Welcome to the PrestonSun.co.uk Preston Facts n Figures page....thanks to Tony Worrell
Facts about Preston
Although not the first motorway under construction, the M6 at Preston was the first ever stretch of motorway in the UK. It opened in 1958.
Moor Park created 1833 is the first park in the country to which the right of public access was granted. It was also one of the first entierly public parks in the country.
Charles Dickens’ Hard Times is said to be based on his experiences in Preston during the mill lockouts of the 1800s. He stayed at the Bull & Royal hotel on Church Street.
Butch Cassidy’s father came from Preston.
A fast food virtually unique to Preston is parched peas (know variously as black, maple or carlin peas).
Preston North End were a founder member of the English football league in 1888 and they were the first football team to complete the FA cup and League championship double in 1889. Preston was (and is) known as the ‘home of footbal’.
Built in 1968 Preston has the second largest bus staion in Europe. However the building was widley considered to be too big, in the wrong location and difficult for the public to access. It is due to be demolished to make way for a new shopping centre and housing complex.
In 1964 Ray Allen opened the UK’s first Kentucky Fried Chicken store on Fishergate, Preston. Ray met Colonel Harland Sanders in 1963, securing the famous American fast food rights for his Secret Recipe fried chicken for the UK.
Richard Arkwright, born in Preston in 1732, was for 30 years a barber and wig maker. Although he (and John Kaye) perfected the spinning machinery in a house at Stonygate, Preston, his first mill was built in Derbyshire (after initial experiments in Nottingham).
St Walburge’s Church in Preston, at just over 300 feet, is the tallest church in England that is not a cathedral.
In 1816 Preston became the first place to be lit by gas light outside London.
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