Walsall
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New Art Gallery Walsall |
Walsall is an industrial town in the
West Midlands of
England. It is located northwest of
Birmingham and east of
Wolverhampton. Walsall is a part of the West Midlands
conurbation, is traditionally within the county of
Staffordshire, and is sometimes described as part of the
Black Country.
Walsall is the administrative headquarters of the
Walsall Metropolitan Borough. In the
2001 census, the town had a population of
170,994 with the surrounding borough having a population of
252,800. Neighbouring towns in the borough include
Willenhall,
Bloxwich and
Aldridge.
The name Walsall is thought to have derived from the words "Walh halh", meaning "valley of the foreigners" (referring to the
Celts). Walsall is first referenced as 'Walesho' in a document dated
1002, however it is not referenced in the Doomsday Book. By the first part of the
13th century, Walsall was a small market town, with the weekly market being introduced in
1220. The Mayor of Walsall was created as a political position in the
14th century. Walsall is known as "the town of a hundered trades".
Walsall suffered greatly in the hands of the town planners in the 1970s with much good old and medieval property being flattened to make way for a concrete town centre like so many other Midland towns. The town further suffers with misguided attempts to reverse this damage to this day with ill thought out office and retail zone schemes brought about by external experts. The two new Asda and Tesco superstores, together with council apathy and a scheme to reduce and relocate, will finally see the end of the once famous Walsall Market, which was once the reason for the town's existence.
Queen Mary's Grammar School was founded by
Mary I of England in
1554, and the school carries the queen's personal badge as its emblem; the
Tudor Rose and the sheaf of
arrows of
Catherine of Aragon tied with a Staffordshire knot.
The industrial revolution changed Walsall from a
village of 2,000 people in the
16th century to a
town of over 86,000 in approximately 200 years. It is a local story, although perhaps not accurate, that Walsall declined a
railway line, which was later given to Birmingham, now England's
second city. Walsall finally received a railway line in
1847, 48 years after
canals reached the town.
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Alumwell*
Beechdale*
Bentley*
Birchills*
Bloxwich*
Caldmore*
Chuckery*
Coalpool*
The Delves*
Goscote*
Leamore*
Palfrey*
Park Hall*
Pleck*
Rushall*
Ryecroft*
StreetlyWalsall has had many industries, from
coal mining to metal working, but in the late
19th century the coal mines ran dry, and Walsall became internationally famous for the
leather trade. Walsall still manufactures the
Queen's handbags, and Walsall leather products have been found as far afield as
Italy, which prompted some embarrassment when a husband gave one to his wife as a present after a business trip, when she realised she immediately assumed that the handbag had been bought when the husband returned. Walsall is the traditional home of the English
saddle manufacture industry, thus the nickname of Walsall FC: The Saddlers. Apart from leather goods, other industries in Walsall include
iron and
brass founding,
limestone quarrying, small hardware,
plastics,
electronics, chemicals, and
aircraft parts.
Walsall has two Bus stations, St Pauls and Bradford Place. Services from St Pauls leave Walsall in many directions; there are services south-east to
Birmingham; west to
Wolverhampton,
Willenhall and
Bloxwich; north to
Cannock and
Brownhills; and east to
Sutton Coldfield and
Aldridge, with many to the latter. In addition, more infrequent services to
Lichfield are run. St Pauls is also home to the Walsall Information Centre. Bradford Place operates buses mainly to the south and south-west, to
West Bromwich,
Oldbury,
Dudley and
Stourbridge.
Walsall also has a busy railway station; services operate to
Birmingham,
Shrewsbury via
Wolverhampton, and
Stafford. See
Walsall railway station for more details.
Mulhouse since 1953.
The local council is presently
Conservative controlled. The Mayor is
Liberal Democrat Councillor John Cook. For further details, see
Metropolitan Borough of Walsall.
The
Walsall Memorial Gardens and Arboretum opened in
1952 and holds the second biggest
Illuminations in the country, attracting an estimated 250,000 visitors annually. Originally white bulbs in trees for courting couples in the autumn, the 1960's and 70's saw them purchase their lights second hand from
Blackpool, but over they years they have been increasingly made 'in house' - indeed they all are now, and it has been said that Blackpool is no longer willing to sell lights to Walsall as it is too much of a competitor.
The
New Art Gallery Walsall opened in the year
2000. It contains a large number of works by
Jacob Epstein as well as works by
Van Gogh,
Monet,
Turner,
Renoir and
Constable.
Near to the Art Gallery and St Pauls Bus Station, Walsall College can be found. The Town is also the home to one of the University of Wolverhampton's Halls of residence accommodating students studying teaching and sports related subjects.
Walsall is also famous for its relationship to
John Wesley and
Francis Asbury who began the Methodist movement in the United States. The latter was born in
Handsworth,
Birmingham and lived for a large part of his life close to the
Sandwell/Walsall border.
Walsall Leather Museum documents the town's leather industry.
Walsall's football club,
Walsall F.C.,
The Saddlers, was founded in
1888 when
Walsall Town F.C. and
Walsall Swifts F.C. merged. They won their first game against
Aston Villa F.C.. The club currently play in
Football League Two and are managed by newly appointed
Richard Money.
Pork scratchings are the most famous local snack.
A local landmark is
Barr Beacon, which is reportedly the highest point following its latitude Eastwards until the Ural Mountains of Russia. There was a plaque on the summit attesting to this, unfortunately it has been repeatedly stolen.
One of the more amusing pieces of public art which has been on display in the town centre was the infamous
concrete hippo, which once stood proudly opposite the statue of Sister Dora, but has now been replaced by a water fountain, the hippo lurking in the corner of the square.
The writer
Jerome K. Jerome was born in Walsall, as was the
Coronation Street actress
Sue Nicholls, Olympic swimmer
Nick Gillingham, screenwriter Mark Oakley and the
BBC Radio 2 presenter
Alex Lester.
Comedienne
Meera Syal is from the district, and went to
Queen Mary's High School.
Noddy Holder, lead singer of 70's rock band
Slade, was born and lived on the
Beechdale estate in Walsall. Another famous musical resident of 'The Beechdale' was
Boy George, who spent much of his youth in the town.
Drum 'n' Bass legend,
Goldie, was born in Wolverhampton but lived in the Stroud Lane orphanage in Willenhall, and attended
St. Francis of Assisi RC Secondary School in
Aldridge.
Also from Walsall was the exciting 1930s Northamptonshire
batsman Fred Bakewell.
Comic book creator
John Byrne was born in Walsall but grew up in
Canada.
["Comic creator: John Byrne". URL retrieved 25 July 2006.] Sister Dora, another local, is honoured by a status in the centre of town, next to the legendary Concrete Hippo (known locally as George).
Colin Charvis, British and Irish Lion and Welsh International studied at
Queen Mary's Grammar School and played for Walsall RUFC.England Women's football star
Rachel Unitt was born in Bentley. Model
Erin O'Connor was also born and brought up in Walsall.
Heavy Metal legends Judas Priest are also from the area.
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BBC Black Country*
Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council*
New Art Gallery Walsall (Flash)
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Walsall Leather Museum*
Queen Mary's Grammar School*
Queen Mary's High School*
Walsall Wonderland - Alternative guide to Walsall*
Born in Walsall - photos of large mural*
Pictures of Fellows Park football ground - old home of Walsall FC*
Walsallfans.co.uk - Walsall FC supporters site*
Walsall Freecycle™ Group*
Walsall Freecycle™ Cafe Group*
Samaritans of Walsall & District - confidential emotional support 24/7 by phone or email
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The Best of Walsall ... find local Walsall businesses, news and events in Walsall*
Walsall on the web - The online guide to Walsall
