is an industrial town in the
Unitary Authority of
Halton ,
Cheshire ,
England on the southern banks of the
River Mersey at the site of the river's first bridge crossing. The name came from
Saxon ''Rumcofan'' = "wide bay or creek".
Ruler of
Mercia ,
Aethelflaed had a fortification built at Runcorn to protect the northern frontier of her kingdom against the
Vikings . Her visitation to the fort site at Castle Rock near the riverside (where the railway bridge now stands), in AD 915 is the first mention of Runcorn in recorded history.
Runcorn was not mentioned in the
1086 Domesday survey, though surrounding villages of
Halton , Weston, Aston, Sutton and Stockham were. Runcorn could have been integrated into Halton at that time (today Halton village is part of Runcorn) or may have been harried to worthlessness by
William The Conqueror .
In
Norman Cheshire, the first
Earl Of Chester ,
Hugh D'Avranches split his estate into baronies. The Halton barony held precedent over all others and Nigel, the constable of Chester (Cheshire) became its first baron. Nigel erected a
Motte And Bailey castle on Halton Hill around
1071 to keep watch over the Lancashire and Cheshire plains and the river estuary. The stone structured castle, as is seen remained today, would have started development in the later half of the 12th century; being gradually built upon, with each of the early barons undertaking various projects and adding to the work of his predecessor.
In
1115 , Nigel's son, William Fitznigel, founded an
Augustinian Priory at Runcorn. In
1134 the monks moved the priory to Norton, about three and a half miles away. The barons of Halton provided Norton Priory with substantial amounts of money until
1200 . In
1391 the priory was raised to the higher status of abbey. In
1536 the monastery was dissolved, and a few years later the buildings and some of the monastic lands were sold to
Sir Richard Brooke who converted the habitable part of the Abbey into a home for himself and his family.
During the
Civil War the castle was held for The Crown by Earl Rivers, the Steward of Halton. It fell twice to Parliamentarian
Roundheads . The first siege was led by
Sir William Brereton in
1643 , the second a year later. Stone blocks removed from the castle would have been used to build many of the still existing houses in Halton village. Following the Civil War, the castle was purchased by Colonel Henry Brooke of Norton Priory. However it was only held by the Brooke family for a short period of time, as it was returned to the Duchy after the Restoration in
1660 .
According to a writer in
1656 , Runcorn was "nothing but a fair parish church, a parsonage and a few scattered tenements".
Today, Runcorn is one of the most industrial parts of the UK with the Runcorn ICI and many other industrial buildings.
Despite the factorys providing work for locals it has still has poor employment and a bad reputation due to its chav culture.
Runcorn consists of the 'old town' which began expansion on farmland during the
Industrial Revolution brought by the
Bridgewater Canal ; and the '
New Town ' which was built from the 1960s onwards to house overspill population from
Liverpool .
Runcorn New Town was designated in 1964, in the second-wave of new towns. Runcorn
New Town was the first to pioneer the use of bus-only roads over a large scale.
The town also retains ruins of the 12th-century castle and the remains of the priory. Large chemical works are found at the furthest edge of the western part of the old town. This is offset by the vast greenery of the new town to the east. ''The Catalyst Museum'' in neighbouring
Widnes recognises the contribution of the
Chemical Industry as it has developed around the North West.
The remains of Norton Priory, including its museum and walled garden are the main tourist attraction of the town. There is also a shopping centre (Halton Lea), and a dry ski slope.
Population in
2001 was 61,330.
Runcorn is well served by roads (the passes alongside Runcorn and under both bridges. Buses in Runcorn use dedicated "busways", a rarity in the
United Kingdom .
Visitors to Runcorn are often confused by the road network as there are no direct routes between the various districts. Instead, motorists should use the extensive network of
Expressways which allow quick access to all Runcorn areas, having been conceived to keep the bulk or traffic safely away from residential neighbourhoods.
Runcorn was part of an amusing segment on Danny Baker's "Football Nightmares" video. Runcorn's football support consisted of three small children cheering wildly on the touchline in plastic macs and hats. This was to portray according to the commentator "a crowd going absolutely berserk". Mentioned several times throughout the video.
As far as actual
Football clubs go,
Runcorn FC Halton (formerly of the
Football Conference and now of the
Northern Premier League ) now play in nearby Prescot.
The
BBC Sitcom Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps was set in Runcorn.
