A TIMELINE OF BRADFORD HISTORY
By Tim Lambert
1086 Bradford is a large village with a population of about 300. It later grows into a small market town. Wool and leather are made in the town.
1461 Bradford is granted the right to hold 2 annual fairs, a sign of its growing importance.
1557-58 Bradford is struck by plague. Nevertheless the town grows larger and more important. Wool is the main industry.
1642 During the Civil War Royalists try to take Bradford but they are beaten off
1643 The Royalists capture Bradford and sack it
1644 Parliamentary troops recapture Bradford
1645 Plague strikes Bradford
1720 Bradford has a population of about 4,000
1771 the first bank opens in Bradford
1801 the population of Bradford is over 6,000
1803 A body of men is formed in Bradford with powers to pave, clean and light the streets
1823 The streets Bradford are lit by gas
1846 The railway reaches Bradford
1847 A corporation if formed in Bradford
1848-49 420 people die in a cholera epidemic in Bradford
1851 Bradford has a population of 103,000
1853-71 Sir Titus Salt builds a model village at Saltaire
1863 Peel Park opens
1872 The first public library opens in Bradford
1882 Horse drawn trams run in Bradford
1889 Electricity is first generated in Bradford
1897 Bradford is made a city
1904 Cartwright Memorial Hall is built
1907 The first council houses are built in Bradford
1916 A fire in a munitions factory kills 39 people in Bradford
1919 The Church of St Peter is made Bradford Cathedral
1950s Many immigrants arrive in Bradford
1959 Cliffe Castle Museum opens
1966 Bradford University opens
1971 The Kirkgate Centre opens
1974 Bradford Industrial Museum opens. Bradford is made a Metropolitan District Council
1977 A Transport Interchange opens
1983 The Museum of Photography, Film and Television opens
1990 Bradford Law Courts are built
1996 The Wool Exchange is refurbished and reopens as a shopping centre
1997 The Peace Museum opens
2001 Riots take place in Bradford