10/07/2026
Interesting Facts to make you proud to be from the Wirral Peninsula
Situated between Liverpool and North Wales, this stretch of land with the main area of Wallasey at its tip has many interesting stories to tell. Today on maps you see the new Industrial areas that were born in the 19th Century such as Birkenhead and Ellesmere Port but you will never see them on maps before. The Rich Coastal Areas of Wallasey, Meols, Caldy, Thurstaston, Heswall, West Kirby and Hoylake make up the most Desirable and Safest Areas to Live. Whilst Birkenhead and the East Coast make up the Highest Crime Rates of the Peninsula with less desirable places to Live such as Woodside, Tranmere, Rock Ferry, New Ferry and part of Bebington. These places were once thriving working areas till the 1970s.
1) The Wirral Peninsula covers an area of 60.35 square miles and is joined to mainland England at the northwestern tip of the county of Cheshire. The peninsula is actually completely surrounded by water officially making it an island, although it's southern border at Ellesmere Port is now actually at the site of the man-made Shropshire Union Canal.
2) Despite it's small size the Wirral Peninsula boasts no less than 1,900 listed buildings, 215 churches, 1 priory (The Priory of St James the Great near Tranmere (Birkenhead didn't really Exist until the 19th Century industrialisation by the Laird Family - You wont find it on any old map) 50 towns and villages, 25 conservation areas, 9 scheduled ancient monument sites, 8 sites of special scientific interest, 10 lighthouses, 5 nature reserves, 4 windmills, 4 historic parks, 2 watermills, one castle and one fort.
3) The indiginous people of the Wirral Peninsula were the Celtic, Cornovii Tribe who lived in the modern day counties of Cheshire, Staffordshire, Shropshire and Clywd.
The oldest known reference to the tribe was mentioned in an historical record written by Roman philosopher Ptolomy in the 2nd century A.D.
The name Cornovii means people of the horn. The word horn pertains to a horned, religious idol that the tribe worshipped.
The Cornovii made their living from salt and copper mining and from the building and running of hill forts, the most famous of which is the Wrekin in Shropshire.
Their tribal capital city was Wroxeter in the county of Shropshire, at one time the fourth largest Roman town in Britain.
The Roman built City of Chester, which is now the county town of Cheshire, was once part of the Cornovii tribal lands.
4) Historians have classified the Wirral Peninsula as the birthplace of England, after the Battle of Brunanburh - present day Bromborough - in 937 brought together the might of England's combined armed forces for the very first time in order to fight the armies of both Norway and Scotland.
5) In 1376 King Richard II designated the entire peninsula with Royal Park status.
6) The peninsula's Leasowe Lighthouse, built in 1763, is the oldest brick built lighthouse in the U.K. The lighhouse was also the first in the country to have a female lighhouse keeper, when Mrs Mary Elisabeth Williams began her service as keeper in 1908.
7) The Wirral's only recognised holiday resort, New Brighton, is home to the United Kingdom's longest promenade at 3.5 kilometres from one end of Wallasey to the other.
As well as having the country's longest promenade the Wirral seaside resort was also the site of other record breakers during it's heyday of the 19th century. Classified as one of the most elegant seaside resort of the Regency period the town could boast the highest tower in Britain, the largest theatre stage in the world, the largest open air swimming pool in Europe, Britain's first indoor amusements arcade and was the smallest town in the country to have a league football club. We have more interesting facts to tell on the Events inside the Fort😎
9) The Wirral Country Park was Britain's first ever designated country park when it was opened in 1973.
10) The world's first, commercial hovercraft service began on the Wirral Peninsula during the Summer of 1962, when passengers were ferried from the Wirral seaside town of Wallasey to Rhyl in North Wales on a Vickers VA - 3 hovercraft.
11) The Ministry of Defence's tidal activity research for the D - Day landings of June 1944 were all taken at Bidston Observatory.
12) In 1947 the Wallasey Ferries were the first boats in the world to be installed with fog radar navigation systems.
13) The charitable organisation, The Guide Dogs For The Blind Association, was formed 1934, three years after Britain's first four guide dogs completed their training by German Shepherd breeders Muriel Crooke and Rosamund Bond, whose business was based in New Brighton and started on Wellington Road in 1931.
14) Hilbre Island situated one mile off the Wirral coast at West Kirby covers an area of just 11.6 acres and was the United Kingdom's smallest, inhabited island.
15) Our Fort Perch Rock in New Brighton fired the first shot of the Great War in 1914. You can hear more about that on our WW2 Tours at Fort Perch Rock
16) Wallasey has a strong Piratical and Smuggling History that is beaten only by Cornwall and Bristol. Mother Redcaps on the River Mersey shoreline was the home of it.
17, New Brighton was home to the Largest Outdoor Pool in the World when it opened in 1934. It was used for Secret Training by the British and Us Army during WW2.
18) Wallasey had 3 Piers and owned Royal Status on the Ferries such as Royal Iris and Daffodil. Our Last Master Mariner was Captain David Langton and you can hear his stories on our Maritime Evenings
19) The Captain of the Lusitania is buried in Wallasey in Rake Lane Cemetery including some survivors of the earlier Tragedy The Titanic.
20) Wallasey has more surviving Mansions in its Town than any other on the Wirral. Wellington Road and Warren Drive are the most desirable to live in. You will find many more around New Brighton, Liscard, Egremont, Seacombe and Wallasey Village. The Oldest Surviving is Earlston House which dates back to the 15th Century
The List is endless and we have our Historic Evenings full of Fascinating Stories
Get your Tickets and join us at the Historic Fort Perch Rock in New Brighton for our Tales of the Mersey Evenings. Choose from our Penny Dreadfuls By Candlelight or our Fireside Ghost Stories. Book Now and find out more https://wallasey-days-gone-by.sumupstore.com/product/tales-of-the-mersey-talks-at-fort-perch-rock
