53º36N 2º75W, pop (2001e) 58 000. Town in Halton borough, Cheshire, NW England, UK; formerly in Lancashire (until 1975); located on the R Mersey, 19 km/12 mi E of Liverpool; birthplace of Charles Barkla; Rugby League team (Chemics); important chemical industries, engineering.
Widnes is a town in the borough of Halton and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.
Place-name meaning
Based on evidence from place-name books, Widnes derives from the Danish wid "wide" and Old English næss "ness", referring to the promontory of land now known as West Bank that juts south into the River Mersey, creating a narrowing in the channel called the Runcorn Gap.
However, a third suggestion for the place-name meaning is the Old English wið "willow, withy" + næss "ness, promontory, suggesting "cliff/promontory where willow trees grow", making Widnes a contraction of "Withingness", similar to Withington in Greater Manchester.
The Widnes Vikings
The area's Norse history is celebrated in the name of the local rugby league Football Club the Widnes Vikings.
Industrial History
By the 18th Century, a small collection of homesteads on the rocky promontory, known as Woodend, was attracting day trippers from near by Liverpool who traveled down river to this quiet country retreat.
The Sankey Canal was built early in the 19th century, later being extended to Fiddlers Ferry and then on to Widnes in 1830.
The St. Helens Railway Company built the St. Helens to Runcorn Gap railway in 1833 for the express purpose of carrying coal.
Despite the building of the canal and the railway, it was 15 years before anyone took advantage of the saltfields of Cheshire or the coalfields of south west Lancashire.
By 1845, the world's first rail-canal-dock complex had been established on land that was then called 'Widnes Dock', now known as Spike Island.
Enter John Hutchinson (1825 - 1865), who was working in the St Helens chemical industry.
To accommodate the new workforce needed for his works, the industrialist built rows of terraced houses with no facilities at the time, alongside the works.
The second half of the 19th century saw a great expansion of the chemical industry in Widnes.
Crossing the Mersey
Widnes and Runcorn are divided by the River Mersey. 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.
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.
While a road bridge was possible at this time, it was too expensive.
Widnes and Runcorn had to wait until the sixties for a road bridge. On the 21st of July 1961 a new bridge, called the Runcorn Widnes Bridge was opened and after this the old Runcorn Widnes Transporter Bridge was demolished and the foot path was closed on the rail bridge.
This bridge is still in use today although plans for the Mersey Gateway have been approved by Parliament and it is scheduled to be built by 2014.
'Homeward Bound'
Widnes is also known for the railway station where Paul Simon wrote the song Homeward Bound .
Despite the fact that Widnes Central no longer exists, there is a plaque commemorating this event in Widnes Station (formally Widnes North or earlier Widnes Farnworth) which is the sole
remaining 'Widnes' station (NB.
Education
The major centres of education in the town are as listed below:-
Bankfield High School Fairfield County High School St Peter & College Wade Deacon County High School Riverside CollegeNightspots
The table below lists the notable venues in Widnes.
Vue Bar and Grill The Premier Wethersoons (Pub) The Albert (Pub) The Derby (Pub) The Appleton Arms (Pub) The Four Topped Oak (Pub) Rut's (Bar) Top of the Town, also lovingly known as Toppers, The Big House, Big Jim's, Boppers, Whoppers, The Fun House and Top of The Flops (Nightclub) The King o' Bells (Pub) The Griffin (Pub) The Crown (Pub) The Bradley (Pub) The Eight Towers (pub) The Castle (pub) The Millfield The Wellington (Bar) The TavernFamous People
Kim Cattrall (actress) Melanie C (former Spice Girl) Gay O Hugamuff (former Spice boy) Charles Glover Barkla (Nobel prize winning Physicist) Terry O'Connor (aka Mungo)(Ex-Rugby League Player, Salford, Wigan, Widnes and Great Britain) Paul Murty (local athlete/comedian)Further reading
Debate on the Second Crossing (2004 - HMSO)
Widnes World (local newspaper)
H2G2 article on Widnes - Sections of this article were included in this entry with permission from the copyright holder.
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