Litherland
Encyclopedia
Litherland is a suburb
an village in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside
, England
. It was formerly an urban district
, which included Seaforth
and Ford
. It neighbours Waterloo to the north, Seaforth
to the west, and Bootle
to the south and is 5 miles north of Liverpool city centre
.
hliŏ/hlith-ar which means "slope" and Old English land "land".
Litherland was mentioned in the Domesday Book
of 1086 as Liderlant, however there was no mention of Liverpool at that time. The first manor of Litherland consisted of one half and two quarters, the areas being Litherland including what is now Seaforth (the half) and present day Orrell and Ford (the two quarters).
Litherland remained a poor area until the arrival of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal
in 1774, this brought the area into the modern world, originally providing a safe route through Lancashire
from Liverpool to Wigan
, and eventually in 1816 through to Leeds
. The route became very busy primarily for goods and later for the transportation of passengers. The outcome of all this activity was to bring prosperous businessmen from the City to the countryside, where they had a desire to live.
The area was the northern extremity of the Bootle and North Docks lines of Liverpool's tramway network. From the boundary with Bootle, it ran for 3/4 of a mile along Linacre Road to a terminus at the junction with Bridge Road. This short stretch was the last horse drawn service in Liverpool, switching to electric operation in August 1903, eight months after the rest of the system converted.
The Litherland gala was staged every year and was famous for the procession of shire horses and floats from the docks. The gala procession ended at the Bryant and May
sports field.
The Beatles
played some of their earliest gigs at Litherland Town Hall in 1961. (Now closed as a council building, it is currently a health centre operated by South Sefton PCT).
Litherland is within the Bootle
constituency represented by the Labour Party
MP Joe Benton
.
Litherland returns six members to Sefton Council
from two electoral wards, each with three representatives. The Litherland ward
is represented by Patricia Hardy, John Kelly, and Paul Tweed; the Ford
ward's representatives are Owen Brady, Kevin Cluskey and Ian Moncur. All six are members of the Labour Party
.
on the Hunts Cross
to Southport
line of the Merseyrail
network. The main road is the A5036 road
, which connects to Switch Island
and the A565 road
at Seaforth Dock
.
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
an village in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was formerly an urban district
Urban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
, which included Seaforth
Seaforth, Merseyside
Seaforth is a district within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. It is located to the north of Liverpool, between Bootle and Waterloo.-History:...
and Ford
Ford, Merseyside
Ford is an area in the borough of Sefton, Merseyside, North West England.Ford is situated to the east of Crosby next to Rimrose Valley, and north of Litherland and is in the L21 postcode.-External links:**...
. It neighbours Waterloo to the north, Seaforth
Seaforth, Merseyside
Seaforth is a district within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. It is located to the north of Liverpool, between Bootle and Waterloo.-History:...
to the west, and Bootle
Bootle
Bootle is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England, and a 'Post town' in the L postcode area. Formally known as Bootle-cum-Linacre, the town is 4 miles to the north of Liverpool city centre, and has a total resident population of 77,640.Historically part of...
to the south and is 5 miles north of Liverpool city centre
Liverpool City Centre
Liverpool city centre is the commercial, cultural, financial and historical heart of Liverpool, England.Unlike many other cities in the United Kingdom, a ring road doesn't distinguish the city centre from the remainder of Liverpool, although an inner ring road of sorts does exist, with the recent...
.
History
The name Litherland is a hybrid name, from Old NorseOld Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
hliŏ/hlith-ar which means "slope" and Old English land "land".
Litherland was mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 as Liderlant, however there was no mention of Liverpool at that time. The first manor of Litherland consisted of one half and two quarters, the areas being Litherland including what is now Seaforth (the half) and present day Orrell and Ford (the two quarters).
Litherland remained a poor area until the arrival of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal
Leeds and Liverpool Canal
The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of , it crosses the Pennines, and includes 91 locks on the main line...
in 1774, this brought the area into the modern world, originally providing a safe route through Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
from Liverpool to Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
, and eventually in 1816 through to Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
. The route became very busy primarily for goods and later for the transportation of passengers. The outcome of all this activity was to bring prosperous businessmen from the City to the countryside, where they had a desire to live.
The area was the northern extremity of the Bootle and North Docks lines of Liverpool's tramway network. From the boundary with Bootle, it ran for 3/4 of a mile along Linacre Road to a terminus at the junction with Bridge Road. This short stretch was the last horse drawn service in Liverpool, switching to electric operation in August 1903, eight months after the rest of the system converted.
The Litherland gala was staged every year and was famous for the procession of shire horses and floats from the docks. The gala procession ended at the Bryant and May
Bryant and May
For the Bryant and May series of crime mystery books, see the author Christopher Fowler.Bryant and May was a United Kingdom company created in the mid-nineteenth century specifically to make matches. Their original Bryant and May Factory was located in Bow, London...
sports field.
The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
played some of their earliest gigs at Litherland Town Hall in 1961. (Now closed as a council building, it is currently a health centre operated by South Sefton PCT).
Governance
For parliamentary electionsParliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
Litherland is within the Bootle
Bootle (UK Parliament constituency)
Bootle is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election. Since 1990 the MP has been Joe Benton of the Labour Party...
constituency represented by the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MP Joe Benton
Joe Benton
Joseph Edward Benton is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bootle since 1990.-Early life:...
.
Litherland returns six members to Sefton Council
Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council
Sefton Council is the governing body for the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, north-western England. The council has been under no overall control since the 1980s and is run as an all party coalition of the Liberal Democrats, the Labour Party and the Conservative Party, It consists of...
from two electoral wards, each with three representatives. The Litherland ward
Litherland (ward)
Litherland is a Metropolitan Borough of Sefton ward in the Bootle Parliamentary constituency that covers the southern part of the locality of Litherland.-Councillors:-Elections of the 2010s:-References:...
is represented by Patricia Hardy, John Kelly, and Paul Tweed; the Ford
Ford (ward)
Ford is a Metropolitan Borough of Sefton ward in the Bootle Parliamentary constituency that covers the northern part of the locality of Litherland and all of Ford.-Councillors:-Elections of the 2010s:-References:...
ward's representatives are Owen Brady, Kevin Cluskey and Ian Moncur. All six are members of the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
.
Transport
Litherland is served by Seaforth & Litherland railway stationSeaforth & Litherland railway station
Seaforth & Litherland railway station is a railway station in Seaforth, Liverpool, England on the Northern Line of the Merseyrail network. It also serves the adjacent area of Litherland.-History:...
on the Hunts Cross
Hunts Cross
Hunt's Cross is a suburb of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is located on the southern edge of the city, bordered by Woolton, Allerton, Speke and Halewood.-History:...
to Southport
Southport
Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. During the 2001 census Southport was recorded as having a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England...
line of the Merseyrail
Merseyrail
Merseyrail is a train operating company and commuter rail network in the United Kingdom, centred on Liverpool, Merseyside. The network is predominantly electric with diesel trains running on the City Line. Two City Line branches are currently being electrified on the overhead wire AC system with...
network. The main road is the A5036 road
A5036 road
The A5036 is a road in Merseyside, England, which comprises two separate sections separated by a gap of .The northern section is a section of trunk road, travelling from Seaforth through Litherland before terminating at the Switch Island junction in Netherton...
, which connects to Switch Island
Switch Island
Switch Island is a road junction south of Maghull and near Aintree in Merseyside, England on the Liverpool rural-urban fringe. The junction is at the western terminus of both the M57 and M58 motorways, which converge on the A59 trunk road, the north-south route from Liverpool...
and the A565 road
A565 road
The A565 is a road in England that runs from Liverpool in Merseyside to Tarleton in Lancashire. It is a primary route linking the town of Southport to Liverpool and to Preston ....
at Seaforth Dock
Seaforth Dock
Seaforth Dock is a purpose-built dock and container terminal, on the River Mersey, England, at Seaforth, to the north of Liverpool. As part of the Port of Liverpool and Liverpool Freeport, it is operated by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company...
.