Visit Bootle Places

Welcome to Visit Bootle Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Bootle

  

Bootle Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Bootle

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Bootle history

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Toponymy

Etymologically Bootle derives from the Anglo Saxon Bold or Botle meaning a dwelling. It was recorded as Boltelai in the Domesday Book in 1086. Bootle was known as Bootle cum Linacre in the 18th century.

Resort

Bootle was originally a small hamlet built near the ‘sand hills’ or dunes of the river estuary. In the early 19th century it began to develop as a bathing resort, attracting wealthy people from Liverpool. Some remaining large villas which housed well-to-do commuters to Liverpool are located in the area known locally as ‘Bootle Village’

Second World War

Bootle had the distinction of being the most heavily bombed borough in the UK. 90% of the houses in Bootle were damaged during the Liverpool Blitz of the Second World War. The docks made Bootle a target for Nazi German Luftwaffe bombers.

Post war

After the Second World War large council housing estates were built inland from Bootle. The town lost its access to the beach when neighbouring Seaforth Sands was redeveloped in the early 1970s. The borough celebrated its centenary in 1968 and civic pride was much in evidence.

Decline

The docks declined in importance in the 1960s and 1970s, and Bootle suffered high unemployment and a declining population. The establishment of large office blocks housing government departments and the National Girobank provided employment. In the early 1970s Bootle was absorbed into the new local authority of Sefton.

Regeneration

Asda heavily invested in Bootle by building a new eco-friendly superstore on Strand Road in 2008. Oriel Road Station has been refurbished, and a new block of flats on the site of the Stella Maris building and a Lidl store on Stanley Road have been built.

Unemployment

Bootle is ranked as only the tenth worst area for unemployment in Britain. All other parts of the region have lower unemployment. Merseyside dominated the list of Britain’s least economically active areas in the 1970s and 1980s.

You can visit Bootle places with Walkfo Bootle to hear history at Bootle’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Bootle has 140 places to visit in our interactive Bootle map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Bootle, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Bootle places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Bootle & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 140 audio facts unique to Bootle places in an interactive Bootle map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Bootle Places Map
140 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Bootle historic spots	Bootle tourist destinations	Bootle plaques	Bootle geographic features
Walkfo Bootle tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Bootle

  

Best Bootle places to visit

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Bootle has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Bootle’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Bootle’s information audio spots:

Everton water tower Everton Water Tower is a Grade II listed water tower situated on Margaret Street in Everton, Liverpool . The water tower is a well-known landmark dating from 1857 and can be seen from most of Liverpool .

Grant Gardens The Necropolis opened in 1825 with buildings by John Foster Jr . It closed in 1898 and was transferred to the council who reopened it as a park in 1914 .

Rushworth and Dreaper The manufacturer was founded in 1828 by William Rushworth, operating until 2002 . Upon its liquidation, its archives were mostly destroyed, and the Victorian clock in the works tower was removed . The premises are now occupied by Henry Willis & Sons .

Church of Our Lady of Reconciliation, Liverpool The Church of Our Lady of Reconciliation is a Roman Catholic church in Vauxhall, Liverpool, Merseyside . It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building .

St John the Evangelist’s Church, Kirkdale St John the Evangelist’s Church is in Fountains Road, Kirkdale, Liverpool, Merseyside, England . It is an active Roman Catholic parish church in Pastoral Area of Liverpool North . The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building .

Liverpool Hydraulic Power Company Hydraulic Power Company were the operators of a public hydraulic power network . The system was the third public system to be built in England, opening in 1888 . It expanded rapidly, but gradually declined as electric power become more readily available . The pumping station was converted to electric operation in 1960, but the system was turned off in 1971 .

David Lewis Northern Hospital David Lewis Northern Hospital was located in Great Howard Street, Liverpool . It was first established in 1834 and closed in 1978 . The hospital was located on the same street as Liverpool’s Great Howard St. Hospital .

St Mary’s Church, Walton-on-the-Hill St Mary’s Church is in Walton (formerly Walton-on-the-Hill), Liverpool, Merseyside. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Walton, the archdeaconry of Liverpool and the diocese of Liverpool. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

Orrell Park Orrell Park is a small residential area of northern Liverpool. It is part of the Liverpool Walton Parliamentary constituency. The area is built upon a raised hillock.

Liverpool Waters Liverpool Waters is a large scale £5.5bn development in the Vauxhall area of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The development will make use of a series of presently derelict dock spaces at Central Docks. From 2004 to 2021, much of the docks involved in the development were part of the Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Visit Bootle plaques