Heswall Timeline
Jenny McRonald Oct.'09

800 a.d .  9th CENTURY

Norsemen coming from I.O.M. and Ireland sailed up Dee and settled on coast of Wirral.

Frankby Irby Pensby 's suffix means a hill or farm . That suffix is only used in Norse or Danish  settlements in the N.W.of England .

1000 a.d 11th CENTURY

1066 Manor of Heswall given to Robert de Rodelent (Rhuddlan)at Norman Conquest . He was under tenant of the Earl Hugh Lupus (the wolf) of Chester . (Heswall under tenant Herbert)
Heswall appears as Eswelle, land for 4 ploughs and less than dozen inhabitants. Value 22 shillings .

1200 a.d 13th CENTURY

1277  Heswall became property of Patricke de Haselwelle Sheriff of Cheshire . He was knighted for services to King Edward 1 in the welsh expeditions. (Woodchurch and Heswall were the only places on the peninsula with churches independent  of any connection with monasteries)

Manor of Heswall owned by Patrick de Haselwall Sheriff of Chester 1277-1424

1277 Recorded that Edward 1 crossed by ferry from Gayton to Flint after stay at Shotwick

1300 a.d 14th CENTURY

Wirral sparsely populated . Few villages close to River, no proper roads and most traffic used river rather than road.An early salt road to Shotwick from Northwich etc caused Dee Ports to be used for transporting salt abroad.

1300 William de Fulburn first known but not necessarily first Rector of Heswall presented by Sir Patrick de Haselwall.

1300s (early part) Manor of Heswall conveyed by the marriage of 2 sisters, co heiresses in  moieties to Robert de Calveley and William de Egerton - by marriage it passed from the Calveleys to Arthur Davenport. (When Arthur Davenport was slain at Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403 his moiety was held by William de Egerton to be held by his successors until 1699 when sold to William Whitmore of Thurstaston. The Davenport family have exercised their right since the 14th century)

1400 ad 15th CENTURY

1403  Steps were taken to repel invaders in particular Owain Glendower . Hugh de Massey of Puddington and others were appointed keepers of the pass between city of Chester and Haselwell to prevent traffic with the rebels.

1441 Peter de Egerton made rector of Heswall,possibly a relative of the patron Hugh Davenport who is connected with construction of upper part of tower.

1500 a.d.16th CENTURY

1539 Marriage registers kept at St Peters

1559 Baptisms and burials kept in Heswall some of the earliest of their kind

16th century Gayton Mill built

1600 a.d .17th CENTURY

1604 Smithy , Dawstone Road said to date from this year

1605 Plague at Heswall 25 people died

1663 Gayton Hall built and dovecote

1689 William 3 rd stayed at Gayton Hall en route for Battle of the Boyne..Horses said to have been shod at Heswall smithy and trees planted in Gayton Hall grounds called William and Mary.

1700 a.d  18th CENTURY

1728 Oldest gravestone in St Peters records death of William Burtch (Birch)  . Possibly other stones were removed or recovered during rebuilding .

1798-9 Five shillings recorded in churchwardens accounts for cost of 'certain rejoisen for Admiral Nelson'

1800 a.d. 19th CENTURY

1801 Populations of Heswall 323, Gayton 100

1821 Coronation of George 1V almost passed unmarked until rector bribed to ring bells . Many locals were supporters of his ex wife

1839 Mark Coxon made rector ,was responsible for building of present church which was built between 1875 and1879 at cost of between £3000 and £4000

His gravestone is near the church porch. He was rector for 40 years  instigated the building of    the church school and Rector at time of great Storm. Well loved by his parishioners

1845 Population Heswall 398 Gayton 149

1851 Population Heswall 556

1870 Tytheringtons folly (the castle) was built in Telegraph Road

1871 Population Heswall 722  another directory says 910

1872 Church of England school built in School Hill on land given by Brigadier Gen  Sir William Bromley Davenport . (According to H Totty it was begun in 1871 .) Mortimer refers to it as a  free  school for 60 children by subscription. In 1894 230 children

1875 The Great Storm 19th Sept

1878 27th June A stone laid in new church under it was London News Lpool News 1/- 6d 3d 1d 1/2d  (services took place temporarily in School)

1879 14th Aug Church officially opened -Given St Peter for its dedication. Consectrated by Bishop Kelly

1897 30 Nov Rev Mark Coxon died .

1881 Population Slaters 1075  yww says 896

1885 First Railway opened Apr 19th 19miles Hooton-W Kirby. Station at Heswall .

1891 Census 1210

1891 22nd June White Lion and 7 acres sold at auction £4,750.

1891 Mission Room built in Telegraph Road for several inhabitants who found school hill an obstacle.

1891 Centenery Chapel Methodist Telegraph Rd  replaced hut in Milner Rd ( Wesleys Centenery)cost £1400 .

1891 Hesslewelle closed .

1893 Moorland House School Hillside Road est . Closed 1970  Mr Dobie head yww1894.

1894 Wirral Rural District Council to 1933.

1898 Heswall Hills station opened May 1st .

1899 Mortimer refers to Heswall as having 243 dwelling houses and Black Horse, White Lion, Ship Inn, Sandon, the Letters and 1 more.    

1899 Single storied P.O.building opened Lower Heswall.

1900a.d. 20th CENTURY

1900  9 acre site for R.L.C.H. Bought for £2,500

1901 Populations of Heswall 2167, Gayton 180

1901 Mission Church enlarged became mission church of good shepherd

1902 Oct 20 th Heswall Consumption (Cleaver Hospital) opened .Closed 1983 (1913-30 used for children only w.s)In 1939 children sent to Rhuddlan and adults admitted. Changed to Cleaver hospital instead Sanatorium 1950. Land sold in 1988 for £2.5 million

1902 Hotel Victoria opened took licence from White Lion

1904 Lloyds bank building built

1904 Hes Golf club erected first clubhouse cost£1,571

1905 April 21st  Foundation stone for RLCH laid (Tower and clock completed1911)

1907 Work started on Akbar school cost £17,000

1908 April 15th Opening service  Presbyterian Brick building opened (formerly tin hut)

1909 Sept Heswall Council Mixed School opened on Puddydale (Dale Ave)

1909 Heswall Nautical School opened (closed 1956)became Akbar  Nautical Approved School

1910 RLCH opened closed 1985.yww Feb 15th 1909 ready for first patients

1911 Populations of Heswall 3616,  Gayton 238

1911Murrayfield School opened -1978.

1912 Kings Hall built Telegraph Rd -later to be bus depot-cinema .

1914 Sept 3rd Recruiting meeting at Hes presided over by Sir Chas MacIver .

1916 Johnny Pye operated bus service Hes-munitions factory at Queensferry .

1919 Johnny Pye operated Hes-Birkenhead (Singleton Ave)bus service used Kings Hall as depot.

1920 Catholic Tin Tabernacle built. Catholicism in Heswall from 1914

1921 Populations of Heswall 4348, Gayton 219

1924 ? Crosville bought out Johnny  Pye. Fleet of 21 buses.£225,000 including  £7,500shares. Retained cinema. He sold out cinema1930s. It ran from 1916 .

1925  Parish Hall opened.

1928 Dec. 24th Kings Picture House opened ,seated 900  (closed 1958 ) films shown there   from 1916

1931  Populations of Heswall 5532, Gayton 527

1933 Heswall Parish Council became Wirral Urban District Council  - yww1974  April Hill House became council offices

1935 Heswall Castle demolished

1936 Presbyterian Church bought land 1140 sq yds of land from castle. Later built hall on it

1936 Castle Buildings built

1939 30th.Aug. John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (later DJ John Peel) born in Oldfield Nursing Home

1939 Catholic Church Our Lady and St John built

1939 Nov. First air raid siren sounded in Heswall

1940 Fire Station opened replaced 2 large houses. Opened May 4th cost £14.000

1940 Heswall children and evacuees shared rota in schools /week am.pm.until June when evacuees went to Moorland House school whose pupils had been evacuated to Wales

1941 31st May /1st June Incendiary bombs fell on Heswall causing 5 deaths and buildings damaged in Village Road School Hill and Telegraph Rd

1942 National Warship week Hes &dist raised£150,346 for HMS Ophelia

1945 Sept Victory party for children provided by WUDC and 2 extra days Christmas holiday

1950 Pop b7747 both

1950s Heswall Clinic built on site of 2 bombed houses

1953 Heswall Society established

1954 Post Office built w side Pensby Road

1953 Jan. Pensby Sec Mod school for boys/girls opened

1955 Ian Terrance Botham born Heswall 24th Nov  yww Oldfield

1956 Feb.16th Akbar Nautical Training School closed. Jan '57 demolition and planning for houses

sold in  1979 for £15.000 Plans to renovate 1981 turned down

1958 Kings cinema closed - not sold failed to meet reserve £7.500

1959 The Cave sold for £12,500

1959 Anne Thelwall from Heswall became Miss U.K.

1960s Roscote demolished

1960 Lennons supermarket bought cinema

1961 19th May St Peters school opened in Thurs Rd

1961 Dec 1st Found Stone for Ch .O.G.S laid by Bishop of  Chester

1962 Church of the Good opened. Dedicated 1st Dec.

1965 Toll Bar Cottage last occupied -demolished 1980s

1964 Railway track taken up

1965 St Peters rectory built opened 26th June

1970s Crosville began bus route to Liverpool

1970 Presbyterian New Church opened

1970 Moorland House School closed

1973 Wirral Country Park and footpath opened

1973 Heswall Hall and library opened. HH on site of old tennis courts

1974 W.U.D.C became Metropolitan borough of Wirral, parish remained in Cheshire

1977 To celebrate Queens silver jubilee, pageant in Heswall

1982 Murrayfield school closed

1982  23rd July  Puddydale school closed, infants moved to Whitfield primary

1984 Puddydale school demolished (Red Dale flats built on site )

1985 R L C H closed (demolished 1989-91)

1992 New U.R.C. Hall opened (old one demolished and is now Tesco car park)

1993 Tescos opened on old RLCH site, store previously in Pensby Road

1998 Heswall Festival 4-11 July

1999 Heswall Festival 3-10 July

2000 Heswall Festival  June 30-July 5th

2001 Populations of Heswall Barnston Gayton 16,012, Heswall only 7,750

2002 Hotel Victoria demolished

2007 July Parish Centre opened in Village Road