Heysham
Main Street, Heysham
Heysham is situated on a peninsula on the North West coast of England. The Heysham peninsula is one of those hidden corners of England, full of interest but little known outside its immediate locality.
Perhaps the best known part of Heysham is the old and picturesque Heysham Village and its environs. The earliest part of the village consists of one narrow street (Main Street), lined with old stone-built cottages, sloping down to the foreshore.
Heysham village is sheltered on the South side by the headland of Heysham Head which terminates in sandstone sea-cliffs. There are the remains of 'barrows' on the Head, indicating an ancient burial site for prominent persons.
Overlooking the sea is the beautiful, ancient Heysham Parish Church of St. Peter, where my wife and I were married in 1965. On a rock above the church stand the evocative ruins known as St. Patrick's Chapel.
From Heysham Head there is a panoramic view out to sea and to the mountains of the Lake District. In 1797 Joseph Mallard William Turner, one of the greatest of British artists, had first visited Heysham after crossing Morecambe sands by coach from Ulverston. He was so impressed with the breath-taking views across Morecambe Bay that he returned in 1816. On the 8th August he visited Heysham where he made several sketches from which he later produced such works as Heysham and Cumberland Mountains.
The vantage point for the latter appears to have been the high ground at the seaward end of present day Woborrow Road, before development blocked the view.
Heysham's oldest surviving building is (with the obvious exception of St. Peter's Church), the Royal Hotel on Main Street. Built around 1504 as a grain store, little is known of its subsequent history, although it appears to have been converted first into a dwelling house during the late 17th/early 18th century and then towards the end of the 18th century into a 'public house'. It is now a popular inn and eating place.
Heysham's oldest cottage appears to have been built around 1611. This ancient stone-built property (bearing the initials I M) now stands adjacent to the rear of No. 4 Main Street, an early-19th century property known as the Manor House. The cottage had its own interior well, and the pump which once drew water from the well still exists.
At the bottom of Main Street in Heysham Village stands a fine building called Greese cottage. Built around 1666, initially as a rectory, a stone bears the date 1680, while inside the building one of the main beams bears the date 1657. Either this beam came from an earlier demolished cottage, or the date stone marks a later extension. It has been suggested that the artist Turner stayed a night or so at the cottage during his visit to Heysham in 1816 but there is no evidence for this.
Another of Heysham's fine old buildings is Heysham Old Hall, situated a few minutes walk from the village in what is known as 'Higher Heysham'. Heysham Old Hall was completed in 1598. A stone in the east gable bears this date, and beneath it is another stone twice inscribed with the initials R E alongside a Tudor rose. Evidence suggests that the building was occupied by Robert Edmondson. (The Edmondson family continued to occupy the building until late in the 17th century).
During the construction of Heysham Old Hall, a 'Priest Hole' was built into the rafters of the west wing with a passage leading from it between the inner walls to a well in the floor. This connected with a passage by the side of the chimney breast, and from there to an exit by a buttress around which outhouses were built.
Heysham Old Hall was eventually sold to Mitchell's Brewery and opened as The Old Hall Inn in September 1958. It remains to this day a very popular pub and eating place.
As well as its many attractions, Heysham also has a thriving port. It was officially opened on September 1st 1904. Today, Heysham port is extremely busy, with daily passenger sailings to the Isle of Man, and Roll-on Roll-off freight services to Ireland.
Heysham is also home to two nuclear power stations, Heysham 1 and Heysham 2. Although initially there was opposition to the building of the power stations, and despite them being something of a scar on the Heysham coastline, the local residents have learned to live with them. And the power stations do have the advantage of providing employment for many local people.
The heritage of Heysham is looked after by the Heysham Heritage Association, a voluntary group dedicated to the heritage of Heysham. HHA was founded in 1990 and now has over 100 members.
HHA has been instrumental in protecting the coastal strip on which Heysham stands. In 1993 HHA began its successful campaign to persuade the National Trust to purchase part of Heysham Head.
The Association is a key member of the Regeneration Partnership established by Lancaster City Council, and has played a key role in establishing Heysham Heritage Centre, which it now runs in partnership with the Heritage Trust for the North West.