When the first inhabitants of Great Bridge established a settlement on the West Bromwich side of the River Tame, near to an ancient crossing into Tipton in about 1550, they could not have foreseen its future prominence as an important center of commerce in the West Midlands. Who can forget the enormous variety of locally owned shops, each having their own individual character? Memories abound of the Open Market, Peter Bonaccorsi's ice cream, 'The...