This new book by Ned Williams takes a fresh look at the town of Dudley, often known as the Capital of the Black Country. Dudley occupies a special position in the Black Country--right in the center of the ridge that bisects the region. It became industrialized in the same way as its neighbors, but the presence of its castle and zoo, as well as its fine town center and its attractive residential districts made it seem more than just another Black Country town. In truth, Dudley had to face all the grim implications of nineteenth-century rapid industrialization, and it spent the first half of the twentieth century overcoming all its problems. Then came local government reorganization (in 1966 and 1974) and the proud borough that had been created in 1865 suddenly took on a new form. This book looks back to the pre-1966 version of Dudley and studies the life and times of a rather special town: a town of which Dudley people were very proud.
