood, Stafford and Telford. The cities of Lichfield and Wolverh ...
,
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in th ...
,
Sedgley
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England.
Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampt ...
,
Bilston
Bilston is a market town, ward, and civil parish located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is close to the borders of Sandwell and Walsall. The nearest towns are Darlaston, Wednesbury, and Willenhall. Historically in Staffordshi ...
,
Bloxwich
Bloxwich is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, West Midlands, England. It is located between the towns of Walsall, Cannock, Willenhall and Brownhills.
Early history
Bloxwich has its origins at least as early as ...
,
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
Histor ...
and
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
.
Wolverhampton bus station
Wolverhampton bus station is the first part of a major public transport interchange in the city centre of Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands region of England.
It is managed by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM). Local bus services operated b ...
operated by Transport for West Midlands is situated at Piper's Row, near to the railway station, providing an interchange between the two modes of transport. The station has recently had a complete rebuild. Its previous Piper's Row incarnation opened on 26 October 1986, just six years after its predecessor of 1981. The station underwent a further upgrade in 1990, which saw the grade II listed Queen's Building incorporated into the bus station. A mild refurbishment took place in 2005/06, with new toilets and the addition of a coach stand.
In July 2009, plans were unveiled for a complete rebuild of the bus station, which was part of Wolverhampton's Interchange Project. The bus station closed in April 2010 and was demolished; a £22.5 million station opened in July 2011.
Bilston bus station is a small bus interchange located in Bilston Town Centre, Wolverhampton. It opened in 1991, as a new bus station to serve the town of Bilston and became an interchange on 31 May 1999 when the Midland Metro service opened on the adjacent railway line that had been disused since the end of 1982.
Around 22 bus services operated by 11 operators serve the station which is a short, walkable distance from Bilston Central tram stop, which links the town to
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
,
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
,
Wednesbury
Wednesbury () is a market town in Sandwell in the county of West Midlands, England. It is located near the source of the River Tame. Historically part of Staffordshire in the Hundred of Offlow, at the 2011 Census the town had a population of 3 ...
and Wolverhampton.
The station is built around a large square building which features a shop.
Grand Central tram stop
Grand Central tram stop is a tram stop on the city-centre extension of Line 1 of the West Midlands Metro. It opened on 30 May 2016 as the terminus of the line on Stephenson Street outside the shopping centre from which its name was derived and ...
via
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
and
Wednesbury
Wednesbury () is a market town in Sandwell in the county of West Midlands, England. It is located near the source of the River Tame. Historically part of Staffordshire in the Hundred of Offlow, at the 2011 Census the town had a population of 3 ...
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
Willenhall
Willenhall is a market town situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2011 census of 28,480. It is situated between Wolverhampton and Walsall, historically in the county of ...
, mostly following the route of the closed
Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway
The Midland Railway branches around Walsall were built to give the Midland Railway independent access to Wolverhampton, and to a colliery district at Brownhills. The Midland Railway had a stake in the South Staffordshire Railway giving it acces ...
, however, these were cancelled in late 2015.
All of the seven westernmost stations on the network are in Wolverhampton, with this number increasing to nine once Piper's Row and Wolverhampton station are connected to the network.
In 2014/15, Centro announced in a £40 million deal, they would be replacing the entire fleet of the 16
AnsaldoBreda T-69
The West Midlands Metro is a passenger light rail line in the West Midlands conurbation in England, which opened in 1999. Its rolling stock consists of 21 CAF Urbos 3 trams which came into service in 2014/15, replacing the older T-69 trams which ...
trams with 21
CAF Urbos 3
The CAF Urbos is a family of trams, streetcars, and light rail vehicles built by CAF. The Basque manufacturer CAF previously manufactured locomotives, passenger cars, regional, and underground trains. In 1993, CAF started building trams for Metr ...
trams. The new Urbos 3 trams are 9 metres longer; at 33 metres, with the ability of carrying 210 passengers, compared to the 156 from the T69. Additionally with the upgraded trams, Wolverhampton's Metro Line will be expanded. As part of the Wolverhampton Interchange Project; the Metro line will be extended from Wolverhampton St George's to
Wolverhampton railway station
Wolverhampton railway station in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England is on the Birmingham Loop of the West Coast Main Line. It is served by Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, Transport for Wales and West Midlands Trains services, and was hi ...
, creating one stop at
Wolverhampton bus station
Wolverhampton bus station is the first part of a major public transport interchange in the city centre of Wolverhampton, in the West Midlands region of England.
It is managed by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM). Local bus services operated b ...
and subsequently ending at the railway station. It was scheduled to open in September 2020. However delays caused by COVID-19 mean the extension is not expected to open until September 2021.
In 2021, construction started on a 2 new metro Lines from
Brierley Hill
Brierley Hill is a town and electoral ward in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, West Midlands, England, 2.5 miles south of Dudley and 2 miles north of Stourbridge. Part of the Black Country and in a heavily industrialised area, it has a pop ...
to Wolverhampton and
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
, one of these lines will terminate in Wolverhampton City Centre and will boost connectivity to the Black Country, this means that the corridor between Wolverhampton and Wednesbury will be served every 3 minutes by trams in peak times.
In late September 2021, funding was given for over 4 new metro projects, including a new line from
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
to
New Cross Hospital
New Cross Hospital is a hospital in the Heath Town district of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is located to the east of the city centre in Wednesfield and is managed by the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust.
History
The hospital has ...
. This new line will extend the existing line from Wolverhampton Interchange to the hospital, via an old railway line. Another planned but not confirmed extension is from St Georges to the i54.
Air
Wolverhampton's original airport was at
Pendeford
Pendeford is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is situated north-north-west of the city centre, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council. At the 2011 Census, the population o ...
, opened in 1938 and closed on 31 December 1970. The current
Wolverhampton Airport
Wolverhampton Halfpenny Green Airport , formerly Halfpenny Green Airport and Wolverhampton Business Airport, locally Bobbington Airport, is a small, airport situated near the village of Bobbington, South Staffordshire. The airport is situated ...
, renamed from Halfpenny Green, is a small general aviation airfield located southwest of the city. Expansion of the airport has been suggested, but the current owners want to keep it as a General Aviation airfield. The airport hosts various "fly in" events and is an original World War Two airfield.
The nearest major airport is
Birmingham Airport
Birmingham Airport , formerly ''Birmingham International Airport'', is an international airport located east-southeast of Birmingham city centre, west-northwest of Coventry slightly north of Bickenhill village, in the Metropolitan Borou ...
, approximately away. The airport is easy to reach by train, with a direct express service to it only taking on average 36 minutes. By car, it takes approximately 45 minutes via the M6 or M6 Toll Road. There are direct flights to Amritsar, Delhi, Dubai, Orlando, Dublin, Paris, Bucharest, Frankfurt and Munich
Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a navigable narrow canal in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in the English Midlands. It is long, linking the River Severn at Stourport in Worcestershire with the Trent and Mersey Canal at Haywood ...
, which in turn connects with the
Shropshire Union Canal
The Shropshire Union Canal, nicknamed the "Shroppie", is a navigable canal in England. The Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union (SU) system and lie partially in Wales.
The canal lies in ...
at
Autherley Junction
Autherley Junction () is the name of the canal junction where the Shropshire Union Canal terminates and meets the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal near to Oxley, north Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England.
History
The Staffordshire ...
.
Cycling
Most places in the borough and some of the neighbouring villages in South Staffordshire are within easy reach of the city centre by pedal cycle and terrain is moderately hilly. Climbs tend to be of two to three minutes duration. Cycling benefits from the city centre within the Ring Road and a number of routes that use quieter roads and paths to avoid the ten 'A' roads that radiate from the Ring Road. Wolverhampton is on the Smethwick to Telford section of
Sustrans
Sustrans is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network.
Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United K ...
National Cycle Network
The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the cha ...
Smethwick
Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire.
In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider b ...
to Broad Street Basin, Wolverhampton where the route splits in two. The choice here is between riding the 21 locks section of the Birmingham Main Line Canal to Aldersley Junction or taking the Cross-City route braid to visit the city centre, West Park or Smestow Valley Leisure Ride before returning to Aldersley Junction. NCN81 continues to Autherley Junction along the towpath of the
Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal
The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a navigable narrow canal in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in the English Midlands. It is long, linking the River Severn at Stourport in Worcestershire with the Trent and Mersey Canal at Haywood ...
and then along the east bank towpath of the
Shropshire Union Canal
The Shropshire Union Canal, nicknamed the "Shroppie", is a navigable canal in England. The Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the Shropshire Union (SU) system and lie partially in Wales.
The canal lies in ...
as far as Pendeford Mill Lane before turning to Bilbrook in Staffordshire. The lanes of nearby South Staffordshire and east Shropshire provide ideal cycle touring conditions.
Culture
Music
The rock groups
Slade
Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...
,
Sahotas
Sahotas were a U.K. based Bhangra/Rock/ World music band. The band, started in Bilston, Wolverhampton in the mid-1980s, had a line-up of five brothers. They have released music in both English and Punjabi. The lead singer was Surj Sahota, and ...
,
Cornershop
Cornershop are a British indie rock band best known for their single " Brimful of Asha", originally released in 1997 and, in a remixed version, topping the UK chart in 1998. The band was formed in 1991 by Wolverhampton-born Tjinder Singh (sin ...
,
The Mighty Lemon Drops
The Mighty Lemon Drops were an English rock group active from 1985 to 1992.
Biography
Originally called the Sherbet Monsters, the quartet first formed in the spring of 1985 in Wolverhampton, in the Black Country. Paul Marsh, Dave Newton and ...
and
Babylon Zoo
Babylon Zoo were an English rock band formed in 1992 in Wolverhampton. Their song " Spaceman" gained considerable exposure through its use in a Levi's jeans television advert in the United Kingdom in late 1995. Released as the band's debut sing ...
came from Wolverhampton, as do
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electro ...
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and ...
,
drum and bass
Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub- ...
guru
Goldie
Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is a British music producer and DJ.
Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musician in ...
Kevin Rowland
Kevin Rowland (born 17 August 1953) is a British singer and musician best known as the frontman for the pop band Dexys Midnight Runners (currently called ''Dexys''). The band had several hits in the early 1980s, the most notable being " Geno" ...
of
Dexys Midnight Runners
Dexys Midnight Runners (currently officially Dexys, their former nickname, styled without an apostrophe) are an English pop rock band from Birmingham, with soul influences, who achieved major commercial success in the early to mid-1980s. They a ...
was born in Wednesfield, Wolverhampton.
Hip Hop music producer
S-X
Sam Andrew Gumbley (born 4 August 1992), known professionally as S-X, is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. As a record producer, Gumbley has worked with high-profile artists such as Chance the Rapper, Childish Gambino, Future, ...
J. Cole
Jermaine Lamarr Cole (born January 28, 1985) is an American rapper and record producer. Born on a military base in Germany and raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained recognition as a rapper following the release of his d ...
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...
was born and raised and still lives in Wolverhampton. In 2010, Wolverhampton-born singer Liam Payne came third in the British television music show ''
The X Factor
''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...
'' with his boy band
One Direction
One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the g ...
, who in March 2012 became the first British group to go straight to the top of the US music charts with their debut album, '' Up All Night''.
Wolverhampton has a number of live music venues; the largest occasionally used being the
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
ground,
Molineux Stadium
Molineux Stadium ( ) in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England, has been the home ground of Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers since 1889. The first stadium built for use by a Football League club, it was one of the first British groun ...
, which was used for a
Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi is an American rock band formed in 1983 in Sayreville, New Jersey. It consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarist Phil X, and bassist Hugh McDonald. Original bassist Alec John such qu ...
concert in 2003, but the biggest indoor venue regularly used is Wolverhampton Civic Hall, with a standing capacity of 3,000. Second to that is Wulfrun Hall (part of the same complex as the Civic Hall, which is owned and operated by the City Council) which has a standing capacity of just over 1,100. The Civic Halls complex also has a newer venue, The Slade Rooms (named after the 1970s rock band), which has a capacity of approximately 550 standing. There are also a number of smaller venues with capacities of between 100 and 250, although the longest-established of these, the Wolverhampton Varsity, is now closed, as is the Little Civic. Other venues include the Light Bar in Fryer Street, the 'Numa Bar' and the Dog & Doublet (next to the old Little Civic), although the situation in this area of entertainment remains fluid. The 18th-century St John's Church is a venue for smaller scale classical concerts. The city is also home to Regent Records, a choral and organ music recording company, and Wolf Town DIY, an independent record label that primarily releases punk and alternative music by underground artists. The Midland Box Office is the primary sales point for most of Wolverhampton's venues and is situated in Queen Square, it is manned by a small team of dedicated and enthusiastic staff.
The city's main choral groups include the City of Wolverhampton Choir, (a choral society founded as the Wolverhampton Civic Choir in 1947) and the Choir of St. Peter's Collegiate Church.
Arts and museums
The Grand Theatre on Lichfield Street is Wolverhampton's largest theatre, opening on 10 December 1894. It was designed by C. J. Phipps and completed within six months. Included amongst the people to have appeared at the theatre are
Henry Irving
Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ...
,
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is conside ...
and
Sean Connery
Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...
. It was also used by politicians including
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
and
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
. The theatre was closed between 1980 and 1982.
The
Arena Theatre
Arena Theatre ( sk, Divadlo Aréna) is one of the oldest theatres in Bratislava.
It was established in 1828 on the right bank of Danube. In the beginning it served as
an open summer amphitheatre, hence the name Arena. The current building w ...
on Wulfruna Street, within the
University of Wolverhampton
The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mech ...
is the secondary theatre, seating 150. It hosts both professional and amateur performances.
Cinema is catered for by a multiplex
Cineworld
Cineworld Group plc is a British cinema operator headquartered in London, England. It is the world's second-largest cinema chain (after AMC Theatres), with 9,518 screens across 790 sites in 10 countries: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Irel ...
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywoo ...
films, other big-budget films, and some
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...
films, whilst Light House shows a range of older and subtitled films as well as some selected new releases. Light House has also played host to visual art shows, an International Animation Festival and incorporates a small café. The Lighthouse closed its doors for the final time on 3rd November 2022.
The city's Arts & Museums service, run by the council, covers three sites: Wolverhampton Art Gallery, home to England's biggest Pop art collection after that held at the
Tate
Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
; Bantock House, a fine historic house with Edwardian interior with a museum of Wolverhampton located within Bantock Park;
Bilston Craft Gallery
Bilston Craft Gallery is the largest dedicated craft venue in the West Midlands, located at Mount Pleasant, Bilston, near Bilston town centre.
Building
The two-storey stone residential house was built in 1905 as a home for the Harper family ...
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
, has a large collection of artefacts and buildings from across the
Black Country
The Black Country is an area of the West Midlands county, England covering most of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be the centre. It became industrialised during its ...
Chapel Ash
Chapel Ash is a small area in Wolverhampton surrounded by the City Centre, Whitmore Reans & Merridale.
The area is most noted for being the home of Marston's, where the Park Brewery produces the well-known Banks's range of ales
History
Owing ...
, is a self run artists' group. It provides studio accommodation for eighteen visual artists, mostly painters. Its small gallery holds a regular programme of exhibitions to show and promote contemporary art in the city.
The
National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
owns two properties on the edge of the city that are open to the public: Wightwick Manor, which is a Victorian
manor house
A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals ...
and one of only a few surviving examples of a house built and furnished under the influence of the Arts and Crafts movement, and Moseley Old Hall, which is famous as one of the resting places of
Charles II of England
Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651, and King of England, Scotland and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685.
Charles II was the eldest surviving child o ...
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...
in 1651.
English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
owns
Boscobel House
Boscobel House () is a Grade II* listed building in the parish of Boscobel in Shropshire. It has been, at various times, a farmhouse, a hunting lodge, and a holiday home; but it is most famous for its role in the escape of Charles II after the B ...
, within
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
, another refuge of Charles II.
Nearby museums also include the
Royal Air Force Museum
The Royal Air Force Museum is a museum dedicated to the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom. The museum is a non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Defence and is a registered charity.
The museum is split into two separate sites:
* ...
, at RAF Cosford and the RAF Fire Service Museum at
Wolverhampton Airport
Wolverhampton Halfpenny Green Airport , formerly Halfpenny Green Airport and Wolverhampton Business Airport, locally Bobbington Airport, is a small, airport situated near the village of Bobbington, South Staffordshire. The airport is situated ...
., whilst
Chillington Hall
Chillington Hall is a Georgian country house near Brewood, Staffordshire, England, four miles northwest of Wolverhampton. It is the residence of the Giffard family. The Grade I listed house was designed by Francis Smith in 1724 and John Soane ...
, which boasts of grounds designed by
Capability Brown
Lancelot Brown (born c. 1715–16, baptised 30 August 1716 – 6 February 1783), more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English gardener and landscape architect, who remains the most famous figure in the history of the English lan ...
, and
Himley Hall
Himley Hall is an early 17th-century country house situated in Staffordshire, England. It is situated in the south of the county in the small village of Himley, near to the town of Dudley and the city of Wolverhampton. Himley Hall is a Grade I ...
are nearby examples of houses open to the public.
Libraries
Located on the corner of Garrick Street and St George's Parade, Wolverhampton Central Library is a
Grade II listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...
, designed by architect Henry T. Hare and opened in 1902. It was originally commissioned to commemorate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee using funds raised by the Mayor, Alderman S Craddock, and by a grant of £1,000 from
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans in ...
. This new library improved public access to information and reading material, replacing its cramped predecessor in the old Garrick Street Police Station.
The terracotta exterior has a tripartite theme of related, but distinct façades. The entrance façade is the architect's centrepiece and is decorated with a frieze under the triple window which carries the Royal Coat of Arms and the Wolverhampton Coat of Arms. The other two façades celebrate English literary giants;
Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for '' The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...
Pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
on the other. An extension for a newsroom and a students' room was added in 1936 followed by a small brick and concrete extension at the rear in the 1970s.
Wolverhampton City Council also operate 14 branch libraries within the city.
Media
Wolverhampton is home to the '' Express & Star'' newspaper, which boasts of having the largest circulation of any provincial daily evening newspaper in the UK. Parent company
Midland News Association
Midland News Association (also known as MNA Media) is Britain’s largest independent regional news company. It publishes the UK's biggest-selling regional daily newspaper the '' Express & Star'' and its sister title the ''Shropshire Star'', as ...
is based in Wolverhampton.
The city was originally home to four radio stations,
107.7 The Wolf
107.7 The Wolf was a British Independent Local Radio station serving Wolverhampton and the surrounding areas, owned and operated by Forever Broadcasting, The Wireless Group
Wireless Group Limited is a radio and digital broadcasting networ ...
which was absorbed into regional station
Signal 107
Signal 107 was a British Independent Local Radio station serving Wolverhampton and surrounding areas, Telford and Wrekin, Shrewsbury, Oswestry in north and central Shropshire and Kidderminster, Stourport-on-Severn and Bewdley in north Worcesters ...
Free Radio Black Country & Shropshire
Free Radio Black Country & Shropshire is an Independent Local Radio station based in Birmingham, England, owned and operated by Bauer Radio, Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Shropshire, Wolverhampton and the Black Country ...
from studios in Birmingham and Manchester. The third was Radio WABC, the AM service from Beacon Radio that has since closed following a number of rebrands as Classic Gold Digital, Capital Gold and
Free Radio
''Free Radio'' is a television show, created by Lance Krall and Rory Rosegarten. The show originated on VH1, but has also played on Comedy Central, and Super Channel (Canada). It stars Lance Krall, prominent for his role on ''The Joe Schmo Sho ...
80s. The fourth, and now the only radio station based in the city, is community radio station WCR FM which broadcasts solely to the Wolverhampton on 101.8FM, online, via the Tune In app and via smart speaker.
In December 2005, the BBC commissioned the poet Ian McMillan to write a poem about Wolverhampton, along with four other towns which apparently "had a reputation they didn't deserve".
Education
The
University of Wolverhampton
The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mech ...
is the main provider of higher education in the city. The university currently has more than 23,000 students. In 1835, the Wolverhampton Mechanics' Institute was founded, and its lineage can be traced via the Wolverhampton and Staffordshire Technical College (1935), to The Polytechnic, Wolverhampton (1969) to today's
University of Wolverhampton
The University of Wolverhampton is a public university located on four campuses across the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, Shropshire and Staffordshire in England. The roots of the university lie in the Wolverhampton Tradesmen's and Mech ...
, given university status in 1992. The main university campus is in the city centre, with other campuses at Compton, and in the nearby towns of
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
and
Telford
Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
.
Wolverhampton Grammar School
Wolverhampton Grammar School is a co-educational independent school in Wolverhampton, England.
History
Initially a grammar school for boys, WGS was founded in 1512 by Sir Stephen Jenyns, a master of the ancient guild of Merchant Taylors, who ...
was founded in 1512, making it one of the oldest active schools in the UK. Old boys include Mervyn King, Governor of the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government o ...
between July 2003 and 2013, and Sir David Wright, former British Ambassador to Japan.
Other notably historic schools include
The Royal School, Wolverhampton
The Royal School, Wolverhampton is a co-educational free school and sixth form for day and boarding pupils in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is the only state school of its type in the UK to have a Royal Charter and it has been ...
(founded in 1850), and
Tettenhall College
Tettenhall College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school located in the Wolverhampton suburb of Tettenhall in England.
History
The college was founded in 1863 by a group of prominent local businessmen and industrialists, most ...
(1863), which educated the winner of
Nobel Prize for Chemistry
)
, image = Nobel Prize.png
, alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...
further education
Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. It ...
college in the city.
Wolverhampton Girls' High School
(Game Before the Prize)
, established = 1911
, closed =
, type = Grammar school;academy
, religious_affiliation =
, president =
, head_label = Headteacher
, head = Trudi Young
, r_head =
, cha ...
is a well known selective school which has produced top of league table results within Wolverhampton. Notable old girls include the former English women's cricket captain Rachael Heyhoe-Flint and
Baroness Hayman
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
, first
Lord Speaker
The Lord Speaker is the presiding officer, chairman and highest authority of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The office is analogous to the Speaker of the House of Commons: the Lord Speaker is elected by the membe ...
of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
, as well as Georgia Elwiss, a member of the current 2015 women's cricket team.
St Peter's Collegiate School was founded in 1847 in buildings adjacent to
St Peter's Collegiate Church
St Peter's Collegiate Church is located in central Wolverhampton, England. For many centuries it was a chapel royal and from 1480 a royal peculiar, independent of the Diocese of Lichfield and even the Province of Canterbury. The collegiate ch ...
in Wolverhampton town centre. It moved to the present extensive green site at Compton Park in 1965. St Peter's is the oldest established educational institution currently in the state sector in Wolverhampton, with a tradition of academic, cultural and sporting excellence nourished by Christian spiritual and moral values. Previous students include record-breaking goalscoring footballer Arthur Rowley and Ben Godfrey, a TV presenter, and reporter on Midlands Today.
Wolverhampton, unlike a number of nearby areas such as
Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
and
South Staffordshire
South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. The district lies to the north and west of the West Midlands county, bordering Shropshire to the west and Worcestershire to the south. It contains notable settle ...
, has always had traditional age range schools; 5–7 infants, 7–11 juniors and 11-16/18 secondary schools. Some secondary schools have sixth form facilities for children aged 16+.
Sport
Football
Wolverhampton is represented in the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...
, the highest tier of English football, by
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
. 'Wolves', as they are known, are one of the oldest English football clubs, and were one of the 12 founder members of the
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...
. Their most successful period was the 1950s, where they won three Football League Championships (then the highest division) and two
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
s, and were involved in the earliest European friendlies. They were hailed by the press as 'The Unofficial World Champions' after one of their most famous victories, against Budapest Honvéd FC of Hungary. They were also the first English team to play in the Soviet Union. These victories instigated the birth of the European Cup competition which later evolved into the UEFA Champions' League (see
European Cup and Champions League history
The history of the European Cup and UEFA Champions League spans over sixty years of competition, finding winners and runners-up from all over the continent.
Beginnings Early tournaments
The first time when champions of two European leagues met wa ...
).
In total, they have won three Football League titles (prior to the top division becoming the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...
), four FA Cups, have two
League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
victories and many other minor honours, including reaching the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
Final in 1972, and appearances in the last eight of both the
UEFA European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, and the European
Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
, but spent just one season in the top division between 1984 and 2009. They are also one of only two clubs, along with
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most d ...
, to have won five different league titles; they have championed all four tiers of the professional English league, as well as the long-defunct northern section of the Third Division.
Wolves have a long-established rivalry with
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
. Separated by , the two clubs have faced each other over 160 times since 1886.
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park, ...
and
Birmingham City FC
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first tea ...
are also close rivals of Wolves, having played them 121 and 136 times respectively. Geographically,
Walsall FC
Walsall Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Walsall, West Midlands, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club's nickname, "The Saddlers", reflect ...
Wolverhampton's Aldersley Leisure Village is also home to Wolverhampton & Bilston Athletics Club, which was formed in 1967 with a merger between Wolverhampton Harriers and Bilston Town Athletic Club. They have won the National League Division One for men from 1975 to 1982, and the Men's National Cup finals in 1976, 1977, 1979 and 1980. It also represented Britain in the European Clubs Cup from 1976 to 1983 with the best finishing position of third.
Olympic Medallists in athletics Sonia Lannaman and Tessa Sanderson lived within the city.
Cycling
Wolverhampton Wheelers is the city's oldest cycling club (formed in 1891), and was home to
Hugh Porter
Hugh William Porter MBE (born Wolverhampton, England, 27 January 1940) is one of Britain's greatest former professional cyclists, winning four world titles in the individual pursuit - more than any other rider - as well as a Commonwealth Games ...
who won four world championship pursuit titles; and Percy Stallard who has been credited with bringing cycle road racing to Britain when he held the Llangollen to Wolverhampton race on 7 June 1942. Wolverhampton Wheelers make extensive use of the velodrome at Aldersley Stadium. Wolverhampton was also the home of Trevor Gadd, who was a six time British National Cycle champion and two-time silver medallist at the
1978 Commonwealth Games
The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta from 3 to 12 August 1978, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics were held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with a ...
, as well as a fifth-place finisher in the 1977 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Venezuela.
Wolverhampton has also hosted the Tour of Britain, with a stage start in 2006, a stage finish in 2007 and a sprint finish in 2008.
It is also home to Wednesfield Aces cycle speedway who are based on Ashmore Park.
Horse and greyhound racing
Wolverhampton Racecourse
Wolverhampton Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. The track was the first to be floodlit in Britain and often holds meetings in the evening. The track surface has been Tapeta since ...
is located at Dunstall Park, just to the north of the city centre. This was one of the first all-weather
horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...
courses in the UK and is Britain's only floodlit horse race track. There is also
greyhound racing
Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around a track. There are two forms of greyhound racing, track racing (normally around an oval track) and coursing; the latter is now banned in most countries. Tr ...
at Monmore Green. West Park, a large park near the city centre, was converted from a racecourse.
A horse by the name of
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
was among the leading contenders for the
1849 Grand National
The 1849 Grand National Steeplechase was the 11th official annual running of a handicap steeplechase horse race at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool on Wednesday, 28 February. It attracted a field of twenty-four competitors for a prize valued a ...
at
Aintree
Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England.
I ...
Grand Prix
Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour
Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to:
Arts and entertainment ...
cars and was the only British make to win a Grand Prix in the first half of the 20th century. Sunbeam also built several holders of the
Land speed record
The land speed record (or absolute land speed record) is the highest speed achieved by a person using a vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C ("Special Vehicles") flying start regul ...
, including the first vehicle to travel at over , the
Sunbeam 1000 hp
The Sunbeam 1000 HP ''Mystery'', or "''The Slug''", is a land speed record-breaking car built by the Sunbeam car company of Wolverhampton that was powered by two aircraft engines. It was the first car to travel at over 200 mph. The car's la ...
.
AJS
A. J. Stevens & Co. Ltd was a British automobile and motorcycle manufacturer in operation from 1909 to 1931. The company was founded by Joe Stevens in Wolverhampton, England. After the firm was sold, the name continued to be used by Matchless, ...
was heavily involved in motorcycle racing either side of World War II, which included winning the 1949 World Championship in the 500cc category.
Kieft Cars
Kieft Cars, founded by Cyril Kieft, was a British car company that built Formula Three racing cars and some road going sports cars in a factory in Derry St, Wolverhampton.''The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars, 1885 to the Present''. By G.N ...
built Formula Three cars in the early 1950s. Their best known driver was
Stirling Moss
Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss (17 September 1929 – 12 April 2020) was a British Formula One racing driver. An inductee into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, he won 212 of the 529 races he entered across several categories of com ...
.
Wolverhampton Wolves
Wolverhampton Wolves are a British speedway team based in Wolverhampton, England. They are sponsored by Parry's International Travel, and signed a deal with owner Dave Parry (previous speedway rider for the Wolverhampton Wolves) for the 20 ...
, one of the leading speedway clubs in the UK represents the city, participating in the Elite League (speedway), Elite League at the Monmore Green stadium. Wolverhampton Speedway is one of the oldest speedway tracks in the world that is still in operation being first used, albeit briefly in 1928. The track re-opened in 1950 for a single meeting and in 1952 the Wasps competed in the Third Division on the National League. The track closed early in 1954 and did not re-open until 1961 when the Wolves were introduced to the Provincial League. The track has almost been an ever-present ever since and currently operates in the British Elite League. Ole Olsen (speedway rider), Ole Olsen (in 1971 and 1975), Sam Ermolenko (in 1993) and Tai Woffinden (in 2013) were riders for the club when they became Speedway World Championship, World Speedway Champions. The Wolves are defending Elite League champions, having defeated the Belle Vue Aces in the 2016 play-off final.
24 Hours of Le Mans, Le Mans 24 Hours winner Richard Attwood is from the city.
Marathon
Wolverhampton is home to the Carver Wolverhampton City Marathon. The marathon is part of a series of events whose main goal is to raise money for charity.
Obstacle course race
The Tough Guy Race is held annually near Wolverhampton. The race is considered the first civilian obstacle course race.
Commonwealth Games
The City hosted the Cycling Time Trials for the 2022 Commonwealth Games on August 4th 2022. The start and finish was at West Park, with the route passing through the City Centre before heading out into city suburbs.
Places of interest
Notable people
There are a number of notable people who are associated with Wolverhampton.
Political figures associated with Wolverhampton include Enoch Powell MP, Sir Charles Pelham Villiers MP, who holds the record for the longest serving MP, Jane Stevenson (politician), Jane Stevenson MP, Helene Hayman, Baroness Hayman, who was the first
Lord Speaker
The Lord Speaker is the presiding officer, chairman and highest authority of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The office is analogous to the Speaker of the House of Commons: the Lord Speaker is elected by the membe ...
within the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
, former Cabinet minister Stephen Byers, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson, who briefly worked as a writer for the '' Express & Star'', Henry Fowler, 1st Viscount Wolverhampton, a solicitor and Liberal politician, David Wright (diplomat), David Wright, a former UK Ambassador to Japan, and Button Gwinnett, who was a signatory of the US United States Declaration of Independence, Declaration of Independence and briefly served as Governor of Georgia.
There are many sportspeople associated with the city, with footballers such as Billy Wright (footballer born 1924), Billy Wright, Steve Bull, Bert Williams (footballer, born 1920), Bert Williams and Jimmy Mullen (footballer born 1923), Jimmy Mullen; along with Percy Stallard and
Hugh Porter
Hugh William Porter MBE (born Wolverhampton, England, 27 January 1940) is one of Britain's greatest former professional cyclists, winning four world titles in the individual pursuit - more than any other rider - as well as a Commonwealth Games ...
within the world of cycling, the Olympic medallist swimmer Anita Lonsbrough, professional darts player Wayne Jones (darts player), Wayne Jones, racing driver and winner of the 24 hours of Le Mans Richard Attwood as well as athletes such as Tessa Sanderson and Denise Lewis and cricketer Vikram Solanki who grew up here and played for Wolverhampton Cricket Club before joining Worcestershire County Cricket Club, Worcestershire.
Entertainers include actors Nigel Bennett,
Goldie
Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is a British music producer and DJ.
Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musician in ...
, Frances Barber, Meera Syal and Eric Idle; and musicians Noddy Holder, Dave Hill,
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and ...
, Dave Holland, Maggie Teyte, Edward Elgar, Mitch Harris, Robert Plant, Bibio, Paul Raven (musician), Paul Raven, trap-metal rapper Scarlxrd, and Liam Payne of the group
One Direction
One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the g ...
; and television presenters Suzi Perry, Mark Rhodes and Mark Speight. The socially conservative future president of the Mediawatch-UK, National Viewers' and Listeners' Association, Mary Whitehouse, lived in Wolverhampton between 1939 and the early 1960s before relocating to Shropshire.Report by Toby Neal, part of 'Great Lives' series on Midlands worthies.
Within the area of commerce and industry, Sir Sir Alfred Hickman, 1st Baronet, Alfred Hickman (first Chairman of Tarmac Limited, Tarmac), Sir Geoffrey Le Mesurier Mander, Geoffrey Mander, John Marston (industrialist), John Marston founder of Sunbeam Cycles and Sunbeam Motor Car Company, John Wilkinson (industrialist), John 'Iron Mad' Wilkinson (pioneer of Cast iron) and Mervyn King, the former Governor of the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government o ...
, are amongst the most notable. Prof Ernest Geoffrey Cullwick, a specialist in electromagnetism and its effects on atomic particles, was born and raised in Wolverhampton. ''Thief-Taker General'', Jonathan Wild (ca.1682–1725) came from the town.
*
{{Authority control
Wolverhampton,
Towns in the West Midlands (county)
Cities in the West Midlands (region)
Metropolitan boroughs of the West Midlands (county)
NUTS 3 statistical regions of the United Kingdom
Populated places established in the 10th century
History of Staffordshire
985 establishments
Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership
10th-century establishments in England
Unparished areas in the West Midlands (county)