A History of West Kirby

West Kirby has a history which predates the Roman invasion circa 2000 AD and is one of the oldest settlements in Wirral. The story begins four thousand years ago, at a time when the hill overlooking the Dee was of importance to the early Bronze Age inhabitants of the Wirral. Dating from between c.2200 and 1400 BC, a cordoned urn dug up in the 20th century reveals that the site had been in use long before the Romans arrived on our shores. Throughout the first millennium AD Wirral's Viking story unfolded before the Norman Conquest changed the country. A hundred years after that, across the estuary near Holywell in North Wales, there lived the Monks of Basingwerk Abbey in the 12th century. They received the manor of West Kirby from the Earls of Chester and upon the top of the hill overlooking the mouth of the Dee they established a farm, or monastic grange. For hundreds of years these monks were the medieval land-owners there, and a community of houses arose along the hill which lead to the River Dee. Over on the other side of the hill another settlement grew up in the shadow of St Bridget's church to become what's now called 'The Old Village'. 

Thousands of years later, Vikings arrived on the shores of West Kirby after being expelled from Ireland and West Kirby became known as 'vestri Kirkjubyr' which translates to 'West Village of the Church'. From the early tenth century the village formed part of the important 'Viking' enclave of North Wirral. It remained just a small community for centuries, a mere collection of farms and cottages, clustered round St Bridget's Church, with its inhabitants dependent on the land and the sea for their livelihood.  At the time of the Doomsday Survey, West Kirby was owned by a Robert De Rodelent.and the survey shows 5 tenements and a Frenchman with a Sergeant and two ploughs. The settlement was in an ideal position with good farm land, an abundance of fresh water and wildlife, woods, scrubs and marshes as well as hills that looked across the surrounding lands and rivers and had complete access to the River Dee.

St Bridget's Church

In 1819 the wealthy, Jersey-born merchant John Robin purchased the Lordship of Frankby, and he set his sights on the top of the hill which had been occupied by the Monks' farm in West Kirby to build a magnificent home for himself and his family. By the end of 1830s, a large, impressive house stood, surrounded by high sandstone walls with its Georgian frontage facing down the hill which afforded John Robin a stunning view of the estuary. The original village grew up on the western slopes of Grange Hill, overlooking the Dee, and a windmill, now vanished, stood on the hill above the village. When it blew down in the great storm of 1839, mariners needed another landmark, so a tall sandstone column was erected by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in 1841 on the site where it had stood. Known as 'The Beacon', it is a scheduled monument and the old millstone can be seen at its foot. Despite the increasing popularity of sea bathing (the first bathing machine was noted in West Kirby in 1841) and its growing reputation as a healthy place to live, the population remained small at just 330 in 1841 and 413 in 1861. West Kirby had been an island just like Wallasey and given its strategic location at the mouth of the Dee, just across from the Point of Ayr in North Wales, it is little wonder why maritime history is so prevalent in the West Kirby area. Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of England in 1848 described it as 'bounded on the north by the Irish Sea, and on the west by the estuary of the Dee. From some rising ground about a quarter of a mile from the shore, extensive views are obtained of the Irish Sea, the River Dee, and the Flintshire and Carnarvonshire hills.'

All this changed with the coming of the railway, which reached neighbouring Hoylake in 1866, previously served by a horse drawn omnibus, followed by West Kirby in 1878. Following this the focus of activity moved from the old village to the present centre near the station. The attractions of the area were soon evident in the rapid growth of streets and the opening in 1884 of the vast Hydropathic Hotel on land adjacent to the present Coronation Gardens. At the turn of the century there were various public improvements. It became famous for commencing its Victorian promenade in 1897, rivalling the promenade of Wallasey, flanked by the 1899 Marine Lake that permits boats to sail even at low tide and Ashton Park which opened in 1901. In the Victorian days, West Kirby was a great seaside town, much like New Brighton, and had fine sandy beaches, many shops and a large variety of hotels and entertainment, including children's and adult activities and a Baths ( see https://peoplespool.co.uk/pools-we-love/local/west-kirby ) Many early photographs show the beaches of both West Kirby and New Brighton to be packed with family's. Today, a railway station sits at the centre of West Kirby but at the old heart of the town is St Bridget's, the village church with a history dating back to the first millennium. Thousands of years later, St Bridget's is a West Kirby landmark and is still used as a place of worship. Also in the church is a hogback stone, a reminder of the settlement's Anglo-Norse connections. It is one of only a handful of churches dedicated to St Bridget the Virgin, the patroness of Ireland, and confirms a link from West Kirby to Ireland and the Celtic Church in the West.

see also:- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2021/05/a-history-of-port-sunlight.html?q=Port+Sunlight