is a town in the
Unitary Authority of
Halton ,
Cheshire ,
England . It was a
Municipal Borough in the traditional county of Lancashire until 1974. It owes its existence to the
Chemical Industry . In 1800 it was a mere collection of houses but by 1900 had a population of around 50,000.
The town's continued growth is mainly due to its location in between the large urban areas of
Manchester and
Liverpool .
According to local history books, the name Widnes comes from the old
Danish vidnes, meaning "wide nose", and refers to the promontory of land that juts south into the
River Mersey , creating a narrowing in the channel called the Runcorn Gap. Some correspondents have suggested that the name is
Norwegian , and there is a similar peninsula named Vidnes in
Møre Og Romsdal ,
Norway .
Place-name books suggest the
Etymology is from Old English wid-naess "wide
Promontory "; this would make sense as most of the place-names in the region are from
Old English ;
Speke is one of them.
The area's
Norse history is celebrated in the name of the local
Rugby League Football Club the
Widnes Vikings . The Widnes Vikings were previously know as the "Chemics". Once world champions (1989), subsequently spent time in the Northern Ford Premiership, and have last season again been relegated to the National League One from
Super League .
Widnes and
Runcorn are divided by the River Mersey. In the West Bank area of the town the Mersey happens to narrow and so for many centuries this made it a natural place to cross the river. At first this was by boat but later a ferry service was set-up to provide this service. In middle of the 19th century (1868 to be exact) a rail bridge was opened between Widnes and Runcorn. This bridge also had a footpath which allowed you to walk between Widnes and Runcorn for the first time, provided you could pay the small fee. This bridge still carries trains today.
In 1905 a second crossing was opened in the form of the
Transporter Bridge and it was the largest of its type in the world. This ferried people across the Mersey in a large gondolier that hung beneath the bridge. This gondolier moved between Runcorn and Widnes carrying a large number of people at once.
On the 21st of July 1961 a road bridge was opened that connected Widnes and Runcorn by road for the first time. After this the Transport Bridge was demolished and the foot path was closed on the rail bridge. In its place, a new footpath was opened on the road-bridge which you can cross for free.
Plans are currently before Parliment for a new road, rail and foot bridge, which is scheduled to be built in 2007.
Widnes is also known for the railway station where
Paul Simon wrote the song Homeward Bound. However, the original station called Widnes Central was one of those stations closed by
Dr Beeching in the early
1960s . It was demolished and its site is now forms part of the the local expressway, Ashley Way.
Despite the fact that the original station no longer exists, there is a plaque in the only remaining Widnes railway station to celebrate the writing of the song.
The
major centres of education in the town are as listed below:-
- Bankfield High School
- Fairfield County High School
- Halton College
- St Peter & Paul Cathloic College
- Wade Deacon County High School
- Widnes Sixth Form College
The table below lists the notable venues in Widnes.
- Vue Bar and Grill (Bar)
- The Albion (Pub)
- The Derby (Pub)
- The Tavern (Pub)
- The Appleton Arms (Pub)
- The Four Topped Oak (Pub)
