Heswall, Cheshire Genealogy

England Cheshire  Heswall



Parish History
Heswall St Peter an ancient parish known as Heswall cum Oldfield formerly in Cheshire and now part of the administrative county of Merseyside since 1974. It includes Gayton, Heswall with Oldfield and Oldfield.

Heswall was recorded in the Domesday Book as Eswelle and owned by Robert de Rodelent, who also owned much of the land on the eastern side of the River Dee. In 1277, it became the property of Patrick de Haselwall, who was Sheriff of Cheshire.

In 1801, the population was recorded as 168. By the census in 1841, it had only grown to 398. Prior to 1897 it was known as Hestlewelle or Hesselwelle. Its growth was started by wealthy merchants from Liverpool who had originally chosen it as a retreat but the arrival of two railway connections allowed them to commute. One line is the Borderlands Line from Wrexham Central to Bidston which opened in 1896. This line is still active and has Heswall railway station on the eastern edge of the town. The station was formerly called Heswall Hills to distinguish it from the older, now demolished, Heswall Station. The old station was in Station Road in the Lower Village on another line from West Kirby to Hooton. This opened in 1886 but the line closed to passengers in 1956. The track of the old railway became a footpath, the Wirral Way.

The Royal Liverpool Children's Hospital originally opened in Heswall as Liverpool Country Hospital for Children in 1909. It stood on the opposite side of Telegraph Road from the 'Puddydale', it had a tall square clock tower and extensive grounds with views over the Dee estuary. The hospital closed in 1985 and one of it's most famous former patients, Beatle Ringo Starr, was treated there for childhood pleurisy.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Registration District

 * Wirral (1837–1974)
 * Birkenhead (1974–98)
 * Wirral (post 1998)

Church records
To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes.

Heswall, St. Peter (C of E). The ancient parish for the townships of Gayton and Heswall. Registers of Baptisms 1599–1953, Marriages 1539–1963 and Burials 1558–1946 have been deposited at the Cheshire Record Office. Microreproduction of originals at the Cheshire Record Office in Chester, England. Cheshire Record Office call no.: P129/1/1-3, P129/2/1-5, P129/3/1-3, P129/4/1-2.

Bishop's Transcripts Microfilm copy of original record in the Cheshire Record Office, Chester, England. Some records in Latin. Cheshire Record Office no.: EDB 108.

The registers of baptisms, marriages, and burials in the parish of Heswall, in the county and diocese of Chester, from their commencement to the year 1729 : together with a table of the rectors of Heswall from the year 1300 to the present time, and a terrier of lands, fees, charges, etc., in the year 1733 edited by Thomas Henry May Includes index. The parish registers cover 1559-1729. Also on microfilm. Salt Lake City : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1972. on 1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm. FHL BRITISH Film 924706 Item 2

Online transcripts for the parish are available online at Cheshire Parish Register project Heswall, Church of the Good Shepherd (C of E), Telegraph Road. Built in 1901 as a chapel to St. Peter. Registers of Baptisms from 1962 are held at St Peter's (no marriages or burials).. Heswall, Nautical Training School (C of E). A chapel attached to St Peter, built in 1915 and closed in 1956. Registers of Baptisms 1937–1956 have been deposited at the Cheshire Record Office (no baptisms or burials).

Non Conformist Churches

 * Heswall, Our Lady and St. John (Roman Catholic), Telegraph Road. Built in 1919.
 * Heswall, Friends' Meeting House (Quakers). Founded 1939.
 * Heswall, Centenary Methodist Chapel (Wesleyan), Telegraph Road. Built in 1891 (replacing an earlier building in Gayton). Registers of baptisms 1859–1949 are at the Cheshire Record Office. Microfilm of original records at the Cheshire Record Office, Chester. Cheshire Record Office call no.: EMS 134/1. Baptisms, 1859-1949. VAULT BRITISH Film2299421 Item 23
 * Heswall, United Reformed Church (Presbyterian), Telegraph Road. ReBuilt in 1909.

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Cheshire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Poor-Law Union

 * Wirral Poor Law Union, Cheshire

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain