Wolverhampton History

 

Prince Albert's StatueA statue of Prince Albert (shown above) in full military uniform mounted on a horse was unveiled in 1866 on High Green, renamed Queen's Square after this illustrious occasion: the first public appearance of the monarch since her consorts death. The statue replaced a Russian cannon captured from Sebastopol in the Crimea in 1855. Interestingly the metal used to strike the Victoria Cross (awarded to only 1,351 men) comes from Russian guns seized at Sebastopol.

Central LibraryThe present building stands at the junction off Garrick Street and Cleveland Road and dates from the turn of the last century it's dedication reading: 'To Commemorate the 60th Year of Queen Victoria's Reign'. The exterior features the names of such literary luminaries as Chaucer, Dryden, Pope, Shelley and Shakespeare. The building rests on the site of the old Theatre Royal.

Art GalleryErected in 1884 in Lichfield Street it houses over 12,000 items and was the recipient of three major bequests: Sidney Cartwright, tinsmith and magistrate donated over two hundred works of mostly British art from the eighteenth and nineteenth century. Industrialist Paul Lutz. And Philip Horman, the founder of the gallery, which cost him £8,500. A fountain celebrating his gift stands in front of St Peter's. The gallery also hosts temporary exhibitions and has a significant collection of modern popular art.

Grand Theatre.First opened on 10 December 1894 and at one time the last surviving theatre in the Black Country leading on from the fall of vaudeville and the rise of cinema and TV. Funded by the National Lottery and partnership funding for the European Regional Development fund at a 'grand' total of eight million pounds, refurbishment began in 1998. It currently has a seating capacity of 1,200. Charlie Chaplin made one of his first stage appearances at the Grand as Dr Watson's pageboy in Sherlock Holmes. Churchill has spoken there, and David Lloyd George.

Bantock HouseA grade II listed building built between 1734-88 and known originally as Merridale Farm; Baldwin Bantock inherited it from his father in 1896. It reopened in May 1999 with money from the Heritage Lottery fund enabling the gardens to be re-created to Baldwin Bantock's (he was a keen gardener) original designs. The first floor is devoted to a comprehensive history of the district.

Wightwick Manor
Samuel Theodore Mander (1853-1900) of the paint and varnish firm constructed a mock-Tudor building to house his collection of Arts and Crafts furnishings, stained glass, and works of art by such as Burne-Jones, even Walter Swinburne's bed. Sir Geoffrey Mander donated the estate to the National Trust in 1937.

BeattiesBegan as a corner shop on Victoria Street in 1877 its two staff living on the premises. By 1895 staff levels had increased to forty and went on to comprise nine stores nationwide; part of the secret of Beatties success was experimenting with opening hours for example opening late, a move which proved popular with the public.

ConclusionIn 1872 the Report of the Medical Officer of Health supported the construction of a public park. There had been epidemics of typhoid, cholera and small pox due to lack of sanitation and it was felt beneficial to public health for an area of space to be laid aside where residents might breath clean air away from the town's open sewers. West Park was opened in 1881, East Park following in 1896.

Today there are over 1,400 acres of parks and public spaces. Wolverhampton is home to Wolverhampton Wanderers, formed in 1880 and one of the founders of the Football League. It also has the only surviving West Midlands racecourse, Dunstall Park, which has recently undergone a £15.7 million overhaul thanks to funding from City Challenge. Impressive floodlighting and an all-weather surface greet the ardent race-goer.

There are the recently refurbished Mander and Wufrun shopping centres; an award-winning market (est. in the thirteenth century); a new bus station, police station and county court, and in 1998 Midland Metro (Line 1) from Birmingham opened proving the ability and adaptability of Wolverhampton to move with the times just as it did when it boasted ownership of the country's first automatic traffic lights in 1927.

Wolverhampton became a borough on 15 March 1848. And in 2000, in honour of the Millennium and the Queen's Golden Jubilee, was made a city. Wolverhampton's crowning moment in a long and distinguished history.

Wolverhampton then, and now, welcomes you.