Telford was designated as a new town in 1963, yet its history stretches back through centuries of industrial innovation and settlement. The area that became Telford includes some of the most significant sites of the Industrial Revolution.
Early Settlement and Industrial Roots
Early settlement in the area was on land sloping up from the Weald Moors towards the Roman Watling Street. Farmland surrounded the 10th-century estates of Wellington, Wrockwardine, and Lilleshall. From the 13th century, urban development occurred in Wellington and Madeley, where Wenlock Priory founded a new town. Six monastic houses, established in the 11th and 12th centuries, contributed to the area's economic growth through coal and ironstone mines and iron smithies.
The Ironbridge Gorge, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is internationally recognised as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. Abraham Darby I perfected iron smelting at the original blast furnace in the gorge, a development that triggered the Industrial Revolution. The Iron Bridge, the world's first cast-iron bridge of its size, was erected over the River Severn in 1779. Thomas Telford, the Scottish-born civil engineer after whom the town is named, became Surveyor of Public Works for Shropshire in 1787.
The area was also the site of the 1821 Cinderloo Uprising, when 3,000 people protested against wage reductions in the local coal industry. Three striking colliers died during the protest.
Designation and the New Town
The town was originally designated as Dawley New Town on 16 January 1963 by the Conservative administration. It covered 9,100 acres, including Dawley, Wenlock, Oakengates, Wellington Rural District, and Shifnal Rural District. The first homes in the new Sutton Hill housing estate were occupied in 1967.
In 1968, the Minister proposed an extension of 12,000 acres to include the historic Ironbridge Gorge area. The Dawley New Town (Designation) Amendment (Telford) Order was made on 29 November 1968, extending the area by 10,143 acres and renaming it Telford. The new town was intended to grow to 220,000 or more by 1991. In 1963, Dawley new town aimed to accommodate 50,000 people from the West Midlands conurbation, growing to over 70,000. By 1983, Telford's population was just under 108,000.
Growth and Infrastructure
Most of Telford's infrastructure was built from the late 1960s through the 1970s, with major housing and commercial development continuing until the early 1990s. Many of the new town's residents relocated from the West Midlands conurbation, including Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Dudley, and Walsall. A majority of council house tenants were rehoused from inner-city Birmingham.
The M54 motorway was completed in 1983, connecting Telford to the M6 and the rest of the UK's motorway network. The Telford Development Corporation was wound up in the early 1990s, replaced by the Commission for New Towns. Most property was transferred to the Wrekin District Council.
Modern Telford
The population of Telford's built-up area was 147,980 in the 2011 census. In 2007, a £250 million regeneration plan for the town centre was announced, including pedestrianisation, new cafes, bars, and shops, expected to create 1,750 new jobs. The first phase of the town-centre development, Southwater, was completed in 2014, featuring a refurbished library, restaurants, a Cineworld IMAX Cinema, and a bowling alley and arcade.
Telford has attracted several large IT services companies, including EDS, Capgemini, and Fujitsu. In 2019, Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land established itself in Telford, working on the Challenger 2 Life Extension Project. The town is administratively part of the West Midlands region and is entirely parished within the borough of Telford and Wrekin.