The city of [[Preston]] is the county town of [[Lancashire]] in north-west [[England]]. It was a medieval market town, but grew rapidly in the nineteenth century as a centre for industrialised cotton spinning. In the 1960s and 70s it was designated an expansion area, as part of 'Central Lancashire New Town'. Preston has a population of 130,000 (2001).
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The city of [[Preston]] is the county town of [[Lancashire]] in north-west [[England]]. It was a medieval market town, but grew rapidly in the nineteenth century as a centre for industrialised cotton spinning. In the 1960s and 70s it was designated an expansion area, as part of 'Central Lancashire New Town'. Preston has a population of 130,000 (2001). The first [[motorway]] (turnpike or expressway) in the [[United Kingdom]] was the Preston by-pass, now part of the M6, opened in 1959.