WAKEFIELD, a large market-town of the wapentake of Morley, in the west riding of the county of York, 180 miles from London and nine from Leeds. It stands on the river Calder, is well built, with wide streets, in which are many very handsome brick houses. Besides the churches, the other public buildings are, the free grammar-school, the house of correction for the county, the cloth-hall, and a theatre. The chief trade of this town formerly was the manufacture of woollen cloths, and at one period the clothing for the Russian army was fabricated here; but that branch has been lost, and the other branches of the woollen trade have not advanced at the same pace as in Leeds and other neighbouring towns. Wakefield has now the largest corn-market in England next to London. The corn is brought mostly by canals from the south-east part of the county, and the foreign corn from Hull, which is chiefly used by the densely peopled districts near Leeds, Halifax, Huddersfield, and Barnsley, with all of which places there is a water-communication. The corn-market is on Friday, and there is one for wool on Thursday. The quarter-sessions for the west riding are held here. There is also a weekly petty-session. The population amounted in 1801 to 8131, in 1811 to 8593, in 1821 to 10,764, and in 1831 to 12,232. This is one of the new boroughs created by the reform act of 1832, and returns one member to the House of Commons.