Crewe

Crewe, town and major rail junction in Cheshire, northern England. Crewe owes its existence to the railways. It was founded in 1840, having become a major junction for lines linking London with Manchester and north Wales, and was selected by the now defunct London and North-Western Railway Company as the site for its main workshops and marshalling yards. Crewe is also an important centre of luxury car manufacture; the Rolls-Royce and Bentley Motor Cars plant (renamed Bentley Motors Limited in 2002) has been based in the town since 1946. Crewe was built in the village of Monks Coppenhall, and named after nearby Crewe Hall, the seat of the statesman Baron Crewe. It was incorporated as a borough in 1877.

An industrial estate has attracted new industries to the town, including light engineering. Crewe and Alsager Faculty is part of Manchester Metropolitan University, and was formerly two teacher-training colleges (Alsager is a small town east of Crewe). Crewe is the administrative centre of Crewe and Nantwich District Council. Nantwich, a historic town near Crewe and part of the borough, was once the centre of flourishing saltworks. It has many fine half-timbered buildings, including Churche's Mansion, built in 1577, and the remains of a 14th-century castle. Population 63,351 (1991).