Seaforth is a district in the

Metropolitan Borough of Sefton The Metropolitan Borough of Sefton is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England. It was formed on Local Government Act 1972, 1 April 1974, by the amalgamation of the county boroughs of Bootle and Southport, the municipal borough of Crosby, ...

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Wales, Welsh county of Flintshire across ...

, England.

Historically History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, it is north of

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, between

Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. It is pa ...

and

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...

History

The name of Seaforth is thought to come from the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

''sæ-fjord'', ''sæ-ford'', "sea inlet". It was recorded as ''Safforde'' "sea ford" in 1128, suggesting Old English name origins. Another theory for the name of the area is that it was taken from

Seaforth House Seaforth House was a mansion in Seaforth, Merseyside, England, built in 1813 for Sir John Gladstone, father of William Ewart Gladstone who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom four times. Sir John had lived on Rodney Street, Liverpool, a ...

, named after

Francis Mackenzie, 1st Baron Seaforth Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant-General Francis Humberston Mackenzie, 1st Baron Seaforth, (9 June 1754 – 11 January 1815) was a British politician, soldier, and botanist. He was Chief of the Scottish Highlands, Highland Clan ...

, who built the mansion in 1813 for his daughter and her husband, Sir John Gladstone, father of

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British politican, starting as Conservative MP for Newark and later becoming the leader of the Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party. In a career lasting over 60 years, he ...

, four times

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. A permanent military presence was established in the borough with the completion of

Seaforth Barracks Seaforth Barracks was a military installation at Seaforth in Merseyside. History The barracks were originally built as cavalry accommodation and were completed in 1882. Units of the Royal Garrison Artillery and Royal Field Artillery were also ...

in 1882.

Seaforth Dock Seaforth Dock (also known as the Royal Seaforth Dock) is a purpose-built dock and container terminal, on the River Mersey, England, at Seaforth, to the north of Liverpool. As part of the Port of Liverpool and Liverpool Freeport, it is operate ...

opened in 1972 and is the largest dock facility on the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is a major river in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it h ...

. It is part of the

Port of Liverpool The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Birkenhead Docks between Birkenhead and Wallasey on the west side of ...

and Liverpool Freeport.

Governance

On 31 December 1894 became a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

, being formed from the part of

Litherland Litherland is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside. Until 1899 it was within the historic county of Lancashire. It was an urban district, which included Seaforth and Ford. It neighbours Waterloo to the north, Seaforth t ...

parish in

Waterloo with Seaforth Urban District Waterloo with Seaforth was an Urban District in the administrative county of Lancashire until 1937 when it was annexed to the municipal borough of Crosby, Merseyside Crosby is a coastal town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, ...

, Seaforth joined

Crosby Crosby may refer to: Places Canada *Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario *Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario England *Crosby, Cumbria *Crosby, Lincolnshire *Crosby, Merseyside **Crosby (UK P ...

Municipal Borough A municipal borough was a type of local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...

in 1937. In 1951 the parish had a population of 14,435. On 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished and the whole of Crosby became part of the new

. From 1918 to 1950 Seaforth was within the Parliamentary constituency known as

, a safe seat for the Conservative Party, and then until 2010 within the

constituency, whose MP from 1997 to 2010 was

Claire Curtis-Thomas Claire Curtis-Thomas (formerly Curtis-Tansley; born 30 April 1958) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Crosby from 1997 to 2010. Curtis-Thomas' time as an MP was most notable for her involvement in ...

, of the Labour Party. Prior to her election the Crosby seat was generally considered a Conservative Party stronghold, like its predecessor seat, with Tory MPs elected at every election, except for the

1981 Crosby by-election The 1981 Crosby by-election was a by-election held in England on 26 November 1981 to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) for the House of Commons constituency of Crosby on Merseyside. It followed the death of Crosby's MP Sir Graham Page, of ...

, when

Shirley Williams Shirley Vivian Teresa Brittain Williams, Baroness Williams of Crosby (''née'' Catlin; 27 July 1930 – 12 April 2021) was a British politician and academic. Originally a Labour Party (UK), Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP), she served in ...

of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

was elected. As a result of boundary revisions for the 2010 general election, the Crosby constituency was abolished and Seaforth was included in the expanded

constituency. The district has been represented by Labour MP

Peter Dowd Peter Christopher Dowd (born 20 June 1957) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bootle since 2015. From 2017 to 2020, he served as the Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Early life and educ ...

since 2015. For elections to

Sefton Council Sefton Council, or Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borou ...

, Seaforth is within the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

electoral ward and is represented by three councillors, two from the Labour Party and one from the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

Geography

Seaforth is between

in the north,

to the east,

to the south, and the River Mersey and the Port of Liverpool to the west. It is mainly an area of

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

terraced housing.

Transport

Seaforth is served by Seaforth and Litherland railway station on the Liverpool to

Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...

branch of

Merseyrail Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire in the North West England, North West of England. Merseyrail serves 69 Railway station, stations, 67 of which it manages, across two lin ...

Northern Line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs between North London and South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. It carries more passengers per year than any other Underground linearound 340million in 2019making it the bu ...

. Principal roads include the A565 and the A5036. .

Sport

Motorcycle speedway racing was staged at Seaforth Stadium in the late 1930s. Greyhound racing also took place until the 1960s

Notable people

* Ray Mia, Music producer & Capomaestro, Jacaranda Records * Roger Aindow, English former professional footballer *

Kenny Everett Kenny Everett (born Maurice James Christopher Cole; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English radio Disc Jockey, DJ and television entertainer, known for his zany comedic style. After spells on pirate radio and Radio Luxembourg in the m ...

, radio presenter and comedian, born in Seaforth *

, prime ministerLiverpool Echo
January 28, 2008. Retrieved 19 August 2011 *

Edmund Knowles Muspratt Edmund Knowles Muspratt (6 November 1833 – 1 September 1923) was an English chemical industrialist. Early life and background Edmund Knowles Muspratt was born in Seaforth, near Liverpool, England, the fourth and youngest son of James Muspra ...

(1833—1923), chemical industrialist *

Max Muspratt Sir Max Muspratt, 1st Baronet (3 February 1872 – 20 April 1934) was a British chemist and a politician in the city of Liverpool, England. Early life and education He was born at Seaforth Hall, Seaforth, Lancashire, the son of Edmund Knowles M ...

(1872–1934), chemist & politician * Julia Solly (1862–1953), British-born South-African feminist *

Nessie Stewart-Brown Nessie Stewart-Brown JP (née Muspratt; 5 September 1864 – 7 April 1958) was a British Women's suffrage, suffragist and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician. Her name and picture is on the plinth of the statue of Millicent Fawcett in P ...

(1864–1958), feminist

References

External links

Seaforth, ''Liverpool Echo''
{{Metropolitan Borough of Sefton Towns and villages in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton Former civil parishes in Merseyside