WYRE FOREST

district, administrative county of Worcestershire, west-central England, in the northern part of the county. Nearly all of the district lies in the historic county of Worcestershire, except for an area around Upper Arley that belongs to the historic county of Staffordshire and a small area south of Upper Arley that belongs to the historic county of Shropshire. Wyre Forest district, named after the remnant woodlands extending across its northwestern boundary with the county of Shropshire, is a pastoral area of parts of the Stour and Severn river valleys. The rivers and the historically important Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal merge at the parish (town) of Stourport-on-Severn, the administrative centre, at the southern tip of the district. Stourport-on-Severn and the old town of Bewdley (also on the Severn) were, during different eras, terminal points of navigation between the Bristol Channel and the Birmingham area. Today the extensive river frontage of the towns is used for recreational purposes. Kidderminster, on the River Stour 3 miles (5 km) north of Stourport-on-Severn, is the birthplace of Sir Rowland Hill, the originator (1840) of Britain's former Penny Post system. It is the principal centre (since 1735) of the British carpet industry. Other industries produce electrical equipment, chemicals, and refined sugar. Stourport, one of England's towns built specifically to accommodate the needs of the canal era, retains many original houses and warehouses dating back to the 18th century; it is occasionally referred to as the Venice of the Midlands. Area 76 square miles (196 square km). Pop. (1998 est.) 96,300.