does anyone know wot was there before chapmion sparkplugs i heard it was some kind of camp

I don't think it is quite where Champions is, but just behind it was THIS

Hi! There used to be a farm before Champions was built. I think you may be referring to the army camp that was set up in arow Park, opposite the Champions site, but not sure.

Arrowe House farm was on the site of the former Champion works, Upton Army Camp was on land requisitioned from the farm and was further down Arrowe Park Road (towards Upton), the Post Office sorting office is built on part of it. There was also a tented army camp in Arrowe Park.

I do recall a cottage on Arrowe Park Road just in front of where Champs used to be. I think it was knocked down in the 70's.

If you look at the picture to the right of the hay barn is where the army camp started and it ended by Upton police station. I think the old cottage was was opposit where Arrow Park hospital entrance is now, it was white washed and had a thatched roof. This farm was owned by the Adams family up untill it was sold to make way for Champions Spark Plug factory. I used to live in Woodland Road just across the road from the farm from 1953 and my mother still lives there. If you need more info about the area drop me a line.

Just remembered there was another cottage halfway between Arrowbrook road and the police station on the same side of the road.

The plan below shows the relative location of the farm and Army Camp. On the plan, the rwquisitioned land is shaded in pink, Arrowe House Farm buildings and yard are shaded in blue and the police station is shaded in green.

Arrowe House Farm and its land was owned by Leverhulme Estates, for many years the tenant farmer was Frank Burgess but by the 1950s the tenant was Mr Adams.

The land belonging to the farm totaled about 153 acres and stretched all the way to Greasby Road. The Army Camp covered an area of about 27 acres, 6 of which were de-requisitioned and returned to the farm in the mid-1950s.