Grappenhall

Grappenhall
Grappenhall
Grappenhall shown within Cheshire
Population 9,377 
OS grid reference SJ639863
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town WARRINGTON
Postcode district WA4
Dialling code 01925
Police Cheshire
Fire Cheshire
Ambulance North West
EU Parliament North West England
UK Parliament

Grappenhall is a suburban village in Warrington, Cheshire, England, along the Bridgewater Canal in the Grappenhall and Thelwall civil parish, which had a population of 9,377 at the 2001 census.[1]

History

Grappenhall is mentioned in the Domesday Book with the name Gropenhale and with a valuation of five shillings.

Sandstone carving of 'Cheshire Cat', St Wilfrid's Church, Grappenhall

St Wilfrid's Church has a carving of a cat on the west face of the tower. This is believed to be Lewis Carroll's inspiration for the grinning Cheshire Cat in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.[2] The church itself was first constructed in 1120, though was rebuilt 400 years later. The church was also, at a time, in the possession of the Boidelle (Boydell) family.

Along with the church, the centre of the village contains two pubs – the Parr Arms and the Ram's Head – and Grappenhall Hall Residential School (no longer a Residential School) and St. Wilfrid's Primary School. Bradshaw Community Primary School is located north of the village centre.

Parts of the Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes were filmed in the centre of Grappenhall. The village name appears in the title of the song "Grappenhall Rag", by the Darwen singer-songwriter Bryn Haworth.[3]

Grappenhall is home to the 25th Warrington East (St. Wilfrid's) Scout Troop.[4] There is also a cricket ground, which is the home of Grappenhall Cricket Club.[5]

Amenities and business

Library

The Grappenhall Community library is a community run library in the village. It was opened by the local authority in 1959 before being handed over to the Friends of Grappenhall Library after closure on 2nd April 2011[6][7] due to local authority cuts.[8] The library is run by the Friends of the Grappenhall library who pay £10 a year to help with its upkeep. In return they get voting rights on issues relating to the running of the library. In August 2012 there were 135 members of the library, a four member board, 12 librarians, and 15 volunteers helping with the running of the Community side of the library. In total there were around 50 active volunteers.[9]

Walled garden

Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden is located near the village.

Dining

There are limited numbers of dining facilities within the village but some restaurants include:

  • The Parr Arms
  • The Springbrook
  • The Choy Hing Village

Notable people

  • Tim Curry, actor, singer and composer, was born in Grappenhall.
  • Sally Green, writer and author of the Half Bad trilogy, lives in Grappenhall.

See also

References

  1. ↑ 2001 Census: Grappenhall and Thelwall civil parish, Office for National Statistics, retrieved 10 June 2007
  2. ↑ A Brief History of the Church, St Wilfrid's Church, Grappenhall, retrieved 16 July 2007
  3. ↑ "Bryn Haworth Grappenhall Rag". YouTube. 2012-11-20. Retrieved 2013-08-06.
  4. ↑ "25th Warrington East Scout Group » History". Grappenhallscouts.org.uk. 1914-08-03. Retrieved 2013-08-06.
  5. ↑ "Grappenhall Cricket Club". Grappers.com. Retrieved 2013-08-06.
  6. ↑ "A brief history of Grappenhall Library". grappenhall.org.uk. Grappenhall Community Library. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  7. ↑ "Grappenhall Community Library". Community Knowledge Hub. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  8. ↑ "Grappenhall villagers win campaign to take ownership of former council library". warringtonguardian.co.uk. The Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  9. ↑ "Community libraries: 10 case studies" (PDF). locality.org.uk. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
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