Our History

As described in 'About West Bank' , the community flourished here from the late nineteenth century through to the mid-to-late twentieth century, largely due to the growth of the chemical industry in the area and the River Mersey together with the bridges which linked West Bank not only with the rest of the country but to the rest of the world as well. However, much has altered since then.

The 1960s onwards saw West Bank undergo tremendous changes in its structure and prosperity. In 1961, the Transporter Bridge was replaced with a new road bridge, which diverted traffic around West Bank instead of through its centre. Most significantly, much of the high density terraced housing was removed in the 1970s which greatly reduced the population. The loss of the local industrial base also compounded this and the population became even more depleted.

For this reason the West Bank Heritage Project was founded in 2004, out of a fear that the memories of life as it was in this lively community would be lost forever. There was evidence that many old photographs were being destroyed as families moved on and generations passed away. The vibrancy, diversity and stories of life in this unique and tightly-knit community were in danger of being forgotten.

The project collected old photographs by asking people to dig deep into their cupboards and attics and it is these photographs that form the image gallery accessible on this website. Using some of the images from the collection, an 'Interactive timeline' has been put together which provides snap-shots of different moments from West Bank's vibrant history. Exploring this will give you a sense of what has changed here.