TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION E. 551 
conditions, for peninsulas of high ground lay between the valleys of the Tame, 
the Rea, and the Cole, and in each valley there existed extensive and almost 
impassable marsh-land, which could only be crossed at certain. well-defined 
points, and here ran the ancient ways which connected the towns of the north 
and west with those of the south and east. 
The existence of Birmingham is recorded in Domesday Book, but it is seldom 
mentioned in the historical records of the country previous to the time of the 
Stuarts; yet during that period the place was growing in size and importance. 
From the surrounding centres of population already established trackways 
converged upon this locality, which thus became a centre—a meeting-place for 
individuals and a market for the exchange of commodities. In the reign of 
Henry II. the lord of the manor secured rights to establish a market. Small 
as this was, compared with our present-day idea of a market, it was sufficient 
to give the place an advantage over other localities; for the possession of a 
favoured and established market not only attracted traders, but also necessitated 
the provision of accommodation for those traders and their wares. It was from 
such small beginnings that the trade, and, later, the local manufactures of the 
town developed. Practically every writer on old Birmingham refers to the town 
in this twofold aspect. 
With the development of the coal and iron industry in South Staffordshire 
the business of Birmingham increased, for, from being the market town, it 
became also the distributing centre; so that the one expanded in proportion 
as the development of the other progressed. 
The construction of canals which radiated from Birmingham, the improve- 
ments to the steam engine, followed later by the introduction of railways, gave 
an impetus to the town’s manufactures and to the industries of the Black 
Country, and further established Birmingham as a trading and distributing 
centre. 
The passing of Acts for the improvement of roads, buildings, markets, &c., 
in the early part of the nineteenth century marks the beginning of the trans- 
formation of Birmingham from an overgrown market-town into the chief 
Midland commercial centre. 
Its later progress is due to the industrial skill and inventive genius of its 
inhabitants, and to that commercial enterprise which has recognised and utilised 
the advantages that depend on geographical situation. 
5. The Black Country and its Borderland. By H. Kay. 
Five county boroughs and a score of smaller towns crowd the small area 
known as the Black Country, whilst Birmingham and its suburbs stand at its 
south-eastern corner. The population approaches 1,750,000, and is perhaps 
denser than that of any area of equal size outside London. The presence of so 
many people is due to the abundance of valuable minerals near the surface and 
to the industries which have arisen in consequence. Birmingham had initial 
advantages of situation, as, by reason of the swamp-bound rivers Tame and 
Rea, she stood at the natural meeting-place of all lines of communication 
between north-west and south-east. Her market. therefore, was the most 
accessible in the Midlands. Manufactures arose owing to the proximity of the 
Black Country, for whose productions Birmingham became the chief distributing 
centre. The city still retains the dual character thus impressed upon her. 
The mineral wealth of the Black Country consisted of unrivalled stores of 
coal and of ironstone, together with limestone, fire-clay, and brick-clay. One 
seam of coal is ten yards thick. The mines of the central portion are now 
largely exhausted, or flooded by water, and fresh supplies are being developed 
east and west. Limestone is got from underground workings at Dudley, the 
Wren’s Nest, and Walsall, and magnificent caverns have been excavated at these 
places. Fire-clay is obtained from the Stour Valley, and brick-clay is abundant 
everywhere. 
Local place-names are chiefly of Saxon origin, and Saxon architecture is 
visible at St. Kenelm’s Church near Clent. Dudley Castle possesses historical 
associations ranging from Saxon times to the Hanoverian period, and its ruins 
are most interesting. Norman architecture may be seen at Wolverhampton, in 
