Bidston Hill
Bidston Hill is 100 acres (0.40 km2) of heathland and woodland that contains historic buildings and ancient rock carvings. It is located on the Wirral Peninsula, near the Birkenhead suburb of Bidston, in Merseyside, England. With a peak of 231 feet (70 m), Bidston Hill is one of the highest points on the Wirral.[1][2] The land was part of Lord Vyner's estate[3] and purchased by Birkenhead Corporation in 1894 for use by the public.[4]
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[edit] Buildings
Bidston Windmill replaced a wooden mill that was destroyed by fire in 1791,[5][6][7] and was used to grind wheat until about 1875. However it is believed that there has been a windmill on this site since 1596.[5][6] After falling into disuse it was bought and restored from 1894. It is open on the first Saturday each month between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.[citation needed]
Bidston Observatory was built in 1866 using local sandstone excavated from the site. One of its functions was to determine the exact time. Up to 18 July 1969, at exactly 1:00 p.m. each day, the 'One O'Clock Gun' overlooking the River Mersey near Morpeth Dock, Birkenhead, would be fired electrically from the Observatory.[8] In 1929 the work of the observatory was merged with the University of Liverpool Tidal Institute. The Natural Environment Research Council relocated the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory to the University of Liverpool campus in 2003.[9]
There has been a lighthouse on the hill since 1771. The present lighthouse was built in 1873 but has not been used since 1913. Together with the Leasowe Lighthouse, it enabled the ships to avoid the sandbanks in the channel to Liverpool.[10]
[edit] Rock carvings
There is a 41⁄2-foot-long (1.4 m) carving of a Sun Goddess, carved into the flat rock north-east of the Observatory - it is supposed to face the direction of the rising sun on Midsummer's Day and was thought to have been carved by the Norse-Irish around 1000 AD. An ancient carving of a horse is located on bare rock to the north of the Observatory.[11]
[edit] Bidston Court
Robert William Hudson built a house called 'Bidston Court' on Vyner Road South near Bidston Hill in 1891. Germany's Crown Prince Wilhelm was so impressed with the house that in 1913 he built a similar house, the Cecilienhof in Potsdam. The house was sold in 1921 to Sir Ernest Royden and in 1928 was moved to its present site in Frankby, brick by brick, finally being completed in 1931. It was renamed 'Hillbark'. The original site of the house was given to Birkenhead Corporation.[12]
[edit] Bidston Tunnels
During World War II , an air raid shelter was constructed at Bidston Hill. Today the tunnels are concealed for public safety.[13]
[edit] Legends
Bidston Hill is one of the rumoured resting places for the Holy Grail and could be mentioned in the tale of Gawain in his account on travelling near the Wirral, there are also links to Joseph of Arimethea in the area too. On the hill top one can hear the sound of water rushing on the rocks near the Observatory, this has led to speculation that there is an underground water source and possibly further tunnels linked with Mother Redcaps and the tunnels in New Brighton. There are thought to be several entrances concealed on Bidston Hill and the nearby village. The hill has long been linked with occult and the stone steps leading from the wood to the top are called "The Witches Steps". There are various "mummer" carvings on the rocks facing the east, one barely visible, adjacent to the Observatory wall, is a form of a man with a noose around his neck and dagger at his throat; this has led to speculation that this points to a ritual sacrifice, although it is thought these carvings date only from the 18th century. Eleanor Road is thought to be part of a roman road linking Wirral with Chester.
[edit] References
- ^ Natural Areas and Greenspaces: Bidston Hill, Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, http://www.wirral.gov.uk/my-services/leisure-and-culture/parks-beaches-and-countryside/parks-greenspaces-and-countryside/natural-areas-and-greenspaces, retrieved 13 June 2010
- ^ Kemble, Mike, The Wirral Hundred/The Wirral Peninsula, http://www.mikekemble.com/mside/wirral.html, retrieved 12 August 2007
- ^ Kemble, Mike, Bidston Village, Hall, Hill & Mill, http://www.mikekemble.com/mside/bidston.html, retrieved 14 September 2009
- ^ Brocklebank, Ralph T. (2003), Birkenhead: An Illustrated History, Breedon Books, p. 91, ISBN 1 85983 350 0
- ^ a b Kemble, Mike, Bidston: The Mill, http://www.mikekemble.com/mside/bidston3.html, retrieved 16 July 2010
- ^ a b Windmills, Allerton Oak, http://www.allertonoak.com/merseyThemes/Windmills.html, retrieved 16 July 2010
- ^ Bidston, C.E., Old Ordnance Survey Map: Cheshire 13.02 (1909), Alan Godfrey Maps
- ^ The Time Ball and the One O'clock Gun, Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory, http://www.pol.ac.uk/home/history/gun.html, retrieved 12 August 2007
- ^ Bid to move ocean lab faces rough passage, Times Higher Education, 1 August 2003, http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storyCode=178450§ioncode=26, retrieved 10 September 2008
- ^ Bidston Lighthouse, Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory, http://www.pol.ac.uk/home/history/lighthouse.html, retrieved 12 August 2007
- ^ Bidston Hill, Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, archived from the original on 28 June 2008, http://web.archive.org/web/20080628051440/http://www.wirral.gov.uk/LGCL/100006/200073/670/content_0001101.html, retrieved 16 July 2010
- ^ Bidston Court, Geograph, http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/218605, retrieved 11 March 2007
- ^ Bidston Hill Underground Tunnels, wirralhistory.co.uk, http://wirralhistory.co.uk/, retrieved 9 September 2008
[edit] External links
- Map sources for Bidston Hill
