Eastham, Merseyside

Last updated

Eastham
Village
Eastham Village, Wirral - DSC03440.JPG
The memorial garden in Eastham Village, with St Mary's Church in the background
Merseyside UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Eastham
Location within Merseyside
Population13,882 (2011 census)
OS grid reference SJ358805
  London 173 mi (278 km) [1]   SE
Metropolitan borough
Metropolitan county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town WIRRAL
Postcode district CH62
Dialling code 0151
ISO 3166  codeGB-WRL
Police Merseyside
Fire Merseyside
Ambulance North West
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Merseyside
53°18′47″N2°57′43″W / 53.313°N 2.962°W / 53.313; -2.962

Eastham is a village and an electoral ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. Historically (until 1974), it was part of Cheshire. It is situated on the Wirral Peninsula, to the south of Bromborough and to the east of Willaston.

Contents

At the 2001 census, it had a population of 12,250, [2] although the total ward population for the village stood at 13,637 [3] In 2011, the villages population was not measured separately but a review was carried out for the ward. The total population had risen to 13,882. [4]

History

Eastham is cited as one of the oldest villages on the Wirral Peninsula and has been inhabited since Anglo Saxon times. The name derives from its location: ham ("home") situated to the east of Willaston, which was then the principal settlement. [5] The original village is clustered around St. Mary's Church, whose churchyard contains an ancient yew tree. Much of the surrounding land was once owned by the powerful Stanley family.

Since the Middle Ages, a ferry service operated across the River Mersey between Eastham and Liverpool, the early ferries being run by monks from the Abbey of St. Werburgh. By the late 1700s, up to 40 coaches each day arrived at a newly built pier, carrying passengers and goods for the ferry. Paddle steamers were introduced in 1816 to replace the sailing boats, but the demand for a service declined in the 1840s with the opening of a railway link between Chester and Birkenhead Woodside Ferry. In 1846, the owner of the ferry, Thomas Stanley, built the Eastham Ferry Hotel and shortly after, the Pleasure Gardens were added to attract more visitors. The gardens were landscaped with rhododendrons, azaleas, ornamental trees and fountains. Attractions included a zoo, with bears, lions, monkeys and antelope, an open-air stage, tea rooms, bandstand, ballroom, boating lake, water chute. [6]

Entertainers performed in the gardens during summer, and included Blondin, the famous tight-rope walker who once wheeled a local boy across a high wire in a wheelbarrow. In 1894, the Manchester Ship Canal was opened by Queen Victoria, bringing added prosperity to the area and a Jubilee Arch was built at the entrance to the Pleasure Gardens in 1897 to commemorate her Diamond Jubilee.

The 'Bear Pit' at Eastham Woodland & Country Park as it stood in 2006. Bear Pit at Eastham Country Park, Merseyside.jpg
The 'Bear Pit' at Eastham Woodland & Country Park as it stood in 2006.

In 1854 the American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, whilst in the position of United States consul in Liverpool, visited Eastham and declared it to be: "the finest old English village I have seen, with many antique houses, and with altogether a rural and picturesque aspect, unlike anything in America, and yet possessing a familiar look, as if it were something I had dreamed about." [7]

In its heyday Eastham Ferry was known as the 'Richmond of the Mersey', but its popularity declined during the 1920s and the last paddle steamer crossing took place in 1929. The Pleasure Gardens fell into disrepair during the 1930s and the iron pier and Jubilee Arch were later dismantled. [6] In 1970, to commemorate European Conservation Year, the area was designated a Woodland & Country Park and today, it is once more a popular place of recreation.

In 1951 the civil parish had a population of 5598. [8] On 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished. [9]

Geography

Eastham is the southernmost area of the Merseyside part of Wirral, lying within a green belt area bordering Merseyside and Cheshire, adjacent to the River Mersey. It is located close to the M53 motorway, and lies directly on the A41 road, the main road between Birkenhead and Birmingham. It is also close to the city of Chester and shares a proximity to the village of Port Sunlight, an historic centre for the British soap industry. It is situated a particularly short distance away from Willaston village.

Open spaces

As well as Eastham Country Park and Woods, the Lowfields, close to Eastham Rake Station, is the start of a guided walk suggested by Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council, following Dibbinsdale Brook and leads onto the Wirral Way.

Dibbinsdale is a local nature reserve and Dibbinsdale Brook and Clatter Brook run through the Brookhurst area of Eastham and into Bromborough. There is also a private golf club, Eastham Lodge, a mature parkland course with views across the River Mersey.

Near to the village centre is a small public area called Torr Park, Which is home to the village cricket club. It was founded by the Stanley family as an area for recreation. In the present day the park offers tennis courts, a children's play area and a cricket field.

At 8.45 am each morning a siren is heard. It is said to be based in the Queen Elizabeth II dock who use it as their fire alarm and test it each morning. It has the distinct sound of a World War II siren and has been sounded each morning for at least 50 years.

Transport

Eastham Locks form the western end of the Manchester Ship Canal, and is the largest lock in the UK [ citation needed ]. In order to provide berthing facilities for large tankers that could not be accommodated on the canal due to size, the Queen Elizabeth II Dock was constructed, with vehicular access from Ferry Road.[ citation needed ]

Eastham Rake railway station opened in 1995 on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merseyside</span> County of England

Merseyside is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Welsh county of Flintshire across the Dee Estuary to the southwest, and the Irish Sea to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Liverpool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Mersey</span> Major river emptying into Liverpool Bay

The River Mersey is a major river in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part of the boundary between the historic counties of Lancashire and Cheshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bebington</span> Town in Merseyside, England

Bebington is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. Historically part of Cheshire, it is 5 miles (8 km) south of Liverpool, close to the River Mersey on the eastern side of the Wirral Peninsula. Nearby towns include Birkenhead and Wallasey to the north-northwest, and Heswall to the west-southwest. Bebington railway station opened in 1838 and is on the Wirral line of the Merseyrail network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bromborough</span> Town in Merseyside, England

Bromborough is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England, and the historic county of Cheshire, on the Wirral Peninsula southeast of Bebington and north of Eastham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Ferry</span> Urban area in Merseyside, England

New Ferry is an urban area on the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is located on the Wirral Peninsula, with the River Mersey to the east and the town of Bebington to the west. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, the area was developed from the early nineteenth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tranmere, Merseyside</span> Human settlement in England

Tranmere is a suburb of Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, England. Administratively, it is within the Birkenhead and Tranmere Ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside. Before local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974, it was part of the County Borough of Birkenhead, within the county of Cheshire.

The Hundred of Wirral is the ancient administrative area for the Wirral Peninsula. Its name is believed to have originated from the Hundred of Wilaveston, the historic name for Willaston, which was an important assembly point in the Wirral Hundred during the Middle Ages. The ton suffix in a place name normally indicates a previous use as a meeting location for officials. During its existence, the hundred was one of the Hundreds of Cheshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallasey</span> Town in Merseyside, England

Wallasey is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, it is at the mouth of the River Mersey, on the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Peninsula. At the 2011 Census, the population was 60,284.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirral Peninsula</span> Peninsula in North West England

The Wirral Peninsula, known locally as the Wirral, is a peninsula in North West England. The roughly rectangular peninsula is about 15 miles (24 km) long and 7 miles (11 km) wide, and is bounded by the Dee Estuary to the west, the Mersey Estuary to the east, and Liverpool Bay to the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirral Country Park</span> Country park on the Wirral Peninsula, England

The Wirral Country Park is a country park on the Wirral Peninsula, England, lying both in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in the county of Merseyside and in the borough of Cheshire West & Chester in the county of Cheshire. It was the first designated country park in Britain, opening in 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spital, Merseyside</span> Human settlement in England

Spital is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. It is located mid-way on the Wirral Peninsula, and is mostly incorporated into the town of Bebington and the most westerly point of Spital forms the most northern edge of Bromborough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brotherton Park and Dibbinsdale Local Nature Reserve</span> Nature reserve in Wirral, Merseyside

Brotherton Park and Dibbinsdale Local Nature Reserve informally known as Dibbinsdale is a combined park and local nature reserve managed by the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and located in Bromborough, Merseyside, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock Ferry</span> Human settlement in England

Rock Ferry is an area of Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula, England. Administratively it is a ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral. Before local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974, it was part of the county of Cheshire. At the 2011 Census, the population was 14,298.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raby, Merseyside</span> Hamlet in England

Raby is a hamlet in the Wirral district of Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, in the Clatterbridge Ward. The settlement is within the parliamentary constituency of Wirral South. Raby is a former civil parish, but since 1974 has been directly administered by Wirral Council

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clatterbridge</span> Hamlet in England

Clatterbridge is a hamlet on the Wirral Peninsula, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is to the south-west of Bebington and close to the M53 motorway. Clatterbridge is also the name of a local government ward, which includes Brimstage, Raby, Raby Mere, Thornton Hough, Storeton, Spital and the western fringes of Bromborough and Eastham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastham Country Park</span>

Eastham Country Park is a country park located in Eastham, Wirral. The park is situated next to the River Mersey and covers an area of 100 acres (40 ha). Facilities at the park include a visitor information centre, tea garden and picnic areas. There are two jetties that were formerly used to ferry people and goods from Wirral to Liverpool with the road leading to the park called 'Ferry Road.'

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Municipal Borough of Bebington</span>

Bebington was a local government district on the Wirral Peninsula, in Cheshire, England.

References

  1. "Coordinate Distance Calculator". boulter.com. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  2. Wirral 2001 Census: Eastham, Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, archived from the original on 27 September 2007, retrieved 30 June 2007
  3. 2001 Census: Eastham (Ward), Office for National Statistics, retrieved 15 April 2008
  4. "Ward population 2011" . Retrieved 1 June 2015.
  5. Kemble, Mike, The Wirral Hundred, The Wirral Peninsula, archived from the original on 4 July 2007, retrieved 15 April 2008{{citation}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. 1 2 History of Eastham, sunnyfield.co.uk, archived from the original on 5 May 2009, retrieved 15 April 2008
  7. The English Note-Books of Nathaniel Hawthorne, eldritchpress.org, 1870, retrieved 4 December 2006
  8. "Population statistics Eastham CP/AP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  9. "Wirral Registration District". UKBMD. Retrieved 27 September 2024.

Bibliography