BEDFORD (corrupted from AS. Bedicaa ford, protected ford). The county town of Bed fordshire, England, situated on both sides of the Ouse, here crossed by two bridges and navigable to the sea, about 45 miles north-northwest of , London, and in the midst of a broad expanse of rich pasture and agricultural lands (Map: England, F 4). The town is clean, well paved, and shows in its outward appearance and in the , number of its municipal undertakings the pro gressive spirit of its citizens. It was incorpo rated in the reign of Henry II. It sends one member to Parliament. It has an excellent wa ter-supply, which nets it a substantial profit, and has established an electric-light plant. It maintains several parks and recreation-grounds, public markets, and a cemetery. It is chiefly famed for its charitable and educational institu tions, which are largely due to the beneficence of Sir William Harpur, Lord Mayor of London in 1561, who founded a free school and endowed it with 13 acres of London land. The enormous increase in the value of the property (from £40 to £15,000 or upward a year) enables the trus tees to maintain grammar, modern, and prepara tory schools for boys, the same class of schools for girls, and also almshouses. The most impor
tant manufacture of Bedford is that of iron ware, especially agricultural implements. Lace making and straw-plaiting employ many poor women and children. A considerable traffic in malt. timber, coal, and iron is maintained. Pop ulation, in 1891, 28,023; in 1901, 35,144. Bed ford is of great antiquity, and is mentioned in the Saxon Chronicle under the name of Bedican fo•d, as the scene of a battle between the Britons and Saxons in 571. It suffered much from the Danes in the Eleventh Century. .John Bunyan was born in the village of Elstow, and while a prisoner in the town jail, as a dis turber of the peace, he wrote his Pilgrim's Prog ress. A bronze statue of him presented to the town by the Duke of Bedford adorns Saint Peter's Green. Consult Porter, A n Historical Sketch of Bedford, England (Boston, 1891).