In 1851 Tettenhall was described as a village stands near the centre of the parish, two miles WNW of Wolverhampton, and comprises many respectable houses on and near the Shiffnal road, at the foot and on the declivities of a lofty and picturesque eminence, which rises above the Smestow rivulet, and the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal. The houses are chiefly occupied by gentry, and by persons engaged in the trade and commerce of Wolverhampton. Before the Norman Conquest, the village was called Theotenhall, signifying the house of pagans.