LIVERPOOL, a borough and market-town and sea-port (eminent),
having separate jurisdiction, though locally in the hundred of
West-Derby, county palatine of LANCASTER, 53 miles (S. by
W.) from Lancaster, and 205 (N.W. by N.) from London, containing
118,972 inhabitants, according to the census of 1821, since which
period the population is computed to have increased to upwards of 140,000.
This town, which within the last century has, by a progressive
increase in extent, population, and commercial
importance, obtained the first rank after the metropolis,
is supposed to be noticed in Domesday-book under
the name Esmedune, or Smedune. In other ancient records
its various appellations are, Litherpul, Lyrpul, &c.,
signifying probably, in the ancient dialect of the county,
the lower pool 3 though some have deduced its etymology
from a pool frequented by an aquatic fowl, called a
" Liver," or from a sea-weed of that name; and others
from its having belonged to a family of the name of
Lever, whose antiquity is not sufficiently established to
justify that conclusion. Soon after the Conquest,
William granted all that part of the county which was
situated between the rivers Mersey and Ribble to Roger
of Pioctiers, who, according to Camden, built a
castle here, about the year 1089; to which circumstance
may probably be attributed the origin of the
town. The castle, which consisted of six circular towers,
connected by embattled walls, and surrounded by a
moat, commanded the harbour, and continued till the
close of the parliamentary war, when it was demolished
by order of the parliament. The remains were subsequently
granted by Queen Anne to the corporation, but
were finally removed in 1715, and the church of St.
George was erected on the site. For a considerable length
of time after the Conquest, Liverpool was but a small
fishing-town; till, in 1172, its' favourable situation, and
the convenience of its port, attracted the notice of Henry
II., who made it the place of rendezvous and embarkation
of his troops for the conquest of Ireland; and in the
following year is stated to have granted the inhabitants
a charter, but this is doubtful, as such charter cannot
be found among the records in the Tower: the first
charter was probably granted by King John, although
two charters of Henry I. are mentioned in the corpora-,
tion records. It now became the chief station for the
embarkation of troops, and for the exportation of military
stores, for the service of Ireland; and the consequent
intercourse which was here maintained between
the two countries appears to have laid the foundation
of its subsequent commercial importance. Henry III.
in 1229, confirmed the preceding charter, made the
town a free borough, instituted a guild merchant, and
granted additional privileges. By these charters, and the
advantage of.its local situation, it began to improve
its resources, and in a short time had established a
considerable trade with Ireland, and with several parts
of the coast. An old tower, which formerly stood in
Water-street, appears to have been .built by a descendant
of Edmund, Earl of Lancaster, third son of
Henry III., who, in the reign of Edward III., was created
Duke of Lancaster, and, being ordered by that monarch
to keep a strict guard on the coast of Lancashire,
was permitted to embattle his house, which subsequently
became the occasional residence of the Stanleys, Earls of
Derby; after having been converted successively into a
suite of assembly-rooms and a prison, it was taken down
in 1819, and warehouses were erected on its site. Little
is known of the state of the town from the fourteenth to
the sixteenth century: Leland describes it as a paved
town, which, as a good haven, was much frequented by
Irish merchants, and as supplying Manchester with yarn
imported from Ireland. From this time till the reign
of Elizabeth it appears to have declined, but from what
cause cannot be ascertained; in 1571, the inhabitants
petitioned the queen to be relieved from a subsidy imposed
on them, and in their petition described it as "Her
Majesty's poor decayed town, of Liverpool." In 1630,
when writs were issued by Charles I., for the levying of
ship-money, the town was rated only at £26, while
Bristol was rated at £1000.
The early history of Liverpool is not distinguished
by any important events. During the civil war in the
reign of Charles I., the town was defended for the parliamentarians
by Colonel Moore, against Prince Rupert,
by whom it was besieged, and to whom, after an obstinate
resistance, it was surrendered, June 26th, 1644,
but was soon after retaken by the parliament. In the
reign of William III., that monarch embarked with all
his train at this port for Ireland, previously to the battle
of the Boyne. During the rebellion in 1745, Liverpool
raised several regiments to oppose the Pretender; and
within twelve months after the war with France broke
out, in 1778, one hundred and twenty privateers, carrying
in the aggregate one thousand nine hundred
.and eighty-six guns, and eight thousand seven hundred
and fifty-four seamen, were equipped here. The most
important feature in the history of this place, is the
extraordinary rapidity with which it has risen into a
degree of splendour and importance without example
in the history of any commercial country; among the
causes which have produced its elevation to a rank but
partially inferior to that of the metropolis are, its situation
on the shore of a noble river, which expands into
a wide {estuary; its proximity to the Irish coast; its
central position with respect to the united kingdom;
its intimate connexion with the principal manufacturing
districts, and with every part of the kingdom, by numerous
rivers, canals, and rail-roads; and the persevering
industry and enterprising spirit of its inhabitants.
The port is, by some, considered to have been anciently
a member of the port of Chester, although it is not described
as such in any of the charters either of Chester
or Liverpool: it was assuredly, as is evedent from re-
cords belonging to the corporation, an independent port
so early as the year 1335. In the sixteeenth century an
attempt was made to prove it a creek within the limits
of the port of Chester, which, however, was set aside
by an order from the Board of Customs in London.
The commerce of the port may be divided into three
distinct branches; of these, the first and most important
is its trade with Ireland, which appears to have
been established, or greatly promoted, by the settlement
here of several mercantile families from that country,
about the middle of the sixteenth century, at which
time there were only fifteen vessels, of the aggregate
burden of two hundred and fifty-nine tons, belonging
to the port. The principal imports are, linen, cattle, and
provisions of every kind; in the year ending June, 1829,
forty-nine thousand six hundred and seventy-four head
of cattle, six thousand seven hundred and eighty-six
calves, one hundred and twenty-five thousand one hundred
and ninety-seven sheep, and one hundred and
fifty-five thousand three hundred and nineteen pigs,
were imported from Ireland. The principal exports are,
British manufactured goods, salt, coal, and general merchandise;
the quantity of rock and white salt brought
to this port, in 1829, from the mines in Cheshire,
by the river Weaver, was three hundred and ninety
thousand tons, of which sixty thousand were shipped
to Ireland. The number of vessels which entered inwards
from Ireland, in the year 182 9, was two thousand
seven hundred and eighty-four, and of those which
cleared outwards for that port, two thousand one hundred
and twenty-four.
The second principal branch of the trade of this port
is that with the United States of America, of which it
engrosses more than three-fourths of the whole commerce
of the kingdom; of this, the chief article is cotton
wool, which may be considered as forming the staple
trade of the town; and from this port, Manchester and
the cotton manufacturing districts are supplied with
the raw material; the sales of cotton, which upon an
average exceed fourteen thousand bales per week, are
negociated by brokers, of whom there is a considerable
number. This branch of commerce is subject to considerable
fluctuation; but, from returns made to parliament,
it appears that the quantity of cotton imported into
Liverpool from all parts of the world, of which by far
the greater portion was from the United States, is nearly
nine times as much as is imported into London, and more
than six times the aggregate quantity brought to all the
ports in the kingdom, London included. The number of
baks imported into England, in 1791, was sixty-eight
thousand four hundred and four; in 1823, five hundred
and eighty thousand two hundred and fifty-five; and
in 1829, seven hundred and forty-one thousand eight
hundred and sixty-three, of which last, six hundred and
forty-one thousand three hundred and seventy-three
bales were imported into Liverpool alone. In 1764, one
hundred and eighty-eight vessels entered inwards, and
one hundred and forty-one cleared outwards, in the
trade with North America, which has greatly increased
since the termination of the war in 1783: in 1829, about
eight hundred vessels entered inwards, and eight hundred
and sixty-four cleared outwards, at this port, which
enjoys great facility and frequency of intercourse with
the principal sea-ports of the United States, by regular
lines of packets, of which those for New York sail on
the 1st, 8th, 16th, and 24th, of the month; on this line
are sixteen fine vessels, elegantly fitted up with every accommodation
for passengers, and which perform the voyage
generally in twenty-three days and a half, though occasionally
it has been done in fifteen days. The union line
of packets, also to New York, sail on the 5th and 20th of
the month. The Philadelphia packets sail from Liverpool
on the 8th and 21st of the month; and those for Boston
sail always monthly, and sometimes twice in the month.
The next in importance is the trade which Liverpool
carries on with the West Indies, which had its
commencement about the middle of the seventeenth
century, and which was previously shared between London
and Bristol; Liverpool, however, has successfully
rivalled the latter of these ports, and secured to itself a
very considerable portion of the trade; the quantity of
British plantation sugar imported in 1829, was fortythree
thousand seven hundred hogsheads and tierces; of
rum, eleven thousand six hundred and fifty puncheons;
of tobacco, four thousand nine hundred and sixtyfour
hogsheads; and of coffee, including also that
brought from the East Indies and the Brazils, eight
thousand and eighty casks, and five thousand two hundred
barrels and bags. Liverpool was extensively concerned
in the slave trade, in which, previously to its abolition,
nearly one-fourth part of the vessels belonging
to the port was employed. In 1829, thirty-six vessels entered
inwards from the ports of Africa, and fifty-seven
cleared outwards. In the same year, the number of
vessels which entered inwards from the West Indies was
one hundred and ninety-five, and of those which cleared
outwards, two hundred and thirty-two. In 1814 this
port was, by an order in council dated December 17th,
declared a fit and proper dep&t for the custody of goods,
wares, and merchandise, imported from every port and
place within the limits of the East India Company's
Charter, and in 1819 thirty-eight vessels entered inwards
from the East Indies; but this branch of its trade has
since declined, probably from the decreased value of
East Indian produce, as the number of vessels that entered
from the East Indies, in 1829, was thirty-three,
and of those that cleared outwards, thirty-five: the principal
imports are, cotton, indigo, hides, ginger, pepper,
and sugar. Liverpool carries on also a considerable
trade with the principal ports in the Mediterranean and
Levant seas, from which it imports wine, fruits, lemon
and lime juice, olive and other oils, barilla, and brimstone;
and from these ports one hundred and seventy
vessels entered inwards, and one hundred and ninety
cleared outwards, in 1829. Cotton was first imported
here from Egypt in -1823, and twenty-two thousand
four hundred and fifty-six bales were landed in 1829.
The trade in ashes, tallow, and timber, has of late considerably
increased; seventeen thousand four hundred
casks of tallow were imported in 1829, when the number
of ships entered inwards from the Baltic was ninetyfive,
and the number cleared outwards, one hundred
and seventy. Considerable trade is also carried on
in timber with the British Colonies in North America,
from which, in 1829, two hundred and sixty-six cargoes,
of the aggregate value of £256,422, were imported;
and ninety-five cargoes, valued at £94,5 64, were also
imported from the Baltic. A limited intercourse is
maintained with New South Wales and South Shetland;
and in that with the Isle of Man, the imports from
which are grain, herrings, and wool, one hundred and
thirty vessels are employed. The coasting-trade is very
important; the number of arrivals in 1829 was not less
than four thousand two hundred and fifty. The fisheries
do not appear ever to have been very extensive; in
1764, three ships were engaged in the Greenland whale
fishery, which number had increased, in 1788, to twentyone,
but from that time the trade began to decline, and
has now ceased to exist, and the home fishery has
diminished materially. The exports are principally
the manufactured articles of the neighbouring districts.
In 1829, one thousand four hundred and eighty-five
British, and eight hundred and ten foreign, vessels engaged
in foreign trade entered inwards; and one thousand
seven hundred British, and nine hundred foreign,
vessels cleared outwards; and, including coasting vessels,
the whole number which entered the port, in the
year ending the 24th of June, 1830, was eleven thousand
two hundred and fourteen, of which, the aggregate burden
was one million four hundred and eleven thousand
nine hundred and sixty-four tons, and the amount of
duties paid at the custom-house was £3,123,758. 8. 10.,
and £166,550. 11. 11., at the dock office. The number
of vessels belonging to the port, in 1828, was seven
hundred and fifty-nine, averaging a burden of one hundred
and ninety-nine tons each. In addition to the regular
packets for America there are packets for Rio Janeiro,
Naples, Genoa, Leghorn, Smyrna, Constantinople,
Lisbon, and Oporto. There are thirty-six steam-packets
established between this port and Ireland, two to the
Isle of Man, seven to Scotland, six to Wales, one to
Carlisle, one to Whitehaven, one to Lancaster; besides
which there are sixteen to the different ferries on the
Mersey.
The harbour is capacious and secure: at the entrance
of the river is the Black Rock lighthouse,
erected on a point of rock on the western coast, which
is covered at quarter flood, the water at high spring
tides rising twenty feet above the surface of the rock;
this lighthouse was built at the expense of the corporation,
from a design by Mr. John Foster: it is seventy-five
feet high from its foundation to the lantern, and thirty-five
feet in diameter immediately below the base, and fifteen
and a half at the cornice; the lower part, to the height
of twenty-eight feet and a half, is solid, from which a
spiral staircase leads to the store-room and the apartments
of the three keepers; above these is the lantern, at
a medium height of sixty feet above the level of the sea,
in which is a light of thirty argand lamps, with reflectors,
in a triangular frame, revolving once in three minutes, and
presenting, successively, two lights of a natural colour,
and one of brilliant red, which attain their full lustre
every successive minute j and in hazy weather a bell is
constantly ringing to prevent accidents; this building,
which is of limestone brought from Beaumaris, was
completed, and the light first exhibited, on the 1st of
March, 1830. A floating light has also been placed eleven
miles seaward from the mouth of the river, by the
trustees of the docks; and pilot boats stationed there
are constantly on the look out. A telegraph has been
established, by means of which communications have
been interchanged between this town and Holyhead in
the short space of three minutes; the signal stations
extend along the coast, at intervals of eight miles distance
from each other. The limits of the port (as fixed
by the commissioners appointed under a commission
issued in the 10th of George I., in their certificate to
the Exchequer, dated November 28th, 1723,) extend
"from the Red Stones in Hollyake, at the point of
Wirrall, southerly to the foot of the river called Rib-
ble water, in a direct line northerly, and so upon the
south side of the said river to Hesketh bank easterly,
and to the rivers Asland and Douglas there, and so all
along the sea-coasts of Meols and Formby, unto the
river Mersey, and all over the rivers Mersey, Irwell, and
Weaver."
For the security of the shipping in the port, and for the
greater facility of loading and unloading merchandise, an
immense range of docks and warehouses, extending nearly
two miles along the eastern bank of the river, has been
constructed, on a scale of unparalleled magnificence; and
forming one of those characteristics of commercial greatness
in which this town is unrivalled. The docks are of three kinds,
the wet docks, the dry docks, and the graving docks;
the wet docks are chiefly for ships of great burden,
employed in the foreign trade, and which float in
them at all states of the tide, the water being retained
by gates; the dry docks, so called because they are
left dry when the tide is out, are chiefly appropriated
to coasting vessels; and the graving docks, which admit
or exclude the water at pleasure, are adapted to
the repair of ships, during which they are kept dry,
and when completed are floated out by admitting the
tide. The Old dock, which was the first of the kind
constructed in England, and for making which an act
of parliament was obtained in 1708, is not now in
use, its site having been appropriated to the erection of
a new custom-house, and other offices connected with
the trade of the port. The Dry dock, which is about to
be converted into a wet dock, was constructed under
the authority of an act passed in the 11th of George II.,
and is chiefly occupied by sloops from the North coast,
which import corn, provisions, and slate, and convey
back the produce of the West Indies, the Mediterranean,
Portugal, and the Baltic: it has a quay five hundred
yards in length; and has communication with three graving
docks: it has been considerably enlarged, and many
of the buildings surrounding it have been taken down,
with the view of obtaining more quay room. The Salthouse
dock, so named from some salt works formerly
contiguous to it, was constructed about the same time
as the Dry dock; the upper part of it is chiefly for ships
that are laid up, and the lower part for vessels in the
Levant, Irish, and coasting trades; the quay is seven
hundred and fifty-nine yards in extent, and is provided
with convenient warehouses, with arcades for foot passengers
on the east side, and extensive sheds on the west
side; between this dock and the river are some shipbuilders
yards, which the corporation intend to convert
into docks for the craft employed in the inland trade.
George's dock was constructed, in the 3d of George III.,
at an expense of £21,000: it was originally two hundred
and forty-six yards in length, and one hundred
yards in breadth, with a quay of seven hundred yards
in extent j but it has been enlarged, and the quay is now
one thousand and one yards in length; on the east side
is a range of extensive warehouses, in front of which is
an arcade for foot passengers; and on the west side
are sheds for protecting the merchandise from the weather;
at the north and south ends of the dock are
handsome cast-iron bridges; and a parade is continued
westward for a considerable distance into the river: this
dock has a communication with the two preceding
docks, and also with the Prince's dock, by basins, which
preclude the necessity of returning into the river. The
King's dock, constructed in the 25th of George III., is
two hundred and seventy yards in length, and ninetysix
in breadth, and is appropriated to vessels from
Virginia and other parts, laden with tobacco, which
article is exclusively landed here: the new tobacco
warehouses extend the whole length of the quay, on the
west side, and are five hundred and seventy-five feet in
length, and two hundred and thirty-nine in depth;
the old warehouses, on the opposite side, which were
appropriated to that purpose, have been converted into
sheds for the security of merchandise: ships from
the Baltic, freighted with timber and naval stores,
discharge their cargoes on the quay, across the entrance
is a handsome swivel bridge of cast-iron: this
dock has a communication on the south with a dry dock
and two graving docks. The Queen's dock, constructed
at the same time, is four hundred and seventy yards
long, and two hundred and twenty-seven and a half in
breadth, with a spacious quay, and is chiefly occupied
by vessels freighted with timber, and by those employed
in the Dutch and Baltic trades: at the south
end it communicates with a basin of considerable extent,
called the Brunswick half-tide dock, which is also connected
with the Brunswick dry basin; on the south
of the half-tide dock, a new dock of larger dimensions
than any of the preceding, for vessels laden with
timber, is in progress, to be called the Brunswick
dock, with a basin to the south of it, and patent
slips for the repairing of vessels, which will probably
terminate the range of docks at the southern extremity.
The Prince's dock, constructed under an act
passed in the 51st of George III., was opened with
great pomp on the day of the coronation of His late
Majesty George IV.: it is five hundred yards in length,
and one hundred and six in breadth: at the north end is
a spacious basin belonging to it, and at the south end it
communicates with the basin of George's dock: at the
north end is a handsome dwelling-house for the dockmaster,
with suitable offices; and at the south end is
a house, in which the master of George's dock at
present resides; the quays are spacious, and there are
sheds for the protection of goods from the weather:
along the west side, near the river, is a beautiful marine
parade, seven hundred and fifty yards long, and eleven
wide, defended by a stone parapet wall, from which is
a delightful view of the river and the shipping: it is
much frequented as a promenade, and at convenient intervals
are three flights of steps leading down to the river,
where boats are in constant attendance. To the north
of the basin belonging to this dock, four spacious wet
docks, and a large graving dock, which latter is to be
fitted up with patent slips, are at present in a state of
rapid progress; and, when completed, will probably
terminate the range of docks on the north side of the
town. The Duke's dock, between Salthouse and the
King's docks, is a small dock belonging to the trustees
of the late Duke of Bridgewater, for the use of his flatn,
with commodious warehouses. The several carriers by
water have also convenient basins on the river, for the use
of their barges, with quays for loading and unloading their
goods; and the Mersey and Irwell Navigation Company
have a small dock, called the Manchester dock, for the
flats employed in that extensive trade, and for the
transport to this town of the productions of Cheshire
and the adjoining counties. The whole range of the
docks, when the northern and southern additions are
completed, will be two miles and eight hundred and
twenty yards in length; and spacious as they are, they
are still considered inadequate to the increasing commerce
of the port, and measures are in contemplation
for their further extension. The sums expended in
the formation of these docks amount to more than two
millions and a half sterling: for clearing them from
the accumulation of silt brought in by the tide, a dredging
machine, worked by a steam-engine of ten-horse
power, is in constant operation, by which fifty tons per
hour are raised into barges, and deposited where it may
be washed away by the current of the river. The internal
management of each dock is entrusted to a master
resident on the spot, and the government of the whole
establishment is vested, by an act of parliament obtained
in 1825, in a committee of twenty-one members, including
a chairman and deputy chairman, who meet at least
once every week, and oftener, when circumstances require
it: the committee consists of thirteen, trustees
nominated by the common council, and eight merchants,
or ship-owners, chosen by the payers of rates or dues
to the amount of £ 10, within one year prior to the
election, and Who are resident within eight miles of
Liverpool.
The new custom-house, which is now being erected
on the site of the Old dock, at the joint expense of
government and the corporation, and under the superintendence
of Mr. John Foster, will be a superb
and beautiful edifice in the Grecian style of ar6hitecture;
the probable cost, originally estimated at
£175,000, will not be much less than £300,000, of
which sum, £ 150,000 has been contributed by government.
According to the approved plan now in progress,
the buildings will be four hundred and fifty-four feet
in length, and two hundred and twenty-four in depth,
with three principal fronts, of which the north presents,
in the central and receding part, a noble portico
of eight Ionic columns, the shafts of which are
five feet in diameter, and forty-six feet high, supporting
an entablature with a triangular pediment
having the royal arms in the tympanum; in the centre
will be a finely-groined archway, intended as a thoroughfare
for foot passengers to the streets at the south end
of the building, and having on each side an entrance
into the central part of the edifice; the entrance to the
projecting wings will be through a loggia of two columns
of similar dimensions and character: the east and
west fronts have each a portico in the centre, of similar
elevation as the portico of the north front; and the
faces of the building, on each side of the portico, are decorated
with pilasters supporting a cornice and entablature;
from the centre of the building rises a noble
dome, forty-six feet in diameter, of which the tambour
is surrounded by Ionic pillars supporting an entablature
surmounted by a balustrade. The exterior, from
every point of view, presents an object of beautiful magnificence,
unrivalled by any public building of the kind:
the interior, in addition to ample accommodation for
the business of the customs and excise, will contain the
stamp and post offices, and the requisite offices connected
with the docks; the long room, for the customhouse
department, one hundred and forty-six feet in
length, seventy feet in breadth, and forty feet high, will
be accessible from the lower part of the building, by
two double staircases of ample dimensions; under the
building will be an extensive range of vaults for the
reception of wines and spirits in bond. The old custom-
house, in which the business has hitherto been
transacted, is of brick, ornamented with stone, convenient
only from its central situation, but destitute of
any architectural importance; the present excise office
consists of two private houses converted to that use.
Adjoining the dock office, which is near the customhouse,
is a building appropriated to the business of the
dock police; and the present post-office is a small
building, which cannot be noticed among the buildings
of the town.
The exchange buildings, erected by the late Mr.
John Foster, at an expense of £110,848, subscribed
in shares of £100 each, were completed in 1806: they
occupy three sides of a quadrangular area, one hundred
and ninety-seven feet long, and one hundred
and seventy-eight in breadth, the north front of the
town-hall forming the fourth side; the fa9ades of the
east and west sides, which are uniform, consist of a
rustic basement story, forming an arched piazza, surmounted
by a range of Corinthian columns, supporting
a cornice and balustrade: the south side of the quadrangle
differs from the others, principally in the projection
of its centre, which has a handsome portico of
four duplicated columns, supporting an entablature,
above which are four finely-sculptured figures of Portland
stone, representing the four elements, and corresponding
with similar figures on the front of the townhall,
which forms the other side. The three sides of the
quadrangle have a piazza fifteen feet in width; and in
the centre of the area is a monument to the memory
of Lord Nelson, erected by subscription, at an expense
of £ 9000, and placed on a circular pedestal of marble,
round the base of which are four figures of captives,
emblematical of the four principal victories gained by
that admiral; in the spaces between these figures are
representations, in basso relievo, of some of his naval
exploits; and on the pedestal is the figure of the admiral,
receiving on his sword a fourth naval crown from
Victory, while, at the same moment, a figure of Death
appears rising from behind the drapery of the fallen
standards of the vanquished enemy. The entrances
into the area are at the angles of the quadrangle, and
from Old Hall-street is an additional entrance through
three arches in the basement story, divided into avenues
by duplicated columns of the Grecian Doric, with
groined roofs richly ornamented: the facade of this
entrance from the street is a noble design of the Doric
order, and the end fronts of the east and west ranges
of the quadrangle, facing the town-hall, are handsome
specimens of the Corinthian. In the east wing is a
news-room, ninety-four feet long and fifty-two feet wide,
above which is a spacious room for the use of the underwriters;
the central and west wings contain numerous
counting-houses and offices, and behind them are
extensive warehouses.
The manufactures of the town are principally such
as are connected with the port and the shipping, the
promotion of its commerce, and the supply of the inhabitants;
there are several sugar-refineries upon a very
large scale, extensive potteries, glass-houses, breweries,
tanneries, salt and copperas works, iron and brass
foundries, foundries for cannon, anchors, chain cables,
the several parts of machinery connected with steamengines,
and various others; manufactories for steamengines,
steam - boilers, and machinery of all kinds;
guns, small arms, nails, files, ropes, sails, cordage,
Watches,, tobacco, snuff, and soap; there are numerous
corn-mills, and others for grinding mustard, colours,
and dye-woods; the manufacture of soap exceeds that
of any place in England, the amount of duty paid for the
year ending January 5th, 1830, being £316,942. 16. If.;
and those of tobacco and snuff are very extensive; the
number of watches made annually, on an average,
amount to ten thousand four hundred, a number greater
than that of any town, except London. Numerous
shipwrights are constantly employed in repairing the
vessels in the docks, and ship-building is carried on to a
considerable extent; thirty-three vessels were built at
this port in 1826, and several ships of war have been
launched from the dock yards, among which were three
of fifty and one of forty-four guns, together with several
frigates. The building of steam-packets, and the manufacture
of engines and boilers for their use, have been
greatly increasing within the last few years at Liverpool,
which in this respect appears to take the lead of
all other ports. The trade of the town is greatly facilitated
by an extensive line of inland navigation in
every direction, by which it is connected with the manufacturing
districts and the principal towns in the
kingdom. No less than five water conveyances fall into
the Mersey; viz. the Mersey and Irwell navigation, the
late Duke of Bridgewater's canal, the Sankey canal, the
Chester and Ellesmere canal, and the Weaver navigation;
the first communicates with Manchester, and with
Bolton and Bury by a canal to those towns. The Duke
of Bridgewater's communicates also with Manchester,
and, by the Rochdale canal, with Hull and the southern
parts of Yorkshire; and, by means of the Grand Trunk
canal, with almost every other canal or inland navigation
to the south of Lancashire. The Sankey canal has
a communication with the extensive coal-mines at St.
Helen's and its neighbourhood. The Chester and Ellesmere
canal, now being united to the Birmingham canal
in Worcestershire, will open a communication with all
the southern parts of England, and with the mining
districts of North and South Wales. The Weaver is
the great medium of conveyance for the produce of the
salt mines at Northwich and its neighbourhood. In
addition to these is the Leeds and Liverpool canal, communicating,
by the Lancaster canal, with all the north
part of Lancashire; by means of a cut lately made to
the Duke of Bridgewater's canal, with Manchester; and,
as the name imports, with Leeds, and consequently with
the principal manufacturing towns in Yorkshire. A
rail-road from Manchester is also now being finished,
which by means of a tunnel running under this town,
from east to west, will deliver goods or passengers, by
steam-engines propelled at the rate of from fifteen to
thirty miles an hour, almost at the sides of the docks,
without the inconvenience of passing through any part
of the town; for a more detailed account of this stupendous
work, see the article on LANCASHIRE. Other
rail-roads are in progress in the vicinity, and one to
Birmingham, and thence to London, has been projected.
The town is beautifully situated on the east bank
of the river Mersey, along which it extends for more
than three miles; on the west side are the immense
ranges of docks, wharfs, and warehouses, in the neighbourhood
of which the streets are narrow, and the
houses of inferior appearance to those of more recent
erection; on the east side, to which it extends for upwards
of a mile, are spacious streets, squares, and crescents,
modern houses, built chiefly of brick and roofed with
slate, of which many are elegant mansions. The town
is well paved, and brilliantly lighted with gas, by two
companies, one established in 1818, for the supply of
coal gas, and the other for the preparation of oil gas, in
1823. The inhabitants and the shipping in the docks
are supplied with water from the springs at Bootlc,
about four miles distant, by the company of the Bootle
water-works, and from springs in or contiguous to the
town, by the company of the Liverpool and Harrington
water-works. The air is highly salubrious, and the
convenience of sea-bathing is afforded by the construction
of baths of every description, erected by the corporation,
and furnished with every accommodation; by
private establishments of a similar nature; by a floatingbath,
and by numerous machines. Steam-boats are
constantly sailing to and from the ferries on the Cheshire
shore; and every facility of aquatic excursions may be
obtained by packets and pleasure boats, which are in,
constant attendance. The docks afford delightful promenades,
commanding extensive views of the river and
of the shipping: the public buildings, which are highly
beautiful, give an air of grandeur to the town; and its
numerous sources of refined amusement and social
intercourse render it, independently of its mercantile
attractions, a desirable place of residence. The environs
are pleasant, abounding with interesting scenery, and
with numerous handsome seats and beautiful villas.
The village of Everton, one mile north-east of the
town, is the retreat of many of the opulent merchants':
from its elevated situation, it commands extensive and
interesting views, and displays considerable architectural
interest.
The public subscription libraries are numerous and
well selected. The Athenaeum, a neat building of stone,
erected, in 1799, at an expense of £4000, by a proprietary
of five hundred members, whose annual subscription
is £2. 12. 6., contains a news-room, and a
library comprising fourteen thousand volumes; adjoining
the library are a committee-room and apartments for
the librarian. The Lyceum, a handsome edifice of the
Ionic order, was erected by public subscription, in 1802,
at an expense of £ 11,000; it contains a well-selected library
of thirty thousand volumes, conveniently arranged
in a circular room forty-five feet in diameter, tastefully
decorated with busts, and lighted by a spacious dome; a
coffee-room, sixty-eight feet in length, forty-eight feet
wide, and thirty-one feet high, with an elegant coved ceiling;
and a lecture and committee-room; the institution
is under the direction of a president, vice-president, and
a committee of twenty-four members; there are eight
hundred subscribers to the library, and six hundred to the
coffee-room. The Union news-room, a substantial and
neat building, was erected by public subscription, in 1800,
at an expense of £6000; it contains a spacious coffeeroom,
with two recesses at the end, ornamented with
Ionic pillars; over the entrance to the bar is a painting,
by Fuseli, emblematical of the union; and on the parapet
above the entrance are the unioa arms, finely sculp-
tured. The exchange news-room, which occupies the
lower story of the east wing of that splendid edifice, is
ninety-four feet in length and fifty-two feet wide; the
ceiling, which is richly panelled, is divided into three
arched compartments, by a double range of sixteen Ionic
pillars, twenty feet high, forming an elegant colonnade
in the centre of the room; the side walls are decorated
with sixteen pilasters of the same order, between
which are spacious arched windows; the whole of the
interior preserves a character of striking beauty. There
are also a medical and a law library, supported by the
members of those professions. The royal institution,
a spacious and handsome edifice, the purchase and
adaptation of which to its purpose, cost A 14,000, raised
in shares of £ 100, consists of a centre and two wings,
extending one hundred and forty-six feet in front, and
containing on the ground-floor a reading-room for the
subscribers, a lecture-room fifty feet in length and thirty
feet wide, a committee-room, and classical and mathematical
school-rooms; and on the first floor, a large
room for the Liverpool Literary and Philosophical
Society, a library, a museum, a spacious exhibitionroom
for the members of the Liverpool academy of
painting, an exhibition-room for casts from the Elgin
and Egina marbles, a drawing school-room, and a committee-
room; on the roof is an observatory, and behind
the principal building are a laboratory and a theatre for
chemical and philosophical experiments. This institution
was formed, in 1814, for the advancement of literature,
science, and the arts, -and the members were incorporated
by royal charter, in 1822; the society appoints professors,
who lecture on chemistry, anatomy, physiology, botany,
and astronomy j and masters for teaching the classics,
mathematics, English composition, the modern languages,
and drawing. A school of arts was established,
in 1825, for the gratuitous instruction of the artisans
of the town, in the principles of chemistry and
mechanics, on which subjects lectures are delivered at
the rooms in Slater-street, by professors of the royal institution.
The Botanic gardens, near Edge hill, occupy
about four acres of ground, enclosed within a stone wall,
having a handsome entrance-lodge, containing apartments
for the superintendent and others connected
with the management: the collection of plants is extensive,
and affords not only a practical illustration of the
lectures delivered on that subject at the Royal Institution,
but an interesting and pleasing recreation; stran-
gcrs are admitted by a note from any of the proprietors;
the conservatory, two hundred and forty feet in
length, is an elegant and highly ornamental structure.
The museum, in Church-street, consists of two apartments,
in one of which a collection of natural productions
is tastefully displayed, and in the other is a
variety of ancient armour and warlike weapons and
instruments.
The new baths, on the west side of George's dock,
form a neat range of stone building, two hundred and
thirty-nine feet in length and eighty-seven in depth;
on each side of the entrance, which is in the centre,
is a colonnade of eighteen pillars, affording a sheltered
walk; and in front of the building is a good
promenade on the margin of the river. The gentlemen's
baths are on the north side; the principal bath is fortyfive
feet long and twenty-seven wide, and the entrance
from the dressing-rooms is under a projecting roof
supported on pillars; a handsome saloon, lighted by a
dome, leads to the warm baths, which are well arranged,
and provided with every accommodation: the ladies'baths,
on the south side, are similarly arranged. The theatre,
on the east side of Williamson-square, was built in 1772;
it is a neat edifice of brick, with a circular stone front,
ornamented with the king's arms, and with emblematical
figures in has relief: the season commences in
May, and closes in December. The amphitheatre, in Gre at
Charlotte-street, is a spacious and handsome building
of brick, coated with stucco: it is open, during the
winter, for the performance of equestrian exercises, feats
of agility, and pantomimes. The circus, in Springfieldstreet,
is used for similar exhibitions. The Wellington
rooms were built by public subscription, in 1815; in
the centre of the front, which is of stone, is a lofty circular
portico of the Corinthian order, from which two
doors open into an octangular vestibule, twenty-five
feet in diameter, beyond which is an ante-room, from
which doors on the right and left lead into the card and
supper rooms, and in the centre into the ball-room,
eighty feet in length and thirty-seven feet wide, and
splendidly decorated; the whole forming a suite of
rooms admirably adapted to the uses for which they
were erected. The music-hall is a plain brick building,
with a portico, in which subscription concerts are held
during the winter months. The diorama is a plain and
substantial edifice, erected, at a considerable expense,
by the Messrs. Daguerre, members of the Legion of
Honour, who are the inventors of that exhibition. The
rotunda is a handsome circular building of brick, elegantly
fitted up for the exhibition of panoramic views,
but now used as a billiard-room by a select number of
subscribers. At the entrance into the town from London
is an equestrian statue of George III., the first stone
of which was laid in Great George-square, by the mayor
and corporation, attended by the different trade associations,
on the 25th of October, 1809, being the day on
which His Majesty completed thefiftieth year of his reign,
but. since removed to its present site; it is of bronze,
and a copy of that of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius,
at Rome; the expense, amounting to nearly £4000, was
raised by subscription. The races take place in July, and
continue four days: the course, at Aintree, about six miles
to the north-north-east of the town, is a mile and a half
in length, and is enclosed by railing, with a straight run
in of nearly one thousand one hundred yards; there is
also an interior course, or training-ground; stabling
for fifty horses have been built at the upper end, with
rooms over them for the grooms; six common stands
have also been built, capable of accommodating six
thousand persons. The grand stand was erected in
1829; it is four stories in height; the ground-floor, beneath
which are spacious cellars, contains entrance halls
and vestibules, from which two spacious staircases lead to
the principal rooms on' the first floor, and to the various
rooms for refreshment and for promenade during -the
intervals of the running; the principal of these, overlooking
the race ground, is ninety-one feet in length,
twenty-two feet wide, and seventeen feet high, with circular
ends, and lighted by fifteen windows; in front is
a balcony extending the whole length of the front and
round the ends of the building; and at the back of
the principal room are two withdrawing-rooms, each
twenty-eight feet long and seventeen feet wide, one for
gentlemen, and the other for ladies; above are two
similar rooms, and the leads, commanding a view of the
whole course, and a most beautiful and extensive prospect
of the surrounding country, are capable of accommodating
two thousand persons.
The chartered market days are Wednesday and Saturday,
but there are markets for provisions every day
in the week except Sunday; the market days for corn
are Tuesday and Saturday, from ten in the morning till
one o'clock, the market being held in the corn exchange, a
neat building, with an entrance in the centre into the lower
area, and the basement story ornamented with Doric columns,
supporting a cornice and entablature. Numerous
market-places have been formed, and buildings erected,
for the accommodation of persons attending them;
of these, the principal is St. John's market-place, nearly
in the centre of the town, begun in August 1820, and
completed in February, 1822, by the corporation, at an
expense of £35,000; the building is of brick, with
entrances and cornices of stone; it is one hundred and
eighty-three yards in length, and forty-five yards wide,
lighted with one hundred and thirty-six windows, and
thoroughly ventilated: there are eight spacious entrances,
and the interior is divided longitudinally into five avenues,
by four ranges of handsome cast-iron pillars, one
hundred and sixteen in number, which support the roof.
St. James's market-house, for the accommodation of
the south part of the town and of Harrington, has
been lately erected; and a similar building is in progress
in Scotland road, for the convenience of the residents
in Everton and Kirkdale. In addition to these
are the old fish market in James-street, and open market-
places in Cleveland-square, Islington, and Pownallsquare;
the cattle and hay markets, in Lime-street j and
the pig market, in Great Howard-street. The fairs are,
July 25th and November llth: ten days prior to each
fair, a hand is displayed in. front of the town-hall, and
remains there for ten days after the conclusion, during
which time, every person entering or leaving the town on
business connected with the fairs, is free from arrest for
debt on borough process within the ancient liberties of
the town.
Liverpool, though a borough by prescription, received its first
charter of incorporation from King John: under this charter,
confirmed and extended by many succeeding monarchs, and modified
by William III., George II., III., and IV., the government is
vested in a mayor, recorder, two bailiffs, an indefinite number
of aldermen, a town clerk, and others, composing a common council
of forty-one, assisted by subordinate officers. The mayor is chosen
annually on St. Luke's day from among the common
council, by the burgesses generally; the recorder and
town clerk are chosen by the common council; the
senior bailiff is appointed by the mayor, and the junior
bailiff by the burgesses; and such of the common council
as have served the office of mayor become aldermen.
The mayor and aldermen are justices of the peace
within the borough, and the mayor, by charter of Wil-
liam III., is also justice of the peace for the county,
and, by charter of George IV., the junior alderman and
the two bailiffs are coroners. The freedom of the
borough is inherited by birth, and acquired by servitude
or gift; among the privileges is the freedom of
the city of Bristol, and of Waterford and Wexford,
in Ireland, the resident burgesses of which places are
reciprocally free of Liverpool, with the exception only
of the right to vote at elections. The corporation hold
quarterly courts of session for all offences not capital,
which are also held every Monday by adjournment;
and a court of record, by prescription, for the recovery
of debts to any amount, every Thursday: a court of
requests is held every Monday and Wednesday, under
an act passed in the 25th of George II., by commissioners
appointed by the corporation, for the recovery
of debts not exceeding 40a. A regular system of dock
police has been established by act of parliament, and
some of the. borough magistrates attend daily at the dock
office, for determining causes connected with that department,
and the mayor or some of the magistrates
attend daily at the sessions-house, for the transaction of
public business. The estates belonging to the corporation
may be estimated at the value of £2,500,000,
producing an income varying' from £100,000 to
£110,000 per annum, a considerable proportion of
which is expended in the improvement of the port,
and in the embellishment of the town; the gross sum
laid out from 1786 to 1828, in widening the streets,
and in other improvements within the liberties, was
£602,554, and in building churches, charity schools,
market-houses, and other public buildings, £465,000,
making a total of £1,067,554, and an average expenditure
of £25,417 per annum, for forty-two years.
The borough first exercised the elective franchise in
the 23rd of Edward.I., but made no other return
till the reign of Edward VI., since which time it
has continued to send two members to parliament:
the right of election is vested in the freemen generally
not receiving alms, of whom the number is about five
thousand: the mayor and bailiffs are the returning
officers.
The town-hall, built in 1749, and of which the
ground-floor was originally designed for an exchange,
occupies an elevated situation at the north end of
Castle-street; the whole of the interior was destroyed
by fire in 1795, and has been since restored, upon a
more improved plan, at an expense of £110,000: it is a
stately and magnificent structure, in the Grecian style
of architecture, with four elegant fronts, of which the
north forms one side of the Exchange buildings, and the
south, which is the principal, forms' the grand entrance;
a rustic basement surrounds the whole building, from
which rise handsome ranges of Corinthian pillars, supporting
an entablature and cornice; between the pillars
are tablets, in which the emblems of commerce are finely
sculptured in bas relief: the principal front has a noble
portico of Corinthian columns, supporting a triangular
pediment in the central part, which has a bold projection;
the east and west fronts, which are uniform, have
in the projecting central part a handsome portico of
Corinthian columns, supporting triangular pediments,
from the centre of the building rises a splendid and
stately dome, supported on a range of lofty columns
of the Corinthian order, grouped at the quoins
and surmounted by triangular pediments; round the
tambour of the dome is an open gallery, commanding an
extensive panoramic view, and the summit is crowned
by a colossal figure of Britannia. The interior of this
noble building contains on the ground floor a councilroom,
apartments for the mayor, committee-rooms, and
offices for the town clerk, treasurer, and other officers
of the corporation. The grand staircase leads into a
spacious saloon splendidly furnished, and ornamented
with full-length portraits of George III., by Sir Thomas
Lawrence; of His late Majesty George IV., when Prince
of Wales, by Hopner; of the late Duke of York, by
Phillips; and a portrait by Sir M. A. Shee of His present
Majesty, William IV.: the saloon opens on the east and
west sides into two magnificently-furnished drawingrooms,
thirty-two feet in length and twenty-seven feet
wide; and on the north and east sides, into two spacious
ball-rooms, superbly decorated, and lighted by
three chandeliers of richly cut glass of great beauty,
and of unusual magnitude; the larger of these rooms
is eighty-nine feet in length, forty-one feet wide, and
forty feet high; the smaller is sixty-one feet in length,
twenty-eight feet wide, and twenty-six feet high; the
ceilings are coved, and ornamented with highly-enriched
panels, the -walls are decorated with pilasters of
Scagliola marble, and the furniture is sumptuously elegant.
On the west of the saloon is the banquet-room.,
fifty feet in length, thirty feet wide and twenty-five
feet high; the walls are ornamented with pilasters of
variegated Scagliola marble, with capitals of the Corinthian
order; the arched ceiling is richly panelled in
compartments, and the whole is fitted up in a style of
the most costly magnificence. The refectory, adjoining
the smaller ball-room, thirty-six feet in length, and
twenty-one feet wide, and lighted from the ceiling, is in
a style of proportionate elegance. The interior of the
dome, as seen from the grand staircase, is strikingly
beautiful; the entire height from the pavement is one
hundred and six feet; and the ornaments are characterised
by a due regard to purity of style and chasteness
of embellishment: the whole suite of rooms, for convenience
of arrangement, and for splendour of decoration,
are in perfect harmony with the general character
of the building, which, for the magnitude of its dimensions,
and the beauty of its architecture, is, perhaps,
unparalleled by any edifice of the kind in Europe.
The borough sessions-house, near the west wing of the
Exchange buildings, is a neat plain structure in the Grecian
style of architecture; it is one hundred and seventy-
four feet in length, and varies from fifty to eighty
feet in depth; at the north front are two entrances,
from which a winding staircase leads into a saloon, the
ceiling of which is supported by four handsome Ionic
columns; the saloon opens into the sessions hall, sixtyone
feet in length, and thirty-nine feet wide, handsomely
fitted up for the business of the sessions; the bar, communicating
with some cells below, to which there is an
underground passage from the prison, occupies the centre
of the hall, and a gradual flight of steps ascending
from it affords accommodation to spectators; the ceiling,
in which are two domes, from which the hall is
lighted, is handsomely panelled, and the walls are
decorated with twelve pilasters supporting an enriched
cornice; at the other extremity of the building is another
court of similar style, but of smaller dimensions,
in which the petty sessions and daily examinations
are held; there are also rooms for the magistrates,
jurors, and persons connected with the court, and
on the ground-floor are cells for prisoners awaiting
their trial. The borough gaol consists of six wings, of
which three were let to the county as a temporary
house of correction, till the new house of correction
at Kirkdale should be completed: three of these are
now appropriated to the confinement of debtors, and
three to that of offenders against the dock acts, and of
prisoners for trial at the borough sessions: it is capable
of containing from five to six hundred prisoners, but is
not well adapted for classification. The house of correction
at Kirkdale, recently erected, is of a circular form,
with two large wings, and is capable of receiving eight
hundred prisoners, for the classification of whom there
are twenty-two wards; the governor's house occupies
the north front, and in the centre of the area &ve the
chapel and the schools: it contains a tread-mill with ten
wheels, of which three are worked by females. The
sessions-house for the hundred of West Derby forms
the south front of the house of correction, and is handsomely
built of stone, with a portico of six lofty Ionic
pillars; the sessions are held in a handsome room
seventy feet long and forty-two feet wide, to which are
attached apartments for the magistrates, barristers, and
witnesses; the petty sessions for the hundred are held
every alternate Friday, in a smaller room in this building,
which was completed in 1821, at an expense of
£80,000; the average number of prisoners confined
here is about five hundred and fifty, who are employed
in various pursuits of profitable labour, and receive a
portion of their earnings on their discharge. A refuge
for female prisoners, discharged in a destitute state, has
been established in the town, under the auspices of
which, many have been restored to stations of usefulness
and respectability in society.
Liverpool was formerly a chapelry in the parish of
Walton, from which it was separated in 1699, and constituted
a distinct parish and a rectory, to be " called
and esteemed a mediety, that is to say, equal betwixt
the two rectors that shall preach at the new church
(St. Peter's) and the parochial chapel (St. Nicholas'): "
it is in the archdeaconry and diocese of Chester. Since
the period of its separation from Walton, many new
churches have been erected, and it has of late, by act of
parliament, been divided into twenty-two districts, for
ecclesiastical purposes: the original, and the only
church prior to 1699, was that of St.Nicholas; the time
of its foundation is not known 5 but, in 1361, a license
was obtained from the Bishop of Lichfield, to bury in the
churchyard during the plague, which then raged in the
town: the body of the church was rebuilt in 1774, and,
in 1810, the spire and the upper part of the tower fell
upon the roof, a few minutes before the hour of service,
and killed several persons who had assembled in the
church, and were entering at the time; a new tower, in
the later style of English architecture, has been erected,
surmounted by a lantern, from a design by the late Mr.
Harrison, of Chester: there were anciently four chantries
in this church, but few monuments of antiquity are
now remaining. St. Peter's church is a plain edifice,
with a low square tower surmounted by an octagonal
turret crowned with pinnacles: the interior contains
some good specimens of carving in oak, and on the
south side of the chancel is a costly marble monument
to the memory of Foster Cunliffe, merchant: the
rectory, or mediety of Liverpool is not in charge, and is
in the patronage of the Mayor and Council. The following
churches, the livings of which are perpetual curacies,
are also under the patronage of the Mayor and Council:
St. George's, erected, in 1732, on the site of the ancient
castle, and recently rebuilt, under the superintendence
of Mr. John Foster; the prevailing character is the Doric,
and, in the elevation of the steeple, that style has been
blended with the Ionic and the Corinthian: the Mayor
and Council usually attend divine service at this church.
The church, dedicated to St. Thomas, built under the
authority of an act passed in the 21st of George II.,
and consecrated in 1750, is a handsome edifice in the
Grecian style of architecture, with a tower formerly surmounted
by a very lofty spire,'which was taken down, in
consequence of the damage it sustained from a storm, in
1822; the interior is neatly fitted up, and the exterior
walls are ornamented with duplicated columns of the
Corinthian order, supporting a cornice surmounted by a
balustrade. St. Paul's church, erected at the expense
of the inhabitants in 1769., is a handsome edifice in the
Grecian style of architecture, with a dome rising from
the centre, and porticoes of the Ionic order, forming
the principal entrances: the Ionic character prevails
throughout the building. St. Anne's, erected under an
act passed in the 36th of George III., at the expense of
two gentlemen of the town, is a neat building of brick,
in the early style of English architecture, with a square
brick tower crowned with pinnacles; the east window
is of painted glass. St. John's church, erected, in 1784,
under an act passed in the 2nd of George III., is a neat
structure, with a square embattled tower crowned with
pinnacles. St.Michael's, erected under an act passed in
the 54th of George III., and amended by a subsequent act
in the 4th of George IV., is an elegant structure in the
Grecian style of architecture, with a lofty steeple of two
receding turrets surmounted by a neat spire: it has a
noble and boldly-projecting portico of six lofty Corinthian
columns, supporting a triangular pediment: at the
east end are four Corinthian columns supporting an
entablature and cornice, which are continued round the
building; the interior contains one thousand three hundred
and six sittings, of which five hundred and twenty
are free; the whole expense of its erection was
£45,267. 10. 6., of which sum £10,267. 10. 6. was
paid by the corporation. St. Luke's, recently erected at
the expense of the corporation, after a design by Mr.
Foster, is an elegant structure in the later style of English
architecture, with a square embattled tower, having
turrets at the angles, which rise considerably above the
battlements; the walls are strengthened by richly-empanelled
buttresses crowned with pinnacles in the lower
stages, and carried up above the roof of the chancel,
forming a series of highly-ornamented turrets. The interior
is richly decorated, and the chancel, which is after
the model of the Beauchamp chapel at Warwick, is a
beautiful specimen of the decorated style: the windows,
which are lofty and in fine proportion, are elegantly enriched
with tracery, and the whole edifice is highly
creditable to the taste and skill of the architect. The
church of St. Martin's in the Fields, containing one thousarid
nine hundred and ten sittings, of which eight
hundred and twenty-eight are free, was erected, in 1828,
by grant from the parliamentary commissioners, at an
expense of £20,037. 3. 8.: it is a handsome structure in
the later style of English architecture, having a square
embattled tower with angular turrets, surmounted by
an octagonal spire, the whole rising to the height of one
hundred and ninety-eight feet: the chancel, of which
the roof is finely groined, is separated from the nave by
a lofty and richly-moulded arch; and the whole structure
forms a striking ornament at the entrance into the town
from the Ormskirk road; the living, a perpetual curacy,
is, under certain! regulations, vested by an act passed
in the 10th of George IV. in the corporation.
The following churches will, at the expiration of
sundry terms, be also in the patronage of the Mayor
and Council: the church dedicated to the Holy Trinity,
erected, by private subscription, under an act passed in
the 32nd of George III., in 1792, is a neat edifice of
stone, with a tower: the living is a perpetual curacy,
now in the patronage of the Rev. R. Formby. Christ
Church, erected under an act of parliament passed in the
40th of George III., is an elegant building of brick ornamented
with stone, and having;a light and handsome
cupola and dome; the interior is well arranged; the
chancel is lighted by a large Venetian window, and contains
a marble tablet to the memory of John Houghton,
Esq., by whom the church was built, at an expense of
£21,000, and by whom it was endowed with £105 per
annum, as a stipend for the minister: the living is a
perpetual curacy, now in the patronage of Edward Gibbon,
Esq. The church, dedicated to St. Mark, erected
under an act passed in the 56th of George III., at an
expense of £ 18,000, raised by subscription, is a plain
edifice of brick, with a square tower crowned with a
balustrade, and ornamented with vases at the angles:
the interior is well arranged, and contains one thousand
seven hundred and fourteen sittings, of which three hundred
are free; the living is a perpetual curacy, the patronage
of which was vested in five Trustees, of whom
John Whitley, Esq. is the only survivor. St. Andrew's
church, erected, in 1815, by John Gladstone, Esq., at an
expense of £ 12,000, is a neat edifice, with a turret surmounted
by a dome supported on eight columns: it
contains one thousand six hundred and fifty sittings,
of which four hundred are free; the living is a perpetual
curacy, now in the patronage of John Gladstone,
Esq. The church dedicated to St. Philip, erected under
an act passed in the 1st of George IV., by John Cragge,
Esq., at an expense of £12,000, is a neat edifice in the
later style of English architecture; it contains one
thousand sittings, of which one hundred and fifty are
free: the living is a perpetual curacy, now in the patronage
of John Cragge, Esq. St. David's church is a
neat edifice, erected for the accommodation of the
Welch residing in the town: the service of the church
of England is regularly performed Jin the Welch language;
the living is a perpetual curacy, at present in
the patronage of Trustees. St. Catherine's church, in
Abercromby-square, erected by subscription, at an expense
of £10,000, is not yet completed; it is calculated
to contain one thousand two hundred sittings: the
entrance is through a portico of six handsome Ionic
columns; the interior is lighted by a dome in the centre,
supported by Corinthian columns. St. Bride's church,
now being erected by subscription, at an estimated expense
of £5000, will contain one thousand three hun-
dred sittings, of which one hundred and twenty are to
be free; it will be in the Grecian style of architecture,
with a handsome portico of six Ionic columns.
The two following will, in a short period, be under the
patronage of the Rectors: St. Stephen's church, originally
built for a congregation of Protestant Dissenters,
but purchased and fitted up for the established
religion, is a plain building with a small turret surmounted
by a cupola; the living is a perpetual curacy,
now in the patronage of William Spurstow Miller,
Esq. St. Matthew's was also purchased from a congregation
of Dissenters: the living is a perpetual
curacy, now in the patronage of J. T. Holloway, Esq.
St. Mary's, the church for the school for the indigent
blind, with which it communicates by a subterraneous
passage, was erected by subscription, after a design by
Mr. Foster, in 1818: it is an elegant structure in the
Grecian style of architecture, with a noble portico of
six massive columns of the Doric order, supporting an
enriched entablature and triangular pediment, an exact
copy of the portico of the temple dedicated to Jupiter
panhellenius, in the island of Egina: the interior is
beautifully arranged, and contains a splendid monument
to the late Pudsey Dawson, Esq.: one half of the pews
is reserved for strangers, whose contributions are received
for the benefit of the charity: the living is a
perpetual curacy, in the patronage of five Trustees, of
whom the mayor and the two senior aldermen are
three. There is also an episcopal chapel, dedicated
to All Saints. In George's dock is a floating chapel
connected with the established church. In addition
to the churchyards are two public cemeteries: the
one near Edge hill is spacious, and contains a small
chapel of brick, in the ancient style of English architecture,
in which the funeral service is performed;
the other, which is called St. James' cemetery, is a large
tract of ground excavated as a quarry for stone used
in the building of the docks, and converted into a depositary
for the dead, at an expense of £21,000; it contains
forty-four thousand square yards, enclosed by a stone
wall and handsome iron palisades, having four stately
entrances: the interior is intersected by roads wide
enough to admit a carriage, which lead to catacombs
excavated in the rock; the oratory, or chapel, in which
the funeral service is performed, is an elegant edifice
in the Grecian style of architecture, and of the Doric
order, forty-six feet in length, and twenty-nine wide;
at the west end is a noble portico of six massive
columns supporting a rich entablature, which is carried
round the building, and surmounted by a triangular
pediment: it was built after a design by Mr. Foster,
and forms an elegant specimen of purity of style, and
of tasteful embellishment: near it is a house for the
officiating minister, a handsome edifice of stone; and
at the south end of the cemetery is the porter's lodge.
St. James' church, nearly adjoining the cemetery, and
from which it takes its name, is in the parish of
Walton. There are five places of worship for Baptists,
three for Welch Calvinists, one for the Society of Friends,
four for Independents, one for Welch Independents,
five for Wesleyan Methodists, one for Welch Methodists,
and one for those of the New Connexion, one for
Sandemanians, one for Swedenborgians, and two for
Unitarians; two Scottish kirks, and two chapels for
Seceders; five Roman Catholic chapels, and a synagogue.
Of these, several are handsome buildings,
among which may be noticed the Scottish kirk in
Rodney - street, dedicated to St. Andrew, and built
after a design by Mr. Foster, with a receding portico
of the Ionic order, and a handsome balustrade, and
having, at each end of the front, a turret surmounted
by a dome; the Roman Catholic chapel on Copperas
hill, in the early style of English architecture,
strengthened on the sides by buttresses crowned
with crocketed pinnacles; and the Synagogue, an elegant
structure, with a handsome Ionic portico, and
in every respect decorated in a style characteristic
of the opulence of that portion of the inhabitants.
In the Salthouse' dock is a floating chapel, under the
management of a society of Dissenters, called the Bethel
Union.
The Blue coat hospital, established in 1709, for the
clothing and instruction of poor children, was, in 1714,
extended also to their entire maintenance, and the present
substantial building, occupying three sides of a
quadrangle, was erected for that purpose by subscription;
the endowment arises from a bequest by William
Clayton, Esq., of £1000, a bequest by the Cleveland
family of premises which sold for £1706. 13. 9., and
donations by the late Mr. John Horrocks, amounting to
£3022, its support being further provided for by subscription;
two hundred and fifty boys, and one hundred
girls, are clothed, maintained, and educated  in
this ancient and truly valuable institution. Numerous
other schools for the education of the children of the
poor, in various parts of the town, are supported by
subscription. Two were erected and are supported by
the corporation; one in Park-lane, founded in 1825,
at an expense of more than £12,000, in which four
hundred boys and three hundred girls are instructed;
and the other at Bevington hill, in which an equal
number of each sex is taught: they are both handsome
buildings of stone. The Moorfields day and Sunday
school, in which two hundred boys and one hundred
and twenty girls are educated, is supported by subscription.
A school in Hunter-street was erected in
1792, by Mr. Stephen Waterworth, and endowed by
Frances Waterworth, his sister, with £4000, in which
one hundred and sixty boys from- any part of the
country are instructed in reading, writing, and arithmetic,
and one hundred and ten girls in reading, writing,
knitting, and sewing. St. James' school, built in 1802,
by Mr. Moses Benson, is supported by subscription, and
two hundred boys and one hundred girls are educated
in it. St. Matthew's day and Sunday school affords the
means of instruction to one hundred and twenty boys
and one hundred and thirty girls. St. Andrew's school
was erected by John Gladstone, Esq., who endowed it
with rents from St. Andrew's church, for the instruction
of one hundred and forty boys and one hundred and
thirty girls. The Welch Charitable Society, instituted
in 1804, and under the patronage of His Majesty, has
a school in Russell-street, in which three hundred and
twenty boys and ninety girls, children of Welch parents
residing in and near the town, are clothed, instructed,
and apprenticed. St. Mark's school, in which one hundred
and fifty boys and one hundred girls are educated;
and the Harrington school, in which one hundred
and fifty boys and one hundred and twenty girls are
taught, are supported by subscription; besides various
others connected with the established church. Among
those supported by the dissenting congregations are,
the Manesty-lane school; the school of the Society of
Friends, in Duncan-street, London-road, comprising two
spacious buildings, in which two hundred boys and two
hundred girls are taught on the Lancasterian plan; the
Caledonian school, in Oldham-street, instituted in 1809,
for the instruction of one hundred and sixty-six boys
and ninety-seven girls, children of Scottish parents. The
Brunswick school, in which one hundred and forty boys
and one hundred girls are taught; the Leeds-street
school, in which are two hundred boys and one hundred
and fifty girls; and the Jordan-street school, a large
and commodious building, in which three hundred, and
ten boys and one hundred and sixty girls are educated,
and instructed in some useful art, are supported by the
Wesleyan Methodists. The Mount Pleasant school, in
which seventy-two boys and sixty girls are instructed,
is supported by the Unitarians. The school of the
Benevolent Society of St. Patrick, in Pleasant-street,
instituted in 1807, is supported by subscription, and
two hundred and sixty-four boys and one hundred and
forty-eight girls, children of Irish parents, are clothed,
instructed, and apprenticed. The Bethesda school, in
which are one hundred and ninety boys and one
hundred girls, is supported by the congregation of
Bethesda chapel- in Duncan-street; and there are various
other similar institutions, together with several
infant schools recently established, in different parts of
the town, which are liberally supported, and judiciously
conducted.
The school for the indigent blind was established
in 1791, and the present spacious buildings were erected
by subscription in 1808; they consist of a substantial
dwelling-house for the conductor; behind which
is a spacious range of building for the residence and
employment of the inmates, for whose accommodation,
and as a means of increasing the funds for their
support, the handsome church already noticed has
been erected; the pupils are instructed in various
branches of learning, upon Dr. Bell's plan, and are
taught spinning, the art of making baskets, sack's, listshoes,
twine, packthread, worsted rugs, the Weaving of
linen, sacking, stair-carpeting, and various other trades,
by which they may obtain a livelihood; they are also
instructed in music, with a view to qualify them as
organists and teachers, and in stringing and tuning
musical instruments; the present number Of pupils is
one hundred and twenty, to whose "health and moral
improvement the greatest attention is paid: the amount
of goods manufactured and sold at the school is from
£1500 to £2000 per annum. An institution for the
instruction of the deaf and dumb was established in
1825; the school-room in Wood-street is well adapted
to the accommodation of fifty pupils, of whom such as
can afford it pay an adequate remuneration, and the
rest are instructed gratuitously; adjoining the school
is a respectable boarding-house, in which the pupils are
received on suitable terms, the school is open to visitors
every week, and a public examination of the pupils is
held quarterly. Many children of the poor are also
instructed in various branches of trade in the house
of industry, established in 1772, and said to be the
largest of the kind in the kingdom; it is appropriated
generally to the reception, maintenance, and employment
of the poor: to the east of the building is a hoxise
of recovery from fever, a spacious stone building, occupying
an elevated situation, and in every respect well
adapted to the purpose: it is under the direction of
the overseers of the poor, and was opened for the reception
of patients in 1806. A school of industry for
females, established in 1809, is under the direction of
a committee of ladies; there are one hundred females
in the school, who are instructed in reading, writing,
and arithmetic, and in knitting, spinning, and plain
work: a fund arising from the contribution of one halfpenny
per week by each scholar is appropriated to
the payment of two guineas to each on her marriage,
and an annuity of two guineas on attaining the age
of fifty-five years. The female penitentiary was established
in 1809, and a handsome brick building has
been erected by subscription, for the reception of destitute
and abandoned females, of whom, since its establishment,
many have been reclaimed to virtue and to
habits of industry, and restored to their families, or
placed in stations of usefulness to society.
The infirmary was originally instituted in 1749, but
the building being found inadequate to the object, the
present spacious and handsome edifice of stone was erected,
by public subscription, in 1824; it consists of a centre
arid two receding wings, extending two hundred and four
feet in length; the front, in the centre of which is a noble
portico of six massive columns of the Ionic order, supporting
a frieze and boldly-projecting cornice, with corresponding
pilasters at each extremity, is one hundred and
eight feet in depth, and the wings are twenty-six feet
deep; the building comprises three lofty stories, having
one hundred and thirty-eight windows in front; and the
whole, from the chaste elegance of its design, produces
a pleasing grandeur of effect-. The ground-floor contains
all the domestic offices; on the first floor is a suite
of twenty rooms, for the committees, officers of the institution,
and for the accommodation of the household;
and one long room, which is fitted up as a ward for the
reception of casualty patients: the second and third
stories are appropriated to the use of the patients, of
whom the number in the house is two hundred and
twenty, and two hundred and thirty-four beds are made
up. This institution is an excellent school of' medicine
and surgery, and is gratuitously attended by the medical
professors of the town and neighbourhood; the annual
expenditure exceeds £5000, and it is open unlimitedly
to all who may need its aid. There are two public dispensaries,
supported by subscription; the North, situated
in Marybone, and for which a very handsome
building is now being erected in Vauxhall-road; and
the South dispensary, in Upper Parliament-street: they
are liberally supported, and are each under the direction
of a president, two auditors, three physicians, three
surgeons, and an apothecary, who acts as secretary:
there were formerly three, but the central dispensary,
in Church-street, has lately been taken down. The
institution for curing diseases of the eye, in Basnetstreet,
and a similar institution in Slater-street, are
supported by public subscription; and, in 1825, an establishment
for curing diseases of the ear was opened
in" Duke-street, and is liberally supported. The lunatic
asylum, near St. John's church, originally founded in
1792, was found inadequate tp the accommodation of
the patients, and a new building was erected, in 1830,
after a design by Mr. Foster; the basement story is
fitted up with every convenience for the use of the establishment,
and the building, which is two stories high,
is divided into -wards for the classification of the patients:
to each ward is an adjoining ground for exercise, in addition
to which, a considerable portion of ground is
laid out in walks and pleasure grounds, for the use of
convalescent patients; the asylum is capable of accommodating
sixty general patients, exclusively of several
suites of apartments for the reception of private patients,
who are admitted on terms adapted to their circumstances,
and accommodated in a manner corresponding
with their rank. A ladies' charity for the relief of poor
married women lying-in at their own houses, was instituted
in 1796, and is under the superintendence of a
patroness, president, vice-president, and a committee of
six ladies and seven gentlemen; it is supported by subscription,
aided by the proceeds of an annual ball: its
general expenditure exceeds £ 1000 per annum; and the
charity, since its establishment, has afforded relief to
nearly fifty thousand individuals. A marine humane
society -was established, in 1823, for the encouragement
of boatmen and fishermen to adventure for the relief of
vessels in distress in the river and upon the coast, by
the distribution of suitable .rewards for their success in
rescuing the lives of the crew; it has, since its formation,
been productive of great benefit. The strangers
friend society originated with the Wesleyan Methodists,
and is open, without distinction of religious denomination,
to all objects of distress; it was established
in 1789, and has afforded material assistance in the
clothing and relief of numerous indigent and friendless
strangers. The marine society was instituted for
the relief of reduced or aged masters of vessels, and
for the support of their widows and children. The
seamen's hospital was established, in 1752., for the
maintenance of decayed seamen, their widows, and
children: it is conducted on the plan of the Trinityhouse,
and is supported by a permanent fund of
£35,000, the amount of unclaimed prize money, and by
a contribution of sixpence per month from the wages of
every seaman belonging to the port: there are seven
hundred individuals who receive monthly pensions from
the funds. An hospital for the relief of sick and wounded
American seamen was opened in 1820, and is supported
entirely by the American government j and a
military hospital, for the relief of any regiment either
quartered at or marching through the town, has accommodation
for forty invalids, and is supported at the expense
of Government. The Liverpool merchant society
consists of two hundred and seventy-four members, associated
for the relief of widows of its decayed members,
to twenty of whom it pays an annuity of £20.
There are numerous provident and benefit societies;
and the Liverpool charitable society administers relief
to the poor at their own houses. The society for ameliorating
the condition and increasing the comforts of
the poor is under the direction of a committee of twentyone
members, who have established a savings bank in
Bold-street, a handsome building with a rustic basement
story, from which rise four Doric columns supporting
an enriched entablature and triangular pediment, with
an ornamented architrave. The Diocesan Society, for
the relief of the widows and orphan children of the
clergy, has been established for several years, and has
been productive of considerable benefit. The charitable
institution house, a commodious building, was erected
at the joint expense of John Gladstone, James Cropper,
and Samuel Hope, Esqrs., for the gratuitous accommoda-
tion of the several committees of the various charitable
institutions in the town: the lower part of the building
is used as a depositary by the Liverpool Auxiliary Bible
Society; and attached to it is a record office, in which
are kept the reports of all charitable institutions.
Among the distinguished natives of the town may
be noticed, Jeremiah Horrox, an eminent astronomer,
who was born at Toxteth park in 1619; George Stubbsy
a celebrated painter of animals, and, author of a work
on comparative anatomy, and of a series of drawings
and engravings illustrative of the anatomy of the horse,
born in 1724; William Sadler, who invented the method
of applying copper-plate prints to the embellishment
of earthenware; Edward Rushton, born in 1756;
and John Deare, an eminent sculptor, born in 1760,
Matthew Dobson, M.D., F.R.S., and his wife, both
respectable authors; Dr. William Enfield; Dr. John
Bostock j the celebrated Mrs. Hemans; and William
Roscoe, Esq., author of the Life of Leo X., and of
Memoirs of the family of Lorenzo de Medici; and jthe
Rev. Legh Richmond, author of the Dairyman's Daughter,
were residents in this town. Liverpool gives the!
title of earl to the family of Jenkinson.