WIRRAL PENINSULA WIRRAL MARITIME HERITAGE TRAIL

LIVERPOOL BAY Getting to Wirral and getting around

N Wirral is easily accessible by road, rail, sea New Brighton and air. Both Liverpool John Lennon North Wirral Airport and Manchester International Wallasey Coastal Park Airport are a realistic 45 minutes by road. WIRRAL MARITIME HERITAGE TRAIL Leasowe Egremont The M53 motorway which runs through Seacombe LIVERPOOL Wirral connects to the M56 and M6.

Birkenhead Two Mersey Tunnels link Wirral to Park Woodside Hoylake Liverpool and the rest of Merseyside, and Birkenhead Europe’s oldest ferry continues the “Ferry across the Mersey” service from Woodside Tranmere and Seacombe. Egremont Woodside Eastham A41 West Kirby Arrowe A local rail network connects the peninsula Royden Park Rock Ferry RIVER MERSEY Park to the national rail network via Liverpool Port Sunlight M53 Lime Street Station. Wirral also boasts a Thurstaston comprehensive local bus network for you to Bebington explore the region. Wirral Country Park Heswall For more information click on: RIVER DEE Eastham Ferry www.merseyferries.co.uk 0151 330 1444 Eastham Country Park www.merseytravel.gov.uk 0870 608 2608 Eastham For more information on Wirral click on: New Brighton Seacombe www.visitwirral.com 0151 666 3188 Produced in conjunction with Wirral Council and Wirrals History and Heritage Forum. © Crown copyright. All rights reserved. Licence number 100019803. Published 2007. 321APR07GB WIRRAL MARITIME HERITAGE TRAIL Eastham Ferry Woodside Seacombe New Brighton Egremont Look to England’s North West and you’ll find the region’s only peninsula - Wirral. It lies between the River Dee and Eastham Ferry, first The name Woodside dates The medieval Seacombe New Brighton Ferry was The Wirral Maritime Heritage Trail guides River Mersey, and bathes in the waters of Liverpool Bay and the Irish Sea. Wirral Peninsula has a unique coastline recorded in 1357, was from a time when the Ferry operated from the Egremont Ferry was established in the early visitors around some of Wirral Peninsula’s most with a variety of beaches, cliffs, wetland habitats and great natural beauty. once a vital river crossing woodland was close to the North side of Wallasey founded by Liverpool part of the 19th Century. significant maritime heritage, which began around but ceased operating in water. It is now the site of Pool to Birkenhead. By Harbour-Master Captain The Ferry’s original 1150 AD when the Monks of Birkenhead Priory Wirral owes much to the legacy of the enterprising Benedictine monks, who turned a lonely birch-covered 1928. Throughout the only remaining ferry 1753, a new site on the John Askew and Sir John wooden pier was replaced developed the oldest known ferry service, through headland into a vital trade artery, by establishing the first recorded ferry across the River Mersey. Their Victorian times it was a service from Birkenhead Mersey Coast had been Tobin in 1828. The pier by a cast iron promenade the industrial era and the growth of shipbuilding, to endeavours put Wirral on the map and sparked the development of Birkenhead and its surrounding area in popular venue for day trippers. The 1857 ticket to Liverpool. Close by is Hamilton Square, one of established for a ferry service to Liverpool. As and landing stage were hit by vessels in 1932 and and pier in 1866. In 1936, the service was reduced the modern day world famous Mersey Ferries. succeeding centuries. office and part of the 1874 pier can still be seen the finest Georgian Squares in the country with a passenger numbers grew, a small slipway was built 1941. The extent of the damage caused by the later to a seasonal one due to the growth in transport Enjoy exploring the varied beauty of the peninsula today. A moment’s walk from the pier and you enter large concentration of Grade I listed buildings. The to be replaced by a series of terminals, the current collision resulted in the Ferry being closed and the alternatives such as the car and electrification of the and unrivalled views of the Liverpool waterfront Wirral’s maritime economy really took off during the industrial era with the growth of shipbuilding in the tranquil Eastham Country Park. The square, constructed between 1825 and 1844, was one dates from 1933. As well as catching the pier eventually being dismantled in 1946. From train service. The seasonal service continued up and its historic 3 graces. Birkenhead and Wallasey leading to a population explosion of dramatic proportions. This period also broad-leaved woodland at Eastham Country Park the dream of William Laird, the great shipbuilder. Mersey Ferry, you can try the cafe or visit the Egremont you can stroll along the promenade and until 1971. A short walk along the promenade takes resulted in the area becoming a world leader in maritime innovation and oceanography. supports a wide variety of wildlife and contains Also close by is Birkenhead Priory where an order Aquarium to meet some of the marine life of the admire the unrivalled views of Liverpool you to Perch Rock Lighthouse and Fort Perch Rock. some of the finest mature trees to be found on the of Benedictine Monks established the oldest Wirral Coast. Also located in the Terminal Building waterfront. There was once a small cottage on the This impressive sandstone fort was built in 1826 to The legacy of this heritage is clearly visible throughout the borough, but it is most evident along the Wirral Peninsula. For refreshments, the Eastham recorded ferry service in Britain in 1150 AD. The is Spaceport, a unique attraction offering the chance Egremont shoreline built about 1595. Popular with protect the entrance of the River Mersey from Mersey Waterfront from Eastham up to New Brighton. Therefore the Wirral Maritime Heritage Trail tells Ferry Hotel, The Tap Public House, a tea garden priory, still open to the public, is the oldest standing to learn about space and explore our universe. The seafarers and smugglers, it became known as enemy shipping. Today it is open to the public and the story of the people and places of interest through a series of plaques at key sites along the waterfront. and a kiosk are all within walking distance. The building on Merseyside. The Woodside plaque is Seacombe Ferry plaque is located on Seacombe ‘Mother Redcap’s’ after one of the tavern keepers houses a small museum. The New Brighton plaque Eastham Ferry plaque is located on the pier at located to the right of Woodside Ferry Terminal, Promenade adjacent to the terminal building, just who wore a red cap. The Egremont plaque is is located on Marine Promenade opposite the Floral Due to a number of historical links to the American Civil War, the Civil War Preservation Trust has Eastham Ferry, just off Ferry Road. off the Woodside Ferry Approach. off the A554. located on the promenade just off the A554 at the Pavilion Theatre. designated Wirral as a site on the American Civil War Discovery Trail. end of Tobin Street.