Telford Pictures From The Past

WITHIN the space of a generation the towns and villages in east Shropshire were transformed in a whirlwind of change. Bulldozers were let off the leash in a grand plan to meld disparate communities with proud histories into one new town. This is Telford.

Over the formative years of Dawley New Town, and its successor Telford New Town, the Shropshire Star's photographers recorded the destruction and construction, the people and places, as a painful transition got under way.

These photographs form the backbone of this book. They will bring back bittersweet memories for older folk, who remember with sadness the old which was sacrificed to make way for the new.

For others, they are a fascinating glimpse at the days before Telford, and the tumultuous era which shaped the present-day town.

About the Authors

Both Toby Neal and Phil Gillan have been journalists in Shropshire for many years.