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| Grange Road |
At the
time of the Domesday Survey, in 1086, West Kirby belonged to a Robert de Rodelent,
to whom it was granted after the Norman conquest. De Rodelent is known to have enjoyed surrounding himself with French courtiers
and often made them extensive grants of land. One such grant, which was later to be confirmed by King William in 1081, was
the land and church at West Kirby to the Abbey of St. Ebruf in Normandy. Later, both the town and the church were sold to
the Abbey of St Werburgs in Chester, subject to an annual rent of 30 UK Pounds.
During the 12th century, the manor was seized by the Earls of Chester and given to the Abbey at Basingwerk
in Flintshire, Wales. About the year 1200, however, the monks of St.Werburga claimed their ancient rights and a battletook
place within the walls of the church. The monks of Basingwerk were defeated and the Abbot of St. Werburga reclaimed possession.
An old mill, which was used as a landmark for mariners wishing to navigate into the River Mersey or intothe (by now, very
shallow) was destroyed in a storm in 1839 and was replaced by a sixty foot high
column. This column was erected by the
trustees of the Liverpool Docks,by the permission of John Shaw Leigh, Esq, owner of the land, who also gave the stone for
its erection, AD 1841, as a beacon for mariners frequenting theMersey and its vicinity.
In 1636, William
Glegg, built a grammar school on his land at Calday Grange. It was a simple building consisting of a single room and it was
demolished in 1861. The Hoylake School was built in 1836 and, by 1861,the Calday school had only six pupils. A new school
was built on a larger
site by John Shaw Leigh,this is the present Calday Grange Grammar School.
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| The Ringers, in Village Road |
More On The History Of West Kirby
Over a thousand
years ago Wirral was invaded by the Norsemen and their leagacy can be read in the local place-names, the -by suffix meaning
village in the old Norse tongue; we still use the term by-law today
West Kirby was west of Kirby in Walea, the old name
for Wallasey. The focal point of their settlement was the site of St Bridget's Church in the old village, although the oldest
remaining part of the building dates back to about 1150, placing it firmly in the Norman period.
The Church has been changed
many times over the centuries, the latest restoration being carried out around 1870. Next to the Church is the village
school, mainly housed in modern buildings but part of the old schoolrooms are still in daily use. The old building also includes
the tiny Charles Dawson Brown Museum. Brown was well known locally as a historian, School Governor and 'Friend of the Poor',
having made his money as a cotton broker in Liverpool. He lived at 'Stone Hive' which still stands in Darmond's Green until
his death on 4 July 1890.
The Museum contains relics of the Church and the parish and was opened on 22 November 1892.
It has had a chequered history but was restored and re-opened by the Hoylake Historical Society on 24 June 1972 and now forms
an important part of the village.
The most important item in the collection, a Viking hogback grave-cover,is now back
on display in the Church for all to see. Nearby is the Ring'O'Bells public house, which was rebuilt in 1810 on the site
of an older pub of the same name. The cellers are cut into sandstone and extend underneath Village Road. The rock has
been shaped to hold the barrels of ale, with a drainage channel below. Apart from the traffic, the lower village has not changed
much over the centuries
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| "Paddlers" in 1908 |
The
growth of modern West Kirby really began in 1886, when the wonder of the age of the steam engine - arrived. The speed
of travel offered by the railway meant that it was possible to work in Liverpool during the day but escape to the cleanermore
peaceful and healthier surroundings of this part of Wirral to live.
Developers were not slow to realise this, and the
place grew out of all recognition. The First Edition of the O.S. plan, drawn in 1871, shows four or five buildings clustered
around the corner of Grange Road and Dee Lane. By the time the Second Edition was drawn in 1897, the village layout south
of Grange Road was almost exactly as we see it today, and by the turn of the century, just three years later, the shops of
the north side were completed.
The population boomed - in 1871 Hoylake and West Kirby together had 2,118 residents; thirty
years later this figure had increased five-fold to 10,991. Down on the shoreline the Marine Lake is a major attraction for
watersports. This was opened on 21 October 1899, and formerly included an open-air swimming pool. The pool has gone, but the
lake itself has been extended to cater for the growing demand
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| St Andrews AFC 1929 |
St Andrews West Kirby AFC
The goalkeeper
centre back - Ernest Daniel (ka Dick) Temple, was Heather Chapman's father
There are sure to be Tottey's, Websters and Rainfords
in the picture
It would be good if someone could identify the other players.
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At
the south end of the lake, now built into a modern house, is a little sandstone bulding in the shape of a castle
tower, called 'Tell's Tower'. This was built by Cumming Mcdona M.P. in memory of a remarkable St. Bernhard dog, buried underneath,
in 1871.
Behind the Marine Lake used to stand a massive hotel, built in about 1890 and extended in 1896, as the Hydropathic
Hotel, or the 'Hydro' for short, but was renamed the Hoylake Hotel in 1933 to cash in on the fame of the Hoylake golf club.
In 1905 the 'Hydro' advertised the 'BATHS include Turkish, Russian, Electric, Nauheim, Seaweed, Salt Water, Plunge, etc.'
The centre of the modern village is dominated by the concrete edifice of the Concourse, containing sports and health facilities.
To the north of this, on the corner of Bridge Road, is a building called Bridge Walks. This stands on the site of the
Public Hall, opened in 1899, at the height of West Kirby's properity, and photographs bear out its advertising claim that
it was '....undoubtedly the finest in Wirral and probably in Cheshire." It was a really plush building which could seat 1,200
people and became the Queens Picture House in 1921 but burned to the ground in 1932. It was rebuilt as the Tudor Cinema, and
had several uses before becoming the Wirral Social Services office
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The Crescent shopping area of yesteryear
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