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")
Sheffield City Centre Sheffield City Centre Sheffield City Centre is a district of the City of Sheffield, and is partly covered by the City ward of the City of Sheffield. It includes the area that is within a radius of roughly of Sheffield Cathedral, and is encircled by the Inner Ring Road—a circular route started in the late 1960s and completed in 2007. As well as the cathedral, buildings in the city centre include the Grade I listed Town Hall, the City Hall, and the Winter Gardens. Several areas of the city centre have been designated as "quarters". It is home to the