Overpool
Encyclopedia
Overpool is a village on the Wirral Peninsula
in the ceremonial county of Cheshire
, England
. It is a suburb of Ellesmere Port
, and part of the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester
.
in the Wirral Hundred. The population was 89 in 1801, 72 in 1851 and 91 in 1901.
Historically, there were three settlements or small villages - Poole, Over Poole and Nether Poole. Of these, only Overpool remains extant. The area is separated by a roundabout at Cemetery Gates.
The original Overpool Methodist Church was on Rivacre Road, a few hundred yards up from the Rivacre Baths, on the same side of the road next to Jones's old farm (since demolished).
The Church was destroyed by fire in the early 50's, and a new one was built on Rossmore Road (just down from Cemetery Gates on the way to Little Sutton), as this was a more prominent place and nearer to the majority of houses.
In the 1960s Overpool's shops were as follows:
North side of Rossmore Road West - GM Birks (Hairdressers), A & JR Leach (Newsagents), a habitually vacant unit, G Partridge (Butchers), Ashe & Nephew (Off-licence), Rivacre Fish Bar (owned by Stan Fairbrother) later to become Harry's Fish Bar (owned by Harry Wong), General Store owned by Mr & Mrs Jones, then later by Mr & Mrs Laider, Betting Office, Rivacre Home Stores owned by a Mr Turner, then Mr & Mrs Walker, and finally a Grocer's shop and Monumental Mason's yard owned by Mr Petrus. Mr & Mrs Steve Cox took this over and the Mason's yard was built upon to double the size of the store.
South side of Rossmore Road West - Overpool Service Station (an Esso filling station), Bakery (later owned by Patisserie Anglaise), Sharples' Newsagents, Co-op Butchers, Co-op Supermarket, General Store owned by Mr Roberts, Laundrette, a hardware store, a cafe, Galaxie Newsagents, an electrical shop, Chemist's owned by Mr Duffy, Tesco supermarket, and finally the Post Office and Mr Burgess's butchers.
Until it closed in the 1970s Rivacre Baths, an open air swimming pool, was popular and people from as far away as Liverpool visited the baths. The site of the baths is now occupied by local authority housing that backs on to Rivacre Valley, a conservation area
and wildlife park
.
Housing in the area is split between owner occupied and local authority and on the north side of the roundabout is an estate of post-war prefabs
built in the 1950s, known locally as 'Tintown'.
The area underwent considerable change after the Vauxhall Motors
factory opened nearby in 1962: several farms that had supplied milk and other dairy produce to the area were replaced by local authority housing.
One was "Overpool Dairy" run by Charlie and Norman Dodd, and the other was Jones's farm which was next to the Dodds place. Dodd's Farm delivered milk by horse and cart up to the early 1960s.
Bowaters Mersey Paper Mill which produced newsprint from the 1930s stood close by and had a social club at Overpool that was a popular venue in the 1960s and 1970s.
opened in 1988, on the branch line that runs to Ellesmere Port from Liverpool
. Since 1994, the station has been part of the Wirral Line
of the Merseyrail
network. Overpool station is merely a drop off/pickup stop with no ticket office, but a Ticket machine has now been installed.
Buses through Overpool are operated by Firstbus, which operates Route 3 from Rivacre to Chester via Ellesmere Port; Arriva, which operate service 401 Liverpool to Chester, Helms of Eastham, which operate service 272 from Arrowe Park to Ellesmere Port via Neston. GHA Coaches also operate service 111, which operates along Rossmore Road from Little Sutton to Mold via Ellesmere Port & Cheshire Oaks.
Wirral Peninsula
Wirral or the Wirral is a peninsula in North West England. It is bounded by three bodies of water: to the west by the River Dee, forming a boundary with Wales, to the east by the River Mersey and to the north by the Irish Sea. Both terms "Wirral" and "the Wirral" are used locally , although the...
in the ceremonial county of Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, 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 is a suburb of Ellesmere Port
Ellesmere Port
Ellesmere Port is a large industrial town and port in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is situated on the south border of the Wirral Peninsula on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal, which in turn gives access to the River...
, and part of the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester
Cheshire West and Chester
Cheshire West and Chester is a unitary authority area with borough status, in the ceremonial county of Cheshire. It was established in April 2009 as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, by virtue of an order under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health...
.
History
Until 1911, Overpool was part of the parish of EasthamEastham, Merseyside
Eastham is a village and an electoral ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the Wirral Peninsula, to the south of Bromborough...
in the Wirral Hundred. The population was 89 in 1801, 72 in 1851 and 91 in 1901.
Historically, there were three settlements or small villages - Poole, Over Poole and Nether Poole. Of these, only Overpool remains extant. The area is separated by a roundabout at Cemetery Gates.
Community
St Francis's Church stands at the top of Seymour Drive and there is a Methodist church in nearby Rossmore Road.The original Overpool Methodist Church was on Rivacre Road, a few hundred yards up from the Rivacre Baths, on the same side of the road next to Jones's old farm (since demolished).
The Church was destroyed by fire in the early 50's, and a new one was built on Rossmore Road (just down from Cemetery Gates on the way to Little Sutton), as this was a more prominent place and nearer to the majority of houses.
In the 1960s Overpool's shops were as follows:
North side of Rossmore Road West - GM Birks (Hairdressers), A & JR Leach (Newsagents), a habitually vacant unit, G Partridge (Butchers), Ashe & Nephew (Off-licence), Rivacre Fish Bar (owned by Stan Fairbrother) later to become Harry's Fish Bar (owned by Harry Wong), General Store owned by Mr & Mrs Jones, then later by Mr & Mrs Laider, Betting Office, Rivacre Home Stores owned by a Mr Turner, then Mr & Mrs Walker, and finally a Grocer's shop and Monumental Mason's yard owned by Mr Petrus. Mr & Mrs Steve Cox took this over and the Mason's yard was built upon to double the size of the store.
South side of Rossmore Road West - Overpool Service Station (an Esso filling station), Bakery (later owned by Patisserie Anglaise), Sharples' Newsagents, Co-op Butchers, Co-op Supermarket, General Store owned by Mr Roberts, Laundrette, a hardware store, a cafe, Galaxie Newsagents, an electrical shop, Chemist's owned by Mr Duffy, Tesco supermarket, and finally the Post Office and Mr Burgess's butchers.
Until it closed in the 1970s Rivacre Baths, an open air swimming pool, was popular and people from as far away as Liverpool visited the baths. The site of the baths is now occupied by local authority housing that backs on to Rivacre Valley, a conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
and wildlife park
Wildlife Park
Wildlife Park is a construction and management simulation game released in 2003. Like Zoo Tycoon and Zoo Empire, the game involves players in building a wildlife park or zoo.-Animal list:45 animals were included in the original game....
.
Housing in the area is split between owner occupied and local authority and on the north side of the roundabout is an estate of post-war prefabs
Prefabricated home
Prefabricated homes, often referred to as prefab homes, are dwellings manufactured off-site in advance, usually in standard sections that can be easily shipped and assembled....
built in the 1950s, known locally as 'Tintown'.
The area underwent considerable change after the Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors is a British automotive company owned by General Motors and headquartered in Luton. It was founded in 1857 as a pump and marine engine manufacturer, began manufacturing cars in 1903 and was acquired by GM in 1925. It has been the second-largest selling car brand in the UK for...
factory opened nearby in 1962: several farms that had supplied milk and other dairy produce to the area were replaced by local authority housing.
One was "Overpool Dairy" run by Charlie and Norman Dodd, and the other was Jones's farm which was next to the Dodds place. Dodd's Farm delivered milk by horse and cart up to the early 1960s.
Bowaters Mersey Paper Mill which produced newsprint from the 1930s stood close by and had a social club at Overpool that was a popular venue in the 1960s and 1970s.
Transport
Overpool railway stationOverpool railway station
Overpool railway station serves the central area of Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, England. It is situated on the Ellesmere Port branch of the Wirral Line, part of the Merseyrail network....
opened in 1988, on the branch line that runs to Ellesmere Port from Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. Since 1994, the station has been part of the Wirral Line
Wirral Line
The Wirral Line is one of the two commuter railway lines operated by Merseyrail that are centred around Merseyside, England, the other being the Northern 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. Overpool station is merely a drop off/pickup stop with no ticket office, but a Ticket machine has now been installed.
Buses through Overpool are operated by Firstbus, which operates Route 3 from Rivacre to Chester via Ellesmere Port; Arriva, which operate service 401 Liverpool to Chester, Helms of Eastham, which operate service 272 from Arrowe Park to Ellesmere Port via Neston. GHA Coaches also operate service 111, which operates along Rossmore Road from Little Sutton to Mold via Ellesmere Port & Cheshire Oaks.