Birkenhead

Birkenhead
Town
The former Birkenhead Town Hall and Wirral Museum, now council offices, committee rooms, and Register Office, in Hamilton Square
Birkenhead Location within Merseyside
Area	25.18 km2 (9.72 sq mi) [1]
Population	88,818 (2011 Census)[1]
• Density	3,527/km2 (9,130/sq mi)
Demonym	Birkonian
OS grid reference	SJ324890
• London	178 mi (286 km)[2] SE
Metropolitan borough	Wirral
Metropolitan county	Merseyside
Region	North West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	BIRKENHEAD
Postcode district	CH41, CH42
Dialling code	0151
ISO 3166 code	GB-WRL
Police	Merseyside
Fire	Merseyside
Ambulance	North West
UK Parliament	Birkenhead
List of places UK England Merseyside 53°23′35″N 3°00′50″W / 53.393°N 3.014°W / 53.393; -3.014

Birkenhead (/ˌbɜːrkənˈhɛd/) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 88,818.^[1]

Birkenhead Priory and the Mersey Ferry were established in the 12th century. In the 19th century, Birkenhead expanded greatly as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution. Birkenhead Park and Hamilton Square were laid out as well as the first street tramway in Britain. The Mersey Railway connected Birkenhead and Liverpool with the world's first tunnel beneath a tidal estuary; the shipbuilding firm Cammell Laird and a seaport were established.

In the second half of the 20th century, the town suffered a significant period of decline, with containerisation causing a reduction in port activity. The Wirral Waters development is planned to regenerate much of the dockland.