Walking with Giants

For a town of its size, Wellington has an extraordinary range of literary connections that would be the envy of far larger localities. It was the birthplace of the best-selling international Victorian novelist and social reformer Hesba Stretton, played a starring role in the foundation of the Brönte dynasty (father Patrick was a curate here), and was the location where the travel writer Bruce Chatwin, author of the evocative Marches-based opus On the Black Hill, was educated. Philip Larkin, one of the twentieth century’s great literary figures, also began his professional career as a librarian here, in which time his only two novels and first collection of poetry, The North Ship, were published. Doctor William Withering, one of the town’s most celebrated sons, was born here in 1741. He was responsible for publishing the first contemporary scientific account of British plantlife but is probably better known for his exhaustive studies into the properties of Digitalis, which helped establish a template for modern cardiac treatment.

Walking with Giants” is a project funded by West Midlands Railways, featuring the international cultural connections of Wellington and The Wrekin.
The website and accompanying booklet profile some of the most famous names associated with the town, some of the unlikely locations in which Wellington and the Wrekin’s world-beating cultural story unfolded.
Also featured are in-depth stories featuring a cast of characters with cultural connections to the area, both real and imagined.
There is also a heritage map, pinpointing twenty locations showing the connections to Wellington’s cultural heritage in practically every corner of town.

Free booklets are available in Wellington Library, the Orbit community cinema and cafe and various locations around town.