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Solihull, West Midlands

THE TOWN of Solihull is steeped in history. Its name is commonly thought to have derived from the position of its parish church, St Alphege – on a “soily” hill.

The first known reference to the town is in a tax list dated around 1180, but there is some evidence to suggest that settlers were living nearby from considerably earlier than that. The Anglo-Saxon settlement of Ulverlei, the area known as Olton today, was just two miles down the road. The De Limesi family owned Ulverlei and it is likely that nearby Solihull was founded during their lordship.

The town was probably a market centre and was chosen because of its accessibility. It lay at the centre of two very important roads – one linking Birmingham with Warwick and the other linking Worcester with Coventry. The routes would have been busy with trade and it was around about this time that Solihull really became established.

Freemen, many of who became master craftsmen, rented plots in the town. The production of leather ware, metal goods and cloth encouraged the settlement to flourish. In 1242 Solihull gained a charter from Henry III to hold a weekly market.

There was little significant change for centuries. Trade came and went and Solihull remained a significant stop off point for travellers. Up to four coaches a day travelled through the town to reach London. One of the most important coaching inns – the George Hotel – is still standing today.

The arrival of the canals and also trains in the 19th century had a massive impact on the area and its wealth. The opening of the Great Western line from Birmingham to Oxford then later to London really put Solihull on the map.

Although the town had never undergone an industrial revolution – it had no real manufacturing base - it became home to many of those who had newfound prosperity because of the economic boom. Many industrialists and businessmen settled in Solihull and its surrounding areas and the town is still home to many of their descendants.

A little over 100 years ago Solihull created its own Rural District Council. By 1932 this had been succeeded by Solihull Urban District Council and when the town was granted a charter by the present Queen in 1954 it became a municipal borough.

In 1974, under the reorganisation of local government, the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull was born and it is this structure which remains today.

The area around the town has always attracted visitors. Shakespeare’s Stratford is a 20-minute journey away, Packwood House and Baddesley Clinton are popular tourist attractions and the shopper’s paradise of Birmingham is within a train ride. The National Exhibition Centre is just on the doorstep too.

But in the last two years the town centre itself has undergone a revival. The main shopping area around Mell Square is still thriving with many of the big High Street stores lining its four sides.

But it is the multi-million pound Touchwood development which has put the once sleepy Solihull, very firmly on the tourist map. Solihull now has its own town centre cinema, for the first time in almost 20 years. It has a shopping mall to rival those in the capital and an arts complex with which boasts a comprehensive lending library, its own theatre and tourist information centre.

This is a town looking to the future in everyway. It has embraced the challenges of the new millennium and will continue to build on its success.

For more information about Solihull visit www.solihullobserver.co.uk

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