Historical Facts
10 claims to fame for Slough
- Astronomer Royal, Sir William Herschel came to live in Slough in 1786. His major astronomical discovery was the planet Uranus, but he continued to observe the heavens for many years after, with the help of a 40 foot telescope assembled in his back garden
- Charles Dickens had two connections with Slough - his publisher Richard Bentley lived here, and so did Nelly Ternan, his unpublicised mistress
- Queen Victoria made her first railway journey from Slough to London in June 1842. The directors of the Great Western Railway had had a Royal train carriage ready for her two years before, but the Queen had been nervous of travelling on the new railway
- Cox's Orange Pippin was first grown by Richard Cox of Colnbrook (now within Slough Borough).
It was first recorded in 1857
- Mrs Sinkins' Pink is another horticultural first for Slough.
It was grown by John Thomas Sinkins, the master of the Slough Workhouse, and named after his wife
- Slough Trading Estate is now Europe's largest trade estate in single ownership
- There's a certain poem by John Betjeman - but we don't talk about that.
-
In 1998 local people were encouraged to lay his 'friendly bombs' to rest by composing their own tributes to the town,
and Booker Prize-winning author Ben Okri was inspired to
contribute his own poetic response
- Slough has been the home of the Mars Bar since production began in 1932
- Britain's first black female mayor was appointed in Slough
in 1984
- Slough Ice Arena has been used to train many British ice skaters, including British champions Torvill & Dean
