Grappenhall

Grappenhall is a semi-rural village in 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]

Grappenhall

Parr Arms and St Wilfrid's Church, Grappenhall
Grappenhall
Location within Cheshire
Population9,377 
OS grid referenceSJ639863
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townWARRINGTON
Postcode districtWA4
Dialling code01925
PoliceCheshire
FireCheshire
AmbulanceNorth West
UK Parliament

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.

Amenities and business

Grappenhall is home to the 25th Warrington East (St Wilfred's) Scout Troop.[3] There is also a cricket ground, which is the home of Grappenhall Cricket Club.[4] Australian cricketer Steve Smith was signed for the club for five weeks in 2007, when he was 17.[5]

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 2 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.[9]

Other

Grappenhall Heys Walled Garden is located near the village.

Restaurants in the village include:

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

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.[10]

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. History, St Wilfrid's Church, Grappenhall, retrieved 9 January 2021
  3. "25th Warrington East Scout Group » History". Grappenhallscouts.org.uk. 3 August 1914. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  4. "Grappenhall Cricket Club". Grappers.com. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  5. "Cheshire village cricket club recalls 'homesick' Steve Smith". BBC News. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  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.
  10. "Bryn Haworth Grappenhall Rag". YouTube. 20 November 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
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