WEST KIRBY VILLAGE
West Kirby was designated as a Conservation Area with the aim of conserving the historic core of the old village, with its Church, Rectory, Public House and former farm buildings and preserving the remnants of the fields, woodland and unmade paths which once surrounded it.
The original village grew up on the western slopes of Grange Hill, overlooking the Dee.
Archaeological finds confirm that there has been settlement there since earliest times. In the pre-Norman period Wirral lay within the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia and Norwegian Vikings, expelled from Ireland, settled in the area in the early 10th century. West Kirby has a Scandinavian place name, deriving from the Old Norse words kirkja (church) and byr (farm or settlement) meaning ‘village with a church’. The element ‘West’ differentiates it from Kirby in Wallea, the old name for Wallasey.
The earliest document referring to West Kirby dates from 1081, when William the Conqueror confirmed the gift of the church and village of Cherchebi to the abbey of St Evroult in Normandy. Domesday Book, produced in 1086, does not however mention West Kirby directly, but has entries for the neighbouring manors of Caldy (Calders) and Great and Little Meols (Melas).
For centuries farming was the main occupation of the people. Crops were grown in large fields surrounding the village, one of which, the townfield, gave its name to Townfield Road.
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. The old millstone can be seen at its foot.
Farming was the major employer until the Victorian period when visitors were increasingly attracted to the village, which offered sea bathing and places to stay.The arrival of the railway brought more growth. In 1878 the Hoylake line was extended to West Kirby and in 1886 the opening of the Mersey rail tunnel provided a direct link to Liverpool. With improved transport the area changed. Wealthy business men were attracted to the area, new streets were laid out nearer the station and many of the older buildings disappeared.
Despite these changes the character of the old village persisted. The most significant building is St Bridget’s Church which lies a little to the north of the centre. The present church dates from the Victorian restoration of 1869-70, but the tower is older, being late 15th or early 16th century. Within the church are fittings from the earlier buildings and an impressive range of stained glass and carving by Charles Kempe. Also in the church is a hogback stone, a reminder of the settlement’s Anglo-Norse connections.
Close to the church, and now part of the Church Centre is the former parish school, built in 1848. The attached building was erected in 1892 as a Museum in memory of Charles Dawson Brown, a local benefactor. It houses carved stones and other items from the early years of the church. A number of properties in Village Road date from the 17th and 18th century. Older than these and Grade II listed is The Nook, built on the bedrock and with a thatched roof.
The Ring o’ Bells public house, also on the bedrock, dates from 1810 while the former Rectory, with its rock cut cellar, has been extended over the years and incorporates buildings from the 18th to the 20th century. One aspect of the area, which contributes to its special quality, is the remnant of the Glebe, a small stretch of fields and woodland that provide a green heart to the Conservation Area and a reminder of its rural origins. Close by is Ashton Park while the Wirral Way runs along the track of the old West Kirby to Hooton railway, just to the west of the church. To view a map of the Conservation Area click here.
