the substantial remains of a large ditch excavated in st mary's road in 2008, following the contours of the hill and predating the early medieval period, has been interpreted as part of a hilltop enclosure and possibly the iron age hillfort long suspected on the site. the first authenticated spelling of the name was wodensbyri, written in an endorsement on the back of the copy of the will of wulfric spot, dated 1004. wednesbury ("woden's borough") is one of the few places in england to be named after a pre-christian deity.