Compton | |
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Compton shown within the West Midlands | |
Population | 1,326 (2001 Census) |
Metropolitan borough | |
Metropolitan county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Wolverhampton |
Postcode district | WV |
Dialling code | 01902 |
Police | West Midlands |
Fire | West Midlands |
Ambulance | West Midlands |
EU Parliament | West Midlands |
UK Parliament | |
Compton is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is located to the west of Wolverhampton city centre on the A454, within the Tettenhall Wightwick ward.
Compton sits nestled below the ridge that stretches south west from Aldersley, with some of its housing climbing the steep hill near 'The Holloway' on the climb towards Tettenhall Wood. Across the Smestow valley the terrain rises again in the direction of Finchfield. The valley here through which the Smestow Brook flows was formed as a glacial meltwater channel. The area was quarried for its sandstone.
Its place name reflects its position - first recorded in the Domesday book of 1086 as 'Contone', from Old English cumb - a narrow valley or deep hollow ('cumb' is likely a continuation in use or a loan word from Brythonic cwm (Welsh) or cum (Cornish), meaning 'valley'), and Old English tūn - a farmstead or fenced place.
Compton Lock on the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal was the starting point in 1766 for the construction of the canal under James Brindley.
In the late 19th-early 20th century, Compton was home of a distinguished local artist Joseph Vickers de Ville (1856–1925). It was during this time that the still existing terraced housing was built along Henwood Road near the Bridgnorth Road junction.