This chapter introduces the mid-Swedish local society in focus: the city of Västerås, west of Stockholm on Lake Mälaren, and the neighbouring rural districts of Snevringe and Tuhundra, all in the county of Västmanland. It identifies some of the major processes characterizing the 160 years covered in the book: population growth and proletarianization, enclosures, liberalization of the economy, improved infrastructure, and transition from an estate-based to a diversified class society. It identifies Västerås as a hub for trade and distribution of raw materials, especially iron and grain between Bergslagen and Stockholm. It describes the organization of hamlets, villages, and towns, and provides population data. In Västmanland, as in the country as a whole, the population comprised more women than men throughout the study period. In 1760, there were 82 men to 100 women; in 1880, the gap was reduced to 91 men to 100 women.