Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past History Information Request Local History Resources

I used to speak to Americans and Japanese quite often as well as nearby European Countries - most of them even knew villages of the Wirral (eg Oxton) and were quite insistent I told them exactly where I was. Cammel Lairds seemed to be better known than Liverpool.

But when speaking to young people in London in was a different matter.

Me too I've met quite a few Americans who know of Wallasey and the Wirral - from Military connections mostly...

Not true. That applies to Wallasey as it was almost cut off from the rest of the Wirral by the Wallasey pool, Bidston Moss and Irish sea. The CH postcode does indeed include some places in Wales btw.

The only reason postcodes changed was because your mail was dealt with at that sorting office. I.E. When we were L, it was done at Copperas Hill in Liverpool. The Post Office in its wisdom decided that Chester would hence forth sort our mail so we became CH. Those of us in the know, knew this was the thin end of the wedge to eventually close the sorting office at Liverpool and transfer to Warrington which is happening slowly. It has nothing whatsoever to do with Merseyside, Cheshire or Lancashire for that matter. That was down to Governments.

For those of us who remember, and has already been stated by someone, we had Wallasey Borough Council which apart from running what has already been mentioned, was also responsible for providing us with water. A lot of that came from wells that were/are under Asda in Seaview road and was extremely pure. So pure that you could put it in car batteries. The wells became polluted with diesel which I assume was something to do with the bus depot but I am not sure? I digress. Water was paid for as part of your rates until the greedy sods in power decided on private water companies.

There was Birkenhead Borough Council. Hoylake Urban District Council and so on. Basically it was a money saving exercise to combine the lot and call us the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral. Things went downhill from there in my humble but I don't really mind being called Merseyside because I do live on the banks of the Mersey. Up yours Deeside! Only kidding.

I can understand Pinz and Chris still thinking of here as Cheshire, that's what it probably was when they left and old habits die hard and DD would be correct in saying he was born in Cheshire if that's whats on his birth certificate, no harm there, though these days its more important to find a fathers name on the BC than place of birth, (i digress). The only advantage i could see when changing from L to CH was that some insurance company's may not of thought that i go out and steal hub caps or my home was under constant attack from buglers, but i don't think that lasted long before they cottoned on. As Helles said, he can consider being a Merseysider with living on the banks of the Mersey, can i, considering i live in Higher Tranmere or am i to far away, does a person living in Heswall consider themselves a Deesider. Would this mean someone living in Meols consider themselves an Irish seasider. It doesn't matter what post code we have or area we are deemed to live under, we still in the most part live with the same decent people.

sorry i actualy meant to type wallasey not wirral

i was born in birkenhead ,there was never a mention then of living on the wirral. they say that the rovers are wirrals football club nonsense they are birkenheads football club .iff you was born in birkenhead be proud to say so.

that i go out and steal hub caps or my home was under constant attack from buglers,
Bert
I hope you are ok as those buglers can do some damage with the blunt end of their bugles

...band of nasty buglers....

'County of Merseyside' just doesn't sound right.
I was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire and lived in Bebington, Cheshire.
Can't change that! Wouldn't want to change that!
I still feel 'connected', by good old WikiWirral, covering the geographical peninsula called Wirral.

Bri

Hi digging can you access that online? I tried to get a library card so I could search their reference library but they would not let me.

Silly me Derek, people who live in glass houses,