Bidstone with Ford, Cheshire

Description
Bidston-cum-Ford, a township and a parish in Cheshire. The township lies 1 mile SW of Birkenhead Docks station on the Wirral railway, and 3 miles NW of Birkenhead. It comprises 1713 acres; population, 254. The parish includes also part of the township of Claughton-cum-Grange, and used to include those of Moreton-cum-Lingham, Satighall-Massey, and the Carre, now formed into a separate parish. Its post town is Birkenhead. Population, 2393. Bidstone Hill commands a fine view of the surrounding country, the Mersey, and the Irish Sea. A lighthouse 50 feet high stands on the hill, showing a fixed light elevated 300'feet above high-water, visible at the distance of 25 miles. The Liverpool Observatory, belonging to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, is also situated here. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Chester; net value, £190 with residence. Patron, the Bishop of Chester. The church, dedicated to St Oswald, was rebuilt, with the exception of the tower, in 1856, and enlarged in 1882. It has a fine mosaic reredos, and a good peal of bells. There is also a mission church, situated in Claughton village, and dedicated to St Bede. Claughton and Moreton are separate benefices.