BEACONSFIELD ROAD c1980
The small terraced homes of Beaconsfield Road were originally built by the owner of the adjacent brickworks.
BEACONSFIELD ROAD/ELM BANK ROAD c1980
The planter in the left foreground was part of a 1970s scheme to prevent rat running along Beaconsfield Road.
NEW CHESTER ROAD / WOODHEAD STREET JUNCTION c1980
Before those half timbered shops became derelict. How smart they were back then.
NEW CHESTER ROAD c1980
All the buildings you see here were demolished years ago. On the site now are the flats between Grove Street and Park Lodge.
LEGH ROAD c1980
This small terraced street has had a problem with shoppers parking in it for many years.
MARQUIS COURT, OFF NEW FERRY ROAD c1980
A generation of New Ferry folk lived in these 1960s flats that were behind what is now Winstons Place Nursery.
BEBINGTON ROAD, 1980:
Flanked by two banks. Notice all the active shops along the street from the NatWest Bank onwards. The Ferry was a busy place.
NEW FERRY ROAD, 1981:
We are looking towards the crossroads where can see traffic, including a double decker bus coming along Bebington Road a decade before it was pedestrianised. To the right, a Whitbread lorry has arrived to deliver beer to the Traveller's Rest pub that would close by the end of the decade. The pub was empty for many years before being converted to terraced houses in the early
NEW FERRY ROAD, 1982:
We are parked facing the Great Eastern pub which can be seen at the far end of the road (demolished in 2010). To the right are what were then Council owned houses around the time Margaret Thatcher and the Conservative government started offering for tenants to buy them. Those that were not bought by their tenants eventually were passed to Wirral Partnership Homes when the g
NEW CHESTER ROAD, 1982:
The last years of New Ferry as an important local district centre before the Croft Retail Park was built along with its Asda Superstore down the road in Bromborough. How many residents were taken to Timpsons by their parents to buy shoes, or popped in to Pop-In Records to buy the latest music disks?
NEW FERRY SWIMMING BATHS c. 1984/5
New Ferry Swimming Baths closed in 1981 and fell into dereliction. The site was bought by Wimpey Homes for redevelopment. The buildings to the right were part of the changing rooms.
NEW FERRY SWIMMING BATHS c, 1984/5
A sad day for many when Wimpey Homes moved onto the site and began the demolition works. This view is looking towards the River Mersey. (In the distance you can see the dome which used to be at the Liverpool Garden Festival site).
NEW FERRY SWIMMING BATHS c. 1984/5
The once popular swimming baths were smashed up and filled in, and new houses built on top from 1986 onwards (the Wimpey Estate which today includes Scythia Close and Samaria Avenue).
NEW CHESTER ROAD, 1986:
Kwik Save (known as "The Kwiky") was a popular supermarket before it moved to newer premises in 1991.
BEBINGTON ROAD, 1986:
The Cleveland Arms is still with us. Interestingly, a cobblers was also in the shop next door until a few years ago.
BEBINGTON ROAD, 1987:
The second shop from the left was once Okells where mum's bought stuff for their babies. Note the sun canopies down at Griffiths.
NEW CHESTER ROAD/GROVE STREET JUNCTION, 1987:
The old Lyceum Cinema had gone decades earlier and, by this time, the bland building which replaced it was Kwik Save. In the very late 1980s, Kwik Save had two premises on the row - this one had its non-frozen food range; the other premises (now occupied by Wetherspoons) contained its frozen foods. Going into TWO Kwiky stores for your shopping, you h
BROMBOROUGH DOCK, 1987:
The dock was opened in March 1931, having been built by Lord Lever for ships bringing palm oil from abroad that was used in the manufacture of his soap products. It had 18 acres of deep water berthage, with 3,000 linear feet for mooring and 84,000 square yards of quay room.
During World War 2, the dock was requisitioned by the government and used to berth ships whenever
BROMBOROUGH DOCK, 1987:
This fantastic aerial shot shows the final days of the dock before it started to be filled. The two storage buildings seen on the left still stand today, but the dock space infront of them has been filled and is now level - it was intended for this land to be developed with industrial uses, but by 2022 this has still not happened.
A new channel was built to take the River
THE FARMERS ARMS, NEW CHESTER ROAD, 1988:
For decades, the Farmer's Arms pub was a favourite drinking establishment for many New Ferry residents. The pub closed in the late 2000s, and Risa Spice - one of the Wirral's favourite restaurants - opened in it in 2012.
To the left, the former bus depot had been replaced by the Post Office in the early 1980s. When this photo was taken, the post office use
BEBINGTON ROAD, 1989:
Still a busy street just prior to pedestrianisation. Pattons the Jewellers is the only surviving business from those days.
GROVE STREET, 1989:
Note the end house on the terrace, with door at the side. It was demolished in the early 1990s to widen the road to Olinda Street.
WOODHEAD STREET, 1989:
Prior to pedestrianisation. Karen Finch who ran "Fresh Naturally" has now retired. New Ferry had a toy shop - Pandora's!