| Bromborough | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Bromborough Cross | |
  Bromborough Location withinMerseyside | |
| Population | 14,850 (2011 census)[a] |
| OS grid reference | SJ349825 |
| • London | 175 mi (282 km)[1] SE |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WIRRAL |
| Postcode district | CH62 and CH63 |
| Dialling code | 0151 |
| ISO 3166 code | GB-WRL |
| Police | Merseyside |
| Fire | Merseyside |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Bromborough (/ˈbrɒmbərə/BROM-bər-ə) is a town in theMetropolitan Borough of Wirral,Merseyside, England, on theWirral Peninsula south-east ofBebington and north ofEastham. It lies within thehistoric county boundaries ofCheshire, and became part of Merseyside in 1974.
At the2011 census, the population of theBromborough ward was 14,850.[2][3]
The nameBrunanburh[4] is suggested to mean "Bruna's fortification", withburh beingOld English for a fortified place.[5]
Bromborough is a contender for the site of an epic battle of 937, theBattle of Brunanburh, which confirmed England as a unitedAnglo-Saxon kingdom.[6] Thephilological case for Bromborough asBrunanburh has been questioned, on the basis that the first element in the name may be 'brown' and not 'Bruna'. Bromborough would therefore be 'the brown [stone-built] manor or fort'.[7]
AnAnglo-Saxon cross, reconstructed from fragments, is in the churchyard of localparish churchSt Barnabas.[8] Bromborough is not specifically named in theDomesday Survey, and the name does not appear in records until the 12th century.
Amarket charter allowing a market to be held each Monday was granted byEdward I in 1278 to the monks ofSt. Werburgh's Abbey. It was hoped that establishing the market in the vicinity of Bromborough Cross would promote honest dealing. The market cross was the traditional centre of the village and also an assembly point for local farm labourers available for hire. The steps of the cross are from the original 13th-century monument. The cross itself is a more recent reproduction, presented to the town by the Bromborough Society.[9][10]
With awatermill having been recorded near Bromborough at the time of the Domesday Survey, Bromborough watermill was likely to have been the oldest mill site on the Wirral.[11] Located on the River Dibbin at what is known as Spital Dam, it was worked until 1940 and demolished in 1949.[12] The site is now a children's nursery. Awindmill, built in 1777, existed on higher ground also at the same location. Having fallen into disuse and much deteriorated, it was destroyed bygunpowder in about 1878.[10]
An increase in traffic passing through the area resulted in Bromborough undergoing extensive redevelopment in the 1930s. Bromborough Hall, built in 1617, was demolished in 1932 to make way for a by-pass and a number of farmhouses and cottages in the area of Bromborough Cross were replaced with shops.[10]
Bromborough is situated on the eastern side of the Wirral Peninsula, on the western side of theRiver Mersey. The area is approximately 12.5 km (7.8 mi) south-southeast of theIrish Sea atNew Brighton and about 8 km (5.0 mi) east-northeast of theDee Estuary atParkgate. Bromborough Cross is at an elevation of about 32 m (105 ft) above sea level.[13]
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The partiallymedieval Bromborough Cross, in the old village centre, is a designated Grade II*listed building.[14]St Barnabas' Church, designed byGeorge Gilbert Scott, is also Grade II* listed and was constructed in the 1860s to replace a smaller church.[15]Both Stanhope House and Pear Tree Cottage are Grade II listed and are amongst several buildings from the late seventeenth century that survive in the modern town.[16][17]
To the west of theA41 New Chester Road, Bromborough is mainly residential development started in the 1930s, centred on the original village centre with its market cross.
There are a number ofpubs in Bromborough: 'The Bromborough,' the 'Royal Oak' and the local British Legion, now known as the Bromborough Social Club are situated in Bromborough Village. 'The Archers' pub had closed down by 2013 and planning permission was submitted for it to be demolished. On the outskirts, borderingEastham, are the 'Merebrook' and the 'Dibbinsdale', where there is a branch of the Pesto restaurant chain.
Bromborough's green spaces includeBrotherton Park and Dibbinsdale Local Nature Reserve, along the banks of the River Dibbin, andMarfords Park to the south west of the town.
The local newspapers are theBromborough and Bebington News and theWirral Globe.
There is one main tier of local government covering Bromborough, atmetropolitan borough level:Wirral Council. The council is a member of theLiverpool City Region Combined Authority, which is led by the directly-electedMayor of the Liverpool City Region.
TheBromborough ward is generally defined by Stanley Road inNew Ferry to the north, the Mersey to the east, the railway line to the west and Acre Lane to the south. Bromborough is represented onWirral Council by threeGreen councillors.[18] The most recentlocal elections took place on 4 May 2023.
Bromborough is within the parliamentary constituency ofEllesmere Port and Bromborough, represented byLabour MPJustin Madders.
Bromborough was anancient parish in theWirral Hundred of Cheshire. The parish was subdivided into twotownships, called Bromborough (which included the village itself) andBrimstage, which was detached from the main part of the parish, lying a couple of miles to the west.[19] From the 17th century onwards, parishes were gradually given various civil functions under thepoor laws, in addition to their original ecclesiastical functions. In some cases, including Bromborough, the civil functions were exercised by each township separately rather than the parish as a whole. In 1866, the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws, and so each township became a separatecivil parish.[20]
In 1873, Bromborough was made alocal government district, administered by an elected local board.[21] Such districts were reconstituted asurban districts under theLocal Government Act 1894.[22] Bromborough Urban District was abolished in 1922, merging with the neighbouring urban districts ofHigher Bebington andLower Bebington to form the Bebington and Bromborough Urban District.[23][24] In 1921, the last census before its abolition, the parish and urban district of Bromborough had a population of 2,652.[25]
Bebington and Bromborough Urban District was renamed Bebington in 1933, when its territory was also significantly enlarged to take inStoreton,Poulton cum Spital,Brimstage,Thornton Hough,Raby, andEastham. The urban district was raised to the status of amunicipal borough in 1937.[26] Bromborough remained part of the borough of Bebington until its abolition in 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972. The area then became part of theMetropolitan Borough of Wirral in the new county ofMerseyside.[27][28]
East of the A41 road, towards theRiver Mersey, is industrial development and includesBromborough Pool,[29] an early industrial "model village" developed from 1853–58 byPrice's Candles. Part of the industry is connected to the formerBromborough Dock and includes anammonium nitrate warehouse and the mainlandfill site for the Wirral, now a walkway with views of the river.Cereal Partners employs 340 people and producesCheerios andCorn Flakes, among other breakfast cereals, in a factory formerly owned by Viota.Rank Hovis McDougall briefly owned the business in the 1990s. Another major business is Sun Valley Snacks Ltd, which processes peanuts.
The Croft Retail & Leisure Park, which opened in March 1990, is located off the A41.
The main road through the area is theA41 New Chester Road. TheB5137 Spital Road joins the A41 at Bromborough. Junctions 4 and 5 of theM53 motorway are equidistant from Bromborough, each about 3 km (1.9 mi) away; Junction 4 is to the west and Junction 5 is to the south.
There are many local bus services which serve the village, mostly operated byStagecoach Merseyside. Stagecoach Gold service 1 offers direct, premium connections to Liverpool and Birkenhead to the north; Chester, Chester Zoo and Ellesmere Port to the south.
Bromborough andBromborough Rake railway stations are both situated on theWirral line of theMerseyrail network. Trains run every 15 minutes toChester, every 30 minutes toEllesmere Port, and there are six trains per hour toLiverpool Central.
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