In 2025, Bradford Literature Festival (BLF) teamed up with HTT to launch a brand new Historical Map of Bradford: Wool Capital of the World. The map was created with the aim of giving a fresh look at how Bradford grew from a tiny Northern village into an industrial powerhouse of huge importance.
UK Historic Towns Trust (HTT) is a charity that researches and creates historical maps and atlases charting the development of towns and cities across England, Scotland and Wales. It’s made up of local community members, historians, geographers, and archaeologists who work closely together on each map, with the aim of empowering and inspiring future generations to understand, appreciate and preserve urban heritage and history.
An Historical Map of Bradford shows three key conservation areas of Bradford: the city centre, Manningham and Little Germany. Created using an early Ordnance Survey map as its foundation, it shows how during the Industrial Revolution Bradford grew rapidly from a humble medieval village and small market town into a massive manufacturing centre.
The map shows building long since disappeared, industrial sites old and new, a number of cemeteries, as well as sites of interest. These are displayed alongside illustrations explaining the development of the city, which though rapid was extremely complex.
The new map was launched in the striking Bradford City Hall as part of BLF 2025. Those lucky enough to be in attendance heard from local archaeologist and project lead Ian Roberts, HTT’s Cartographic Editor and expert mapmaker Giles Darkes, as well as Bradford-born historian and author of Four Points of the Compass Jerry Brotton.
As part of the event, the speakers talked about the creation of the map, including the huge amount of research needed. They did say, however, that as meticulous as this was, it threw up more than a few fascinating discoveries. The audiences also discovered how a blend of historic and contemporary features revealed Bradford’s brilliant story, showcasing its rapid rise from village to powerhouse during the wool and cotton boom. The map was displayed for visitors to see, taking in all its glory with their own eyes.
The incredibly detailed map, created lovingly and painstakingly by a team of experts, received a brilliant response from festival audiences. In fact, it ranked number one in book sales at Waterstones Festival Hub pop-up bookshop.
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