Geography of Sheffield county, from bituminous (ideal for domestic heating) to "Thick Coal", of a semi-anthracitic quality, appropriate for use in iron-smelting and in engine furnaces. Associated with the Upper Coal Measures were valuable iron ore deposits, occurring in the form of nodules. Large quantities of locally occurring fireclay were also exploited, as well as ganister (a clay used to make refractory furnace linings). The city of Sheffield derives its name from the River Sheaf which Until the 17th century was written as "Scheth" or "Sheath". Sidney Oldall Addy equates the origins of this word with the Old English "shed" (as in "water-shed")
Geography of Sheffield a regular occurrence especially in the city centre that was at the bottom of a natural bowl. The River Don became one of the most polluted rivers in Europe. In his 1937 book "The Road to Wigan Pier" George Orwell said that Sheffield 'could justly claim to be called the ugliest town in the Old World'. However, in the 1930s Sheffield City Council and public benefactors such as J.G.Graves started buying rural land around Sheffield in order to protect it from developers. This was one of the earliest examples of greenbelt land. The residential areas cover the majority of the