Preston
was established as a port at the head of the estuary of the River
Ribble. It became important from Roman times as a river crossing and
rich from the weaving of wool
in the Middle Ages.
John Horrocks established the first cotton
mill in Preston in 1786. The first railway in the town was built
in 1803 to connect the southern and northern sections of the Lancaster
Canal. This was followed by a short railway between the quarries of
Longridge to Preston.
Preston had been first represented in
Parliament in 1295. Unlike most boroughs, the right to vote in parliamentary
elections had been granted to all inhabitants of the town. Although
Lord Derby, a supporter of the Whigs,
controlled one of the seats, the other MP was often someone freely
elected by the people of Preston. This created the possibility of
Radical candidates being victorious.
In 1830, Henry 'Orator' Hunt, the most prominent
Radical in England, was elected to represent Preston. In the House
of Commons, Hunt proposed the Preston-type of universal suffrage for
the whole country: "a franchise which excluded all paupers and
criminals but otherwise recognized the principle of an equality of
political rights that all who paid taxes should have the vote."
In 1838 the National Union Railway linked Preston to London,
Liverpool and Manchester.
These lines were eventually obtained by the Lancashire
& Yorkshire Railway. This increased economic activity and
between 1801 and 1901, the population of Preston increased from 14,000
to 115,000.
(1)
Daniel Defoe, A Tour Through the Whole
Island of Great Britain (1724)
Preston is a fine town, but not like Liverpool
or Manchester. Here's no manufacture; the town is full of attorneys,
proctors, and notaries. The people are gay here; it has by that obtained
the name of Proud Preston.
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