At the 2001 census the population of Neston ward was recorded as 3,521,[4]
increasing to 4,329 at the 2011 census.[5][6] The Neston built-up area had a population of 15,162 in 2001,[7][8] increasing to 15,221 in 2011.[9]
History
The name is of Viking origin, deriving from the Old NorseNes-tún, meaning 'farmstead or settlement at/near a promontory or headland'.[10][11]
Another Nesttun town can be found near Bergen, Norway.
It is also mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Nestone under the ownership of a William Fitznigel, with a population of eight households.[12][13]
Historically, the current settlement was known as Great Neston, in order to be distinct from the smaller nearby hamlet of Little Neston. Before the rise of Birkenhead in the 1820s, it was the largest village in the Wirral Hundred. Created in 1866, the civil parish of Great Neston included the hamlets of Clayhill, Hinderton, Moorside and part of Parkgate. The population of Great Neston was 1,486 in 1801 and 1,524 in 1851. In 1894, both Great Neston and Little Neston were combined to create the Neston-cum-Parkgate civil parish and by 1901, the population had risen to 2,201.[15]
Between 1894 and 1974 Neston was governed by its own urban district council.[16][17]
On 1 April 1974, local government reorganisation in England and Wales created the borough of Ellesmere Port and Neston. This remained until 2009, when it became part of Cheshire West and Chester.
Port
Neston was a major port before the River Dee silted up. The port was then shifted further downstream to the nearby village of Parkgate, although by early nineteenth century, most traffic had ultimately transferred to Liverpool.
Mining
Neston is also a former mining village with a small extension of the Flintshire Coalfield occurring on its southern edge. There were two periods during which coal seams within these coal measures rocks were mined.[18]
Between 1759 and 1855 Ness Colliery worked using shafts largely clustered around the Harp Inn in today's Little Neston.[19] It was opened by John Stanley Massey, a member of the leading Stanley family of Hooton, in partnership with four others.[20] Because of the local geology most working was carried out under the Dee Estuary.[21] The mine was remarkable in using canals deep underground for boats to haul coal.[22] It was also remarkable for blatant acts of sabotage committed by the Stanleys against a rival, neighbouring mine established in about 1820 by the Cottingham family; their mine went out of business in the 1840s.[23] Due to exhaustion of many of the coal seams, and difficulty in transporting coal, Ness Colliery was closed in 1855.[24]
The later period of mining started in 1875 with the establishment of Neston Colliery (later becoming Wirral Colliery).[25] By this time the Chester and Birkenhead Railway had come to nearby Parkgate; a branch line to the colliery enabled coal to be shifted in bulk. The mine worked seams further north than those worked by Ness Colliery.[26] Wirral colliery was taken over by the British government during the First World War. The pit subsequently returned to private ownership after the war, but increasing competition from larger mines brought about its closure in 1927 with a loss of 180 jobs.[27]
The A540 road links Neston to Heswall and West Kirby to the north, and Cheshire, Chester and North Wales to the south. Neston is also close to the M53 and M56 motorways, giving it access to Liverpool, Manchester, and the larger M6 motorway.
Neston is considered a desirable place to live, with its many independent shops, cafes and bars. It is also within walking distance to nearby Parkgate, as well as links to countryside walks and the Wirral Way.
Neston hosts a weekly market every Friday, offering local produce including fruit and vegetables, meat, fish, cheese and baked goods.
On the first Thursday of June, Neston annually celebrates Ladies Club Day (known colloquially as Ladies Club or Club Day). This is a unique marching day that has links to the Neston Female Friendly Society during the Napoleonic War.
From 2006, Neston underwent an assessment to attract more income and tourists, in the form of the Neston Market Initiative (NMTI).[32]
The project also included the launch of a new community website.[33] The NMTI involved improving the 'look' of the town centre (including new shop fronts) and controversial plans for a new supermarket[34] on the site of Brook Street car park. Work for the new supermarket began in March 2009 with a full archaeological dig being carried out on the car park site before construction work began. Work to excavate the site began in August 2009, resulting in the removal of 28,000 cubic metres of earth to allow for the construction of a multi storey car park. The new Sainsbury's store was opened on 1 December 2010.
On 31 March 2008 the Neston Market Town Initiative project was officially completed. The community regeneration was to have been continued by CH64Inc, a new local community association, but it was not supported by Ellesmere Port and Neston Council or the successor authority, Cheshire West and Chester Council and was closed.[35][failed verification]
Sport
The Neston Club is located in Parkgate and is home to Neston Cricket Club, who play in the Cheshire County Cricket ECB Premier League.[36]Neston Hockey Club is also based on the same site.[37]
Club members have access to a clubhouse, tennis courts, bowls, squash, racketball and fitness classes including yoga and pilates.[38]
Neston Nomads Football Club, established 1983, play their home games at the fields adjacent Neston High School that are part of the school premises. The first team currently play in the West Cheshire 3rd Division.[39]
Emma, Lady Hamilton (1765 in Swan Cottage, Ness – 1815), an English model and actress, mistress of Lord Nelson and muse of the portrait artist George Romney
Sir Tim Hunt FRS FMedSci FRSE MAE (born 1943 in Neston), a British biochemist and molecular physiologist, jointly awarded the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for discoveries about protein molecules
Patrick Wormald (1947 in Neston – 2004), a British historian and academic
Annakin-Smith, Anthony (2019). The Neston Collieries 1759–1855: An Industrial Revolution in Rural Cheshire. University of Chester Press. ISBN978-1-908258-04-5.
Place, Geoffrey W., ed. (1996). Neston 1840–1940. Burton and Neston History Society. ISBN9780950914510.