Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for RUNCORN

RUNCORN, a town, a township, a parish, a sub-district, and a district, in Cheshire. The town stands on the river Mersey, at the western termini of the Bridgewater, the Mersey and Irwell, and the Trent and Merseycanals, and on the branch of the Northwestern railway, across Runcorn-Gap, at the boundary with Lancashire, 12 miles E S E of Liverpool; was anciently called Runcora, Runcofan, Runcoven, and Ronchestorn; had acastle, built by Ethelfleda, daughter of Alfred the Great, on a rock still called Castle Rock; had also a priory, founded in 1133 by W. Fitznigel, and removed in the time of Stephen to Norton; never acquired any importance till the completion of the Bridgewater canal; rosethen and afterwards to much consequence as a place ofcommerce; became a head port in 1847, for all parts of the Mersey and its tributaries from Warrington down to Dungeon Point and Ince Ferry; is also a sea-bathing resort, a seat of county courts, and a polling-place; publishes three weekly newspapers; and has a post-office‡under Preston-Brook, a railway station with telegraph, four chief inns, a town hall and bridewell, a public hall, a market-hall, a custom-house, a large room for balls and concerts, a theatre, public swimming-baths, two churches, two seamen's chapels, ten dissenting chapels, a Roman Catholic chapel, a public cemetery, four public schools, and charities £205. All Saints' church was rebuilt in 1 849; is in the early English style and cruciform; and has a tower with octagonal spire. Trinity church was built in 1838; and is in the pointed style, with a tower. The Independent chapel in High-street is a neat edificein the pointed style. The Wesleyan chapel in High-street was built in 1865, at a cost of £6,000; and is in the Italian style. The national schools in Church-street are a group of buildings in the by zantine style, and havecapacity for about 500 scholars.

Runcorn Gap is a contraction of the Mersey to a width of about 1, 200 feet at high water. A railway wrought-iron bridge was constructed across it in 18647, at a cost of more than £30,000; rests on two stone piers in mid-channel, 300 feet apart; consists of three "stretches"between the piers and shore abutments, together with 97arches of end-viaduct; is altogether 1, 500 feet long and 95 feet above high-water mark; and has two lines of railway for trains, and a footway for passengers. The new line of railway from Liverpool, by this bridge, shortensthe distance from Liverpool to London, by the North-western system, about 12 miles, and brings new businessto Runcorn. Large wet docks and basins, extensive ware-houses, and all other requisites for a large traffic, are at the harbour; and a succession of double lines of lockscommunicates between the river and the general level of the canals. The vessels belonging to the port, in the beginning of 1864, were 5 small sailing-vessels, of aggregately 149 tons; and 16 large sailing-vessels, of aggregately 1, 141 tons. The vessels which entered in 1863were 6 British sailing-vessels, of aggregately 217 tons, from British colonies; 144 British sailing-vessels, of aggregately 14, 969 tons, from foreign countries; 31 foreign sailing-vessels, of aggregately 3, 421 tons, from foreign countries; 1,015 sailing-vessels, of aggregately 59, 353tons, coastwise; and 1 steam-vessel, of 151 tons, coast-wise. The vessels which cleared in 1863 were 11 British sailing-vessels, of aggregately 1,060 tons, to British colonies; 2 foreign sailing-vessels, of aggregately 204 tons, to British colonies; 138 British sailing-vessels, of aggregately 15, 410 tons, to foreign countries; 41 foreign sailing-vessels, of aggregately 4, 845 tons, to foreign countries; 2, 711 sailing-vessels, of aggregately 158, 713 tons, coastwise; and 1 steam-vessel, of 151 tons, coastwise. The amount of customs in 1862 was £3, 430. The chiefexports are grain, salt, coal, coke, iron, and stone. Steamtugs tow the canal-boats up or down the Mersey; a steampacket sails daily to and from Liverpool; and a packet-boat goes daily, in summer, to Manchester. Ship-building, anchor-making, iron-founding, rope-making, soap-making, tanning, and school-slate manufacturing arecarried on. The town includes all R. township and part of Halton township. Pop. in 1851, 8,049; in 1861, 10.434. Houses, 2,092.

The township comprises 1,000 acres of land, and 490 ofwater. Real property, £28, 423; of which £1,015 are inquarries, and £1, 490 in gas-works. Pop. in 1851, 8, 688; in 1861, 10,063. Houses, 2,008. The parish contains also the townships of Halton, Norton, Stockham, Sutton, Aston-by-Sutton, Aston-Grange, Clifton, Walton-Inferior, Walton-Superior, Acton-Grange, Moore, Keckwick, Hatton, Daresbury, Newton-by-Daresbury, Preston-on-the-Hill, and Thelwall. Acres, 18, 906. Pop. in 1851, 1 5,047; in 1861, 16, 457. Houses, 3, 190. The living of All Saints is a vicarage, and that of Trinity is a p. curacy, in the diocese of Chester. Value of A. S., £350; * of T., £213.* Patron of A. S., Christ Church, Oxford; of T., J. and T. Johnson, Esqs. The p. curacies of Halton, Aston-by-Sutton, Daresbury, Weston-Point, and Thelwall are separate benefices.—The sub-district contains the nine first-named townships of R. parish. Acres, 10, 602. Pop. in 1851, 12, 195; in 1861, 13, 590. Houses, 2, 651. The . district comprehends also the sub-district of Daresbury, containing all the rest of R. parish except Thelwall, and containing also Dalton township; the sub-district of Budworth, containing nine townships of Great Budworth parish; and the sub-district of Frodsham, containing Frodsham parish and Kingswood township. Acres of the district, 45, 776. Poor-rates in 1863, £10, 948. Pop. in 1851, 25, 797; in 1861, 26, 792. Houses, 5, 226. Marriages in 1863, 170; births, 1, 153, of which 87 wereillegitimate; deaths, 759, of which 372 were at ages under 5 years, and 8 at ages above 85. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60, 1, 959; births, 9, 353; deaths, 5, 548. The places of worship, in 1851, were 18 of the Church of England, with 7, 830 sittings; 4 of Independents, with1, 500 s.; 4 of Baptists, with 630 s.; 1 of Quakers, with191 s.; 17 of Wesleyans, with 3, 791 s.; 5 of Primitive Methodists, with 808 s.; 4 of the Wesleyan Association, with 613 s.; 2 of Welsh Calvinistic Methodists, with 506s.; and 1 of Roman Catholics, with 50 s. The schools were 25 public day schools, with 2, 723 scholars; 38 private day schools, with 1,060 s.; 42 Sunday schools, with4, 450 s.; and 1 evening school for adults, with 33 s. The workhouse is in Dutton.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a town, a township, a parish, a sub-district, and a district"   (ADL Feature Type: "cities")
Administrative units: Runcorn CP/AP       Runcorn SubD       Runcorn RegD/PLU       Cheshire AncC
Place names: RONCHESTORN     |     RUNCOFAN     |     RUNCORA     |     RUNCORN     |     RUNCOVEN
Place: Runcorn

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