River Mersey
The River Mersey is a river in north west England. It is 70 miles (112 km) long, it stretches from Stockport, Greater Manchester, and ends at Liverpool Bay, Merseyside. For centuries, it formed part of the ancient county divide between Lancashire and Cheshire.
| River Mersey | |
|---|---|
| Mouth | Liverpool Bay |
| Length | 70 miles (113 kilometres) |
Course
The Mersey is formed from three tributaries: the River Etherow, the River Goyt and the River Tame. The modern accepted start of the Mersey is at the confluence of the Tame and Goyt, in central Stockport, Greater Manchester. However, older definitions, and many older maps, place its start a few miles up the Goyt; for example the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica states "It is formed by the junction of the Goyt and the Etherow a short distance below Marple in Cheshire on the first-named stream."
Environment
Water quality in the River Mersey is not good.
But Salmon are now found in the river. They can be viewed on the Salmon Steps at Woolston between the months of September and November.
In popular culture
The river is now internationally famous thanks to the music of the 1960s known as Merseybeat and its strong association with Liverpool, which produced songs such as Ferry Cross the Mersey.
Also, Paul McCartney's 2007 song That Was Me, from his album Memory Almost Full mentions merseybeating with the band.
River Mersey Media
The River Mersey empties into the Manchester Ship Canal at Irlam.
Aerial view of the Runcorn Gap
An aerial image of the estuary in 1962
The tidal bore, seen from near the Silver Jubilee Bridge, Widnes
View of the Mersey Gateway bridge
The River Tame (left) and the River Goyt (right) meeting to form the Mersey in Stockport
Other websites
- Liverpool Pictorial
- Mersey map - aisliverpool.org.uk Archived 2007-02-01 at the Wayback Machine
- River Mersey Information Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine (PDF)
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