Oldbury, West Midlands
Encyclopedia
Oldbury is a town
in the West Midlands
in England
. It is a part of the Black Country
and the administrative centre of the borough of Sandwell
.
, a detached part of Shropshire
(surrounded by Worcestershire
and Staffordshire
) until Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
, when it was incorporated back into Worcestershire
after an absence of nine-hundred years.
In 1966, Oldbury (which had become a municipal borough
in 1935) merged with the County Borough of Smethwick
and the Municipal Borough of Rowley Regis
to form the County Borough of Warley
, also taking in part of Tipton
and a tiny fragment of Dudley
. The county boundaries were also changed to include the whole of Warley
as part of Worcestershire.
Oldbury council built several thousands houses, flats and bungalows for some 40 years until its disbandment, the 1,000th of which was completed in 1933 at Wallace Road near the border with Rowley Regis
.http://www.historyofoldbury.co.uk/2timeline.htm
In 1974, Oldbury became part of the new Sandwell
Metropolitan Borough (a merger between the county boroughs of West Bromwich
and Warley) and is now in the West Midlands
Metropolitan County. Sandwell's headquarters are situated in Oldbury Town Centre.
Oldbury comes within the B68 and B69 postal districts, the latter of which also covers part of Tipton
.
born July 1946 - died 24 March 2010) Martin, educated at Oldbury Grammar School
, was a photographer, best-known for the iconic poster "Tennis Girl
".
Jack Judge
(christened John, born in Oldbury, Worcestershire born 3 December 1872, died 25 July 1938, West Bromwich) was a song-writer and music-hall entertainer best remembered for writing the song It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary.
The comedian Frank Skinner
was born in Oldbury at 181 Bristnall Hall Road. He attended Moat Farm Infants School, St Hubert's Roman Catholic Junior School and Oldbury Technical School, and has been a TV comedian since the late 1980s.
The Sadlers rose to become a preeminent family in Oldbury during the nineteenth century. Notable figures included John Sadler (1820-1910)
('the Grand Old Man of Oldbury') and Sir Samuel Alexander Sadler
.
Oldbury has a local branch of the Learning Skill Council situated at Black Country House.
The boxer
Pat Cowdell
, who achieved stardom during the 1970s and 1980s, was born in Oldbury and is still living in the town.
Mick Aston
the renowned archaeologist and star of the TV programme Time Team
was born in Oldbury and attended Oldbury Grammar School
Oldbury is the birthplace of Sir John Frederick Bridge who was a famous organist, composer and author. he was known as "Westminster Bridge" because of his long stint as organist at Westminster Abbey. He composed special music for Queen Victoria's Jubilee and King Edward VII's coronation, in addition to other choral, instrumental and organ music. His brother Joseph Cox Bridge was also an organist,composer and author. Becoming well known for his recorder compositions.
Oldbury is also home to former Iron Maiden and current Wolfsbane and BLAZE frontman Blaze Bayley.
Australian radio station 2SM talk-back host Gary Stewart was born in Oldbury on January 22 1960, he attended Rounds Green primary school from 1965-1967, he migrated with his family to Australia in 1968, he began his radio career in 1989.
It is also home to Sandeep Sangha, local sket. He lives with his wife Sandeep Sangha, also a dirty hoe.
was opened in Oldbury in 1864. The original building survives to this day, but was recently made redundant as a bank
and is now a Subway
fast food restaurant.
The first Asian restaurant was Deepak's Balti which opened 1940 which closed in 1965 after a fire.
In October 1980, retail giant J Sainsbury opened one of its first SavaCentre hypermarket
s in Oldbury town centre. 20 years later, it was rebranded as a traditional Sainsbury's store as the retailer gradually phased out the SavaCentre side of the business. The town has seen a large expansion in retail since then, including a Toys "R" Us superstore on Wolverhampton Road in about 1985 and Oldbury Green Retail Park on the town's ring road a decade later. This, along with the development of the Merry Hill Shopping Centre
some six miles away during the second half of the 1980s, has contributed to a decline in the fortunes of nearby West Bromwich
town centre as a retail centre.
Balti Valley Takeaway is one of the first Indian Takeaway in Oldbury opened in 1994.
http://www.baltivalley.webs.com
The oldest surviving one is on the Stour Valley line (former LMS
Railway), at Bromford Road. It has been there since the 1850s. It was originally called Oldbury & Bromford Lane Station, then Oldbury Station, but it is now known as Sandwell and Dudley
.
The second nearest railway station to the centre of Oldbury is at Langley Green
, at Western Road, on the Stourbridge Extension Line, now the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line
. It opened in April 1867 and was originally called Langley Green & Rood End Station. However a short half-mile long branch line, the Oldbury Railway, was linked to the station with its own (third) platform. It opened in November 1884; and Langley Green & Rood End Station was then renamed Langley Green
. The Oldbury Railway, which also linked to Albright and Wilson
, had both a passenger station, called Oldbury railway station
, on Halesowen Road; and a goods station, Oldbury Goods railway station, at the Birmingham Canal Navigations
wharf in Oldbury. Passenger services ran to Oldbury Station until March 1915; and the line closed completely other than as a freight line for Albright and Wilson. All traces of its viaduct
and embankment beyond Tat Bank Road were destroyed when the M5 motorway
was built.
The M5 has served Oldbury since 1964 and passes the town on an elevated section built on reinforced concrete
pillars. Access is from junction 2. This is also the closest junction to the Black Country Living Museum
in Dudley
.
' in Old English - a burh being a fortification or fortified town.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is a part of the Black Country
Black Country
The Black Country is a loosely defined area of the English West Midlands conurbation, to the north and west of Birmingham, and to the south and east of Wolverhampton. During the industrial revolution in the 19th century this area had become one of the most intensely industrialised in the nation...
and the administrative centre of the borough of Sandwell
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
.
Local government
Oldbury was part of the ancient parish of HalesowenHalesowen (ancient parish)
Halesowen was a medieval parish in the West Midlands of England.The townships of Halesowen, Cakemore, Hasbury, Hawne, Hill, Hunnington, Illey, Lapal, Oldbury, Ridgacre, Romsley and Warley Salop formed a detached part of Shropshire; the rest of the parish, consisting of the chapelries of Cradley...
, a detached part of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
(surrounded by Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
and Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
) until Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844
The Counties Act 1844 , which came into effect on 20 October 1844, was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which eliminated many outliers or exclaves of counties in England and Wales for civil purposes....
, when it was incorporated back into Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
after an absence of nine-hundred years.
In 1966, Oldbury (which had become a municipal borough
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...
in 1935) merged with the County Borough of Smethwick
Smethwick
Smethwick is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England. It is situated on the edge of the city of Birmingham, within the historic boundaries of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire....
and the Municipal Borough of Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis is a town in the Sandwell metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county and a part of the Black Country in the United Kingdom. Being part of the Black Country, locals speak with the traditional dialect, though in a form regarded by many as the quickest and the hardest to...
to form the County Borough of Warley
County Borough of Warley
Warley was a county borough and civil parish forming part of the West Midlands conurbation, England, and geographical county of Worcestershire. It was formed in 1966 by the combination of the existing county borough of Smethwick with the municipal boroughs of Oldbury and Rowley Regis Warley was a...
, also taking in part of Tipton
Tipton
Tipton is a town in the Sandwell borough of the West Midlands, England, with a population of around 47,000. Tipton is located about halfway between Birmingham and Wolverhampton. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is a part of the Black Country....
and a tiny fragment of Dudley
Dudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
. The county boundaries were also changed to include the whole of Warley
County Borough of Warley
Warley was a county borough and civil parish forming part of the West Midlands conurbation, England, and geographical county of Worcestershire. It was formed in 1966 by the combination of the existing county borough of Smethwick with the municipal boroughs of Oldbury and Rowley Regis Warley was a...
as part of Worcestershire.
Oldbury council built several thousands houses, flats and bungalows for some 40 years until its disbandment, the 1,000th of which was completed in 1933 at Wallace Road near the border with Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis
Rowley Regis is a town in the Sandwell metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county and a part of the Black Country in the United Kingdom. Being part of the Black Country, locals speak with the traditional dialect, though in a form regarded by many as the quickest and the hardest to...
.http://www.historyofoldbury.co.uk/2timeline.htm
In 1974, Oldbury became part of the new Sandwell
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
Metropolitan Borough (a merger between the county boroughs of West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
and Warley) and is now in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
Metropolitan County. Sandwell's headquarters are situated in Oldbury Town Centre.
Oldbury comes within the B68 and B69 postal districts, the latter of which also covers part of Tipton
Tipton
Tipton is a town in the Sandwell borough of the West Midlands, England, with a population of around 47,000. Tipton is located about halfway between Birmingham and Wolverhampton. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is a part of the Black Country....
.
Notable people
Martin ElliottMartin Elliott
Martin Elliott was a British photographer, best known for the poster "Tennis Girl".Elliott, an only child, was born into a middle-class family in Oldbury. He attended Oldbury Grammar School, then Loughborough College of Art. He met Noelle Bott in 1987, and was married to her from 15 February 1988...
born July 1946 - died 24 March 2010) Martin, educated at Oldbury Grammar School
Langley High School (Oldbury)
Oldbury Grammar School, later known as Langley High School, Oldbury High School or Oldbury College of Sport, was a secondary school located in Oldbury, West Midlands, England. It served the Warley area of Sandwell and was situated in Moat Road, Langley...
, was a photographer, best-known for the iconic poster "Tennis Girl
Tennis Girl
The Tennis Girl is a popular poster. It shows a young woman from behind walking towards the net of a tennis court with a tennis racquet in her right hand and her left hand reaching behind lifting her short tennis dress, showing she is not wearing any underwear.The photograph was taken by Martin...
".
Jack Judge
Jack Judge
Jack Judge was a song-writer and music-hall entertainer best remembered for writing the song It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary.- Life :...
(christened John, born in Oldbury, Worcestershire born 3 December 1872, died 25 July 1938, West Bromwich) was a song-writer and music-hall entertainer best remembered for writing the song It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary.
The comedian Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner is a British writer, comedian and actor. He is best known for his television presenting, often alongside David Baddiel, with whom he also collaborated for the football song "Three Lions."He is a radio presenter on the Saturday morning slot on Absolute Radio.-Youth and early career...
was born in Oldbury at 181 Bristnall Hall Road. He attended Moat Farm Infants School, St Hubert's Roman Catholic Junior School and Oldbury Technical School, and has been a TV comedian since the late 1980s.
The Sadlers rose to become a preeminent family in Oldbury during the nineteenth century. Notable figures included John Sadler (1820-1910)
John Sadler (1820-1910)
John Sadler was an industrialist and public figure associated with the town of Oldbury, Worcestershire , United Kingdom...
('the Grand Old Man of Oldbury') and Sir Samuel Alexander Sadler
Samuel Alexander Sadler
Sir Samuel Alexander Sadler Knight M.P. J.P. V.D. was an eminent industrialist, public servant and the first Conservative Member of Parliament for Middlesbrough, United Kingdom, the town with which his name is associated....
.
Oldbury has a local branch of the Learning Skill Council situated at Black Country House.
The boxer
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
Pat Cowdell
Patrick Cowdell
Patrick Cowdell is a retired boxer from Great Britain. Cowdell now lives just over the border from Smethwick in Oldbury.-Amateur career:...
, who achieved stardom during the 1970s and 1980s, was born in Oldbury and is still living in the town.
Mick Aston
Mick Aston
Professor Michael Antony 'Mick' Aston is a prominent English archaeologist. As an academic, he has taught at a number of universities across the United Kingdom, and has helped popularise the discipline amongst the British public by appearing as the resident academic on the Channel 4 television...
the renowned archaeologist and star of the TV programme Time Team
Time Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...
was born in Oldbury and attended Oldbury Grammar School
Langley High School (Oldbury)
Oldbury Grammar School, later known as Langley High School, Oldbury High School or Oldbury College of Sport, was a secondary school located in Oldbury, West Midlands, England. It served the Warley area of Sandwell and was situated in Moat Road, Langley...
Oldbury is the birthplace of Sir John Frederick Bridge who was a famous organist, composer and author. he was known as "Westminster Bridge" because of his long stint as organist at Westminster Abbey. He composed special music for Queen Victoria's Jubilee and King Edward VII's coronation, in addition to other choral, instrumental and organ music. His brother Joseph Cox Bridge was also an organist,composer and author. Becoming well known for his recorder compositions.
Oldbury is also home to former Iron Maiden and current Wolfsbane and BLAZE frontman Blaze Bayley.
Australian radio station 2SM talk-back host Gary Stewart was born in Oldbury on January 22 1960, he attended Rounds Green primary school from 1965-1967, he migrated with his family to Australia in 1968, he began his radio career in 1989.
It is also home to Sandeep Sangha, local sket. He lives with his wife Sandeep Sangha, also a dirty hoe.
Local Events
Lap of Oldbury - Sometimes referred to as 'Lap of shame' by many locals, the origins of this increasingly popular event are still unknown, however the future of the event is under threat as one of the original founding members has announced his permanent withdrawal, due to economic reasons.Notable businesses
The first branch of Lloyds BankLloyds Bank
Lloyds Bank Plc was a British retail bank which operated in England and Wales from 1765 until its merger into Lloyds TSB in 1995; it remains a registered company but is currently dormant. It expanded during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and took over a number of smaller banking companies...
was opened in Oldbury in 1864. The original building survives to this day, but was recently made redundant as a bank
Bank
A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...
and is now a Subway
Subway (restaurant)
Subway is an American restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches and salads. It is owned and operated by Doctor's Associates, Inc. . Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with 35,519 restaurants in 98 countries and territories as of October 25th, 2011...
fast food restaurant.
The first Asian restaurant was Deepak's Balti which opened 1940 which closed in 1965 after a fire.
In October 1980, retail giant J Sainsbury opened one of its first SavaCentre hypermarket
Hypermarket
In commerce, a hypermarket is a superstore combining a supermarket and a department store. The result is an expansive retail facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including full groceries lines and general merchandise...
s in Oldbury town centre. 20 years later, it was rebranded as a traditional Sainsbury's store as the retailer gradually phased out the SavaCentre side of the business. The town has seen a large expansion in retail since then, including a Toys "R" Us superstore on Wolverhampton Road in about 1985 and Oldbury Green Retail Park on the town's ring road a decade later. This, along with the development of the Merry Hill Shopping Centre
Merry Hill Shopping Centre
Westfield Merry Hill is a shopping centre in Brierley Hill near Dudley, West Midlands, England. It was developed between 1985 and 1990, with several expansion and renovation projects taking place since. The original developers and owners were Richardson Developments but the Centre has had a number...
some six miles away during the second half of the 1980s, has contributed to a decline in the fortunes of nearby West Bromwich
West Bromwich
West Bromwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands, England. It is north west of Birmingham lying on the A41 London-to-Birkenhead road. West Bromwich is part of the Black Country...
town centre as a retail centre.
Balti Valley Takeaway is one of the first Indian Takeaway in Oldbury opened in 1994.
http://www.baltivalley.webs.com
Transport links
For over thirty years there were three railway stations in the parish named Oldbury; only one is still open, but under a new name.The oldest surviving one is on the Stour Valley line (former LMS
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
Railway), at Bromford Road. It has been there since the 1850s. It was originally called Oldbury & Bromford Lane Station, then Oldbury Station, but it is now known as Sandwell and Dudley
Sandwell and Dudley railway station
Sandwell and Dudley railway station is on the Stour Valley Section of the West Coast Main Line, on the outskirts of Oldbury town centre on Bromford Lane , England....
.
The second nearest railway station to the centre of Oldbury is at Langley Green
Langley Green railway station
Langley Green railway station serves the Langley Green area of Oldbury in Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England. It is located on the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line...
, at Western Road, on the Stourbridge Extension Line, now the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line
Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line
The Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line is a commuter railway line from Birmingham Snow Hill to Worcester via Stourbridge and Kidderminster. It is part of the Snow Hill Lines, with trains operated by London Midland and Chiltern Railways using by and diesel units...
. It opened in April 1867 and was originally called Langley Green & Rood End Station. However a short half-mile long branch line, the Oldbury Railway, was linked to the station with its own (third) platform. It opened in November 1884; and Langley Green & Rood End Station was then renamed Langley Green
Langley Green railway station
Langley Green railway station serves the Langley Green area of Oldbury in Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England. It is located on the Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster Line...
. The Oldbury Railway, which also linked to Albright and Wilson
Albright and Wilson
Albright and Wilson was founded in 1856 as a United Kingdom manufacturer of potassium chlorate and white phosphorus for the match industry. For much of its first 100 years of existence, phosphorus-derived chemicals formed the majority of its products....
, had both a passenger station, called Oldbury railway station
Oldbury railway station
Oldbury was the terminal station on the Great Western Railway's, half mile long, Oldbury branch running from Langley Green railway station.- History :...
, on Halesowen Road; and a goods station, Oldbury Goods railway station, at the Birmingham Canal Navigations
Birmingham Canal Navigations
Birmingham Canal Navigations is a network of navigable canals connecting Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and the eastern part of the Black Country...
wharf in Oldbury. Passenger services ran to Oldbury Station until March 1915; and the line closed completely other than as a freight line for Albright and Wilson. All traces of its viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
and embankment beyond Tat Bank Road were destroyed when the M5 motorway
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from a junction with the M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley...
was built.
The M5 has served Oldbury since 1964 and passes the town on an elevated section built on reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
pillars. Access is from junction 2. This is also the closest junction to the Black Country Living Museum
Black Country Living Museum
The Black Country Living Museum is an open-air museum of rebuilt historic buildings, located in Dudley in the West Midlands of England. The museum occupies a urban heritage park in the shadow of Dudley Castle in the centre of the Black Country conurbation...
in Dudley
Dudley
Dudley is a large town in the West Midlands county of England. At the 2001 census , the Dudley Urban Sub Area had a population of 194,919, making it the 26th largest settlement in England, the second largest town in the United Kingdom behind Reading, and the largest settlement in the UK without...
.
Neighbourhoods
- Causeway Green
- Langley GreenLangley Green, West MidlandsLangley Green is a suburb of Birmingham, on the B4169 road, in the Sandwell District, in the English county of West Midlands. Langley Green has a library and a railway station called Langley Green railway station.- References :*A-Z Birmingham...
- WarleyWarleyWarley is the name of several places in the United Kingdom:In the West Midlands:*County Borough of Warley*Warley, West Midlands*Warley *Warley High School*Warley WoodsIn Essex:*Great Warley*Little Warley...
- BrandhallBrandhallBrandhall is a suburb of Oldbury in the south-west of Sandwell near the borders with Birmingham and Halesowen in the West Midlands. The development of the area commenced during the 1930s with the construction of several hundred private houses along the Hagley Road and Wolverhampton Road, as well as...
- Londonderry
- Rood End
- Brades Village
- Lion Farm
Schools
- Bristnall Hall Technology College
- Oldbury College of Sport
- Perryfields High School
Etymology
The place name Oldbury, comes from the Old English 'Ealdenbyrig', - signifying that Oldbury was old even in early English times over 1000 years ago. Eald being Old English for 'old', Byrig is the plural of 'burhBurh
A Burh is an Old English name for a fortified town or other defended site, sometimes centred upon a hill fort though always intended as a place of permanent settlement, its origin was in military defence; "it represented only a stage, though a vitally important one, in the evolution of the...
' in Old English - a burh being a fortification or fortified town.