Cheshire, a county in England, also known as the County Palatine of Cheshire and the County of Chester.
It lies between the Irish Sea and the Pennine Hills, the fertile Cheshire plain at its heart.
Some of its towns have a long history: Chester, the county town (county administrative centre), Macclesfield, Northwich, Middlewich, and Nantwich. Others arose following the Industrial Revolution: Stockport, Crewe, Birkenhead, and Hyde. Towns in neighbouring counties have influenced life in Cheshire: Manchester and Liverpool, Lancashire, and Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.
Following county boundary changes there is a difference between the historic county, and the modern administrative county.
The county boundary followed geographical features. In the days before maps it was useful to use a feature to clearly identified the boundary.
To the north the long boundary with Lancashire followed rivers, the river Mersey from the sea to Stockport then the river Tame up into the Pennine Hills.
To the north-east the short boundary with Yorkshire followed crests on the inhospitable Pennine moors.
To the east the boundary with Derbyshire followed rivers. Down the river Etherow to Marple, then up the river Goyt via Whaley Bridge, following the river as far as Goyt's Clough, then up into the hills passing just to the rear of the Cat and Fiddle Inn, then on to Three Shire Heads.
To the south-east the boundary with Staffordshire follows the river Dane down from Three Shire heads via Dane Bridge to Bosley, then the crest of a ridge of pink sandstone going south-west via Mow Cop to Church Lawton. The boundary then continues more or less in the same direction across country to Checkley Wood.
To the south the boundary with Shropshire follows the watershed between the rivers Trent and Mersey, although there is no very obvious geographical feature on the ground. From Checkley Wood it takes an erratic path through good farming country following a stream here, the edge of a wood there, to Grindley Brook, just north of Whitchurch in Shropshire.
To the south-west the boundary with the detached part of Flintshire (Wales) follows Grindley Brook and Wych Brook. It cuts through Threapwood then follows Flenrens Brook and Worthenbury Brook to the River Dee.
To the west the boundary with Denbighshire (Wales) goes down the River Dee to Pulford Brook then up that brook to the west as far as Lower Kinnerton. From here the boundary, now with the main part of Flintshire, heads east towards Chester then follows the ancient course of the River Dee (more than a mile north of the present river) to the sea.
To the north-west the Wirral peninsular is bounded by sea (the Dee and Mersey estuaries and the Irish Sea).
By the 19th century the county boundary was chafing at the seams. The problems lay in the north and east of the county where the boundary followed rivers. During the industrial revolution large communities had grown up astride these rivers. A boundary that originally reflected a natural divide between communities now passed through their centres. This caused problems for those who lived there and for local government. Someone who lived only 100 yards north of Stockport town centre, would probably have worked, shopped and socialised in Stockport, but was unable to use some public facilities there because he lived in another county. He had to travel to the nearest Lancashire town to marry, or register a birth or death.
Eventually, the county boundary had to give. Boundary changes in 1835 were followed in later years by several small changes, then a big one in 1974.
The description below is from a Cheshire point of view, i.e. a lost or gain of territory for Cheshire or Boroughs based in Cheshire.
The dates are my best estimate. Sources conflict with each other about the dates of some of the changes. I would be grateful if anyone with better information to share would get in touch with me.
| 1835 |
Heaton Norris gained from Lancashire (Stockport expands).
From this point the status of Heaton Norris is problematic, see note below.
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| 1857 |
Swanwick Clough and Mountpleasant gained from Lancashire (Stalybridge is created).
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| 1881 |
Ridge Hill and Heyrod gained from Lancashire (Stalybridge expands).
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| 1889 |
Micklehurst lost to Mossley, Lancashire.
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| 1894 |
Newtown and Furness Vale lost to Derbyshire (presumably to allow New Mills to expand).
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| 1895 |
Tittenley lost to Shropshire.
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| 1901 |
Reddish gained from Lancashire (Stockport expands again).
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| 1913 |
Heaton Mersey, Heaton Moor, and Heaton Chapel gained from Lancashire (Stockport expands yet again).
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| 1931 |
Northenden, Baguley and Northern Etchells lost to Manchester, Lancashire.
(Manchester expands southwards, builds housing at Wythenshawe, and an airport at Ringway, now Manchester International Airport).
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| 1933 |
Latchford area lost to Lancashire.
The county boundary moved from the river Mersey to the Manchester Ship Canal
transferring a long strip of land south of Warrington into Lancashire.
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| 1936 |
Taxal lost to Derbyshire (Whaley Bridge expands).
Goyt Valley lost to Derbyshire (boundary moved uphill from river to ridge, Taxal Edge, Shining Tor, etc.) Ludworth and Mellor gained from Derbyshire (presumably in exchange for Taxal).
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| 1965 |
Wrinehill lost to Staffordshire.
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| 1974 |
Most of the Wirral peninsular lost to Merseyside.
(Including Heswall, Hoylake, Wallasey, Birkenhead, Bebington.)
Warrington and Widess area gained from Lancashire. Altrincham and Sale area lost to Trafford, Greater Manchester. Stockport area lost to Greater Manchester. (Including Cheadle, Bramhall, Hazel Grove, Bredbury, Romiley and Marple.) Hyde, Dukinfield, and Stalybridge area lost to Tameside, Greater Manchester. (Including Mottram-in-Longdendale and Hollingworth.) The remainder of Longdendale lost to Derbyshire.
(Including Tintwistle and Woodhead.)
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In 1835 Heaton Norris became a ward within Stockport Borough. Heaton Norris councillors served on Stockport Council, etc. At this time Stockport was in Cheshire, so I would have expected Heaton Norris to then be in Cheshire, but not so. Heaton Norris was considered to be still in Lancashire. Just to confuse the issue, there were two entities named Heaton Norris. Heaton Norris itself is a small town/village centred on Lancashire Hill. Heaton Norris District was a much larger area which didn't become part of Stockport untill later, it originally comprised Heaton Norris, Heaton Moor, and Heaton Chapel. I believe that Heaton Norris District lost Heaton Norris when the latter became part of Stockport, but I am not sure. Did Neaton Norris residents pay two lots of local taxes? I would welcome the help of anyone who can clarify this situation for me.
The earlier changes brought local government into line with the community, and made life easier for the inhabitants.
The 1931 change was in preparation for a planned expansion of Manchester.
The 1974 changes were part of a radical redesign of local government. Two new counties were created, Merseyside, centred on Liverpool, and Greater Manchester. The old counties had a rural heart despite county towns such as Chester. The two new counties have an urban heart and reflect the town centred lives of their inhabitants.
Modern Cheshire has perhaps eighty percent in common with the historic county. It has lost most of the Wirral peninsula, the towns south of Manchester, and the Longdendale Valley. It has gained Warrington, Widness, and surrounding area. The southern and western boundaries remain almost unchanged. It still has the Cheshire plain at its heart.
In early times Cheshire had been governed directly by Kings, Earls, and Princes. By the nineteenth century local government was in the hands of The Justices, members of the local gentry who were appointed not elected.
Democracy came to county government in 1888 when the first Cheshire County Council was elected. The County Council was part of a two tier system of local government. It shared power with three types of local council, those for Rural Districts, for Urban Districts, and for towns (Boroughs). Rural Districts were at first named Rural Sanitary Districts because their original aim was to improve public health. Similarly, Urban Districts were at first named Urban Sanitary Districts.
To complete the picture, in the late ninteenth century several of the more important towns within the county were given independence from the county council. These County Boroughs included Birkenhead, Chester, Stockport, and Wallasey. Each had its County Borough Council.