Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral Pubs Past & Present 97 Birkenhead Arms 144 Chester Street & Grange St

Birkenhead Arms on the corner of Chester Street & Grange Street

As Grange Street no longer exists, where was this exactly?

If you can imagine a road from St Mary's Gate to Borough Road East then that is what was roughly Grange Street, which was a continuation of Grange Road from east of the Town Station (Monk Tunnel etc)

I know the general area but I can't picture where this is, it has changed so much with the tunnel exit etc. It's near the antique triangle, I get that but where exactly?

This is the location of the Birkenhead Arms as seen on the 1909 map of Birkenhead. The triangle of buildings between Grange Lane and Lower Ivy Street, plus the timber yard and the Carnegie Library were demolished in the 1930s to make way for the tunnel. From that time onwards, the pub looked out right across to the tunnel entrance. The building to the right of the pub was a garage and filling station. This picture was almost certainly taken when the area was scheduled for demolition, as all the shops below the Birkenhead Arms in Chester Street are shuttered. The pub itself is also probably empty. The whole area was flattened in 1966-1967 to make way for the monstrous new flyovers.

Sorry, the map is the wrong way up. I wonder if the moderator can adjust it? Thanks.

As Chester St has been realigned since then (widened on both sides) so it's very hard to say exactly, as we all know.
My best guess is that it was where the northern end of the underpass emerges into the open again, as you go towards Woodside.
I've attached a picture from 1969, taken from the flyover on open day, and looking east along Grange Lane / Grange Road / Borough Rd East, which you can follow towards its junction with Tunnel Road. That junction is still there, but for our purposes you have to continue the line of the road as far as Chester St, using the kerb line and buildings (now hoardings) as a guide, but not quite as far as the tall lighting column.
I've put a little yellow box around where I think it might have been. In this, having the map the wrong way round actuall helps, as it aligns with the picture a little better.

This present day Grange road pic shows the church spire

Approximate location of the Birkenhead Arms.

The Birkenhead Arms photographed in December 1965. As Yoller says all the properties in the area were demolished in late 1966-early 1967 to make way for the new Tunnel Approaches scheme. The second picture shows the area in September 1967; the site of the pub is in the centre of the pic, just to the left of the nearer of the two circular roundabout.

Another view of the Birkenhead Arms, taken from near the junction of Chester Street and Ivy Street in 1961.

I wonder if all those cobblestones (setts) are still there covered by tarmac and concrete or were dug up and carted off somewhere.
Comparing 2 of the pics it looks like a bad job of covering outside the Birkenhead Aems

Hard to imagine most streets were like this then

If you look closely at marty's colour picture of the Birkenhead Arms, you can see the old tramlines set into the cobbles along Chester Street in the middle of the road. These tramlines were partially visible there for many years even before the area was demolished, because the tarmac was so worn away by traffic.
It would be interesting to know if the cobbles are still buried there. I think they may well be.

Apologies for the thread hijack but re the old photo posted 16th March 2012 927am. At the bottom left of this picture - does this show the Duchess of Edinburgh pub? (194 Chester St?) I've looked in quite a few places for a pic of this pub but this one may be the closest I've seen,

early map of Duchess of Edinburgh and Birkenhead Arms on