|
|
 |
|
Meols Early History
Although called Melas in the Domesday
Book, the name Meols is from the old Norse word for sand-dunes. Up until a century ago it was called Meolse
but the name was changed when the railway stationwas built -- the story has it that the railway managers were unsure of the
spelling and had assumed it to be the same as Meols, near Southport. In Victorian times, Meols was still
a farming community although a few houses were built by the gentry. It was only a small village and didn't have a school or
church and the villagers had to walk to the parish church at Hoylake where the childern attended the Hoylake National School.
The population of Meols was 140 in 1801 but, with the arrival of the Birkenhead Road in about 1850, it had increased to
821 in 1901.
The first inn in Meols was the Sloop Inn. It dates back to at least 1840. John Cookson was
understood to be the first landlord in occupation in 1841. It later became a shop and was demolished in 1938.
The original
Railway Inn was pulled down in the 1930's when it became fashionable to build larger inns to attract the motorist. The new
inn was opened on 1st December 1938 and then the old one was knocked down to become the car park
St. John the Baptist Church was consecrated on 12th
April 1913, thefoundation stone having been laid on 21st October 1911. The first Anglican services in the 1880's were held
in the schoolroom.
In June 1901 a temporary church was opened at a cost of 500 UK Pounds this was later tobecome the church
hall.
Between Meols and Moreton / Leasowe is a submerged forest. Roots and stumps of large trees are partially buried
in peaty soil, which is the result of a pre-historic forest becoming submerged by the sea encroaching on the land. Although
the remains of this forest had not been seen for several decades, they were visible in the spring of 1982
Sloop Cottage, Meols circa
early 1900's
Meols was once an ancient port
In
1846 the Revd Abraham Hume was visiting the parsonage in Hoylake, Wirral. He noticed some ancient artefacts, including a Roman
brooch on the mantelpiece. Hume asked how they got there and learnt that local fishermen had found them on the shore at Meols.
Realising the importance of the finds, he made efforts to recover further objects.
Meols, on the north Wirral coast, is now seen as
one of the most significant ancient sites in the north west of England. For thousands of years, people had made use of a natural
harbour called the Hoyle Lake. This gave its name in modern times to Hoylake, the town which grew up nearby. During the early
19th century storms and high tides had progressively washed away occupation deposits from a succession of settlements along
the north Wirral coast. In less than a hundred years the shore-line retreated nearly 500 metres at Dove Point. Metal items
from these layers were deposited on the beach where they were later found.
The objects range from the Neolithic through to the 18th century.
There is a strong emphasis on the later medieval period but also a remarkable group of Roman, Saxon and Viking artefacts.
After Hume began to publicise the finds in the 1840s, the site came to the attention of antiquarians who competed for the
'produce of the Cheshire shore'. Many amassed considerable collections. It is estimated that over a fifty-year period well
over 5000 objects were found. A selection of the finest were published by Revd Hume in 1863 in his remarkable book, 'Ancient
Meols'. Over 3000 objects, including some illustrated by Hume, still survive in modern museum collections, spread between
no fewer than six institutions.
|
| Roman copper alloy cosmetic pestle with suspension loop |
Meols' importance through the ages was due to its
coastal location beside the Hoyle Lake, a haven on the Irish Sea coast. The objects show that the port began to develop about
2400 years ago, during the Iron Age. Finds such as a silver tetradrachm (a coin) of Tigranes II of Armenia, minted in Syria
in the 1st century BC and bronze coins of Augustus, suggest that there had been contacts with France and even the Mediterranean
before the Roman occupation of Britain. It is probable that a major item of the trade was salt from the brine springs of southern
Cheshire.
Reassessment of the Roman finds suggests military activity at Meols
in the pre-Flavian period before the foundation of the fortress at Chester and perhaps a market function afterwards. During
the Roman period, the port grew to be the largest settlement in Merseyside. Over 70 Roman brooches and 120 coins have been
found. This shows that Meols was a busy trading community. Ships sailing up the west coast of Britain would have stopped off
to pick up goods or raw materials and trade pottery and other items. The local people may have lived in circular wooden houses,
as the remains of such houses were found on the shore in the late 19th century.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
