Bilston | |
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The Greyhound and Punchbowl |
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Bilston shown within the West Midlands | |
Population | 25,576 (2011.Wards) |
OS grid reference | SO951964 |
Metropolitan borough | |
Metropolitan county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | BILSTON |
Postcode district | WV14 |
Dialling code | 01902 |
Police | West Midlands |
Fire | West Midlands |
Ambulance | West Midlands |
EU Parliament | West Midlands |
UK Parliament | |
Bilston is a town in the English county of West Midlands, situated in the southeastern corner of the City of Wolverhampton. Historically in Staffordshire, three wards of Wolverhampton City Council cover the town: Bilston East and Bilston North, which almost entirely comprise parts of the historic Borough of Bilston, and Ettingshall which comprises a part of Bilston and parts of Wolverhampton.
Bilston was first referred to in AD 985 as Bilsatena when Wolverhampton was granted to Wulfrun then in 996 as Bilsetnatun in the grant charter of St. Mary's Church (now St. Peter's Collegiate Church, Wolverhampton). It is later mentioned in the Domesday Book as a village called Billestune, being a largely rural area until the 19th century. Bilsetnatun can be interpreted as meaning the settlement (ton) of the folk (saetan) of the ridge (bill).
Situated two miles southeast of Wolverhampton, it was extensively developed for factories and coal mining. Many houses were constructed in the Bilston area. Between 1920 and 1966, the council replaced most of the 19th-century terraced houses with rented modern houses and flats on developments like Stowlawn, the Lunt and Bunker's Hill. By 1964 there were more than 6,000 council houses there.
Bilston has had a market in the town centre for many years.
Bilston Urban District Council was formed in 1894 under the Local Government Act 1894 covering the ancient parish of Bilston. The urban district was granted a Royal Charter in 1933, becoming a municipal borough and the First Charter Mayor was Alderman Herbert Beach.