Summary

A stone, erected in the mid-late C19 to mark the limit of an extreme high tide of the River Mersey in 1862.

Description

Tidestone, mid-late C19, erected to mark the limit of an extreme high tide in 1862.

MATERIALS: red sandstone.

DESCRIPTION: a headstone-shaped sandstone pillar which stands about 50cm above the ground surface, with its base buried in the ground. It has a rectangular section, with a rounded head. The front faces to the south-east and has an ashlar surface inscribed in a serif font that reads: THE TIDE / CAME TO / THIS STONE / JANUARY / 20, 1862. The rear and the sides of the stone are blank, and the rear edges are rounded.

History

The wide, low-lying tidal estuary of the River Mersey has always been subject to flooding on high tidal events. On 20 January 1862, a flood tide covered large areas of adjacent land, which was known as Frodsham Marsh, and the highest extent at Frodsham was recorded by a small tide stone marker. This point was in the garden to the rear of the former Old Hall Hotel, some 5-7m above mean high tide, and 2,695m (2¾ miles) from the River Mersey and 1,259m (¾ mile) from the River Weaver. The tidestone has a close relationship with an earlier stone recording a flood event in 1802, which is situated approximately 12.5m to the north-east.

Reasons for Listing

Tidestone at SJ 51537 77891, of around 1862, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* a rare example of a tidestone;

* a classically-inspired, rectangular section sandstone slab with a round head that exhibits good-quality tooling;

* the inscribed lettering remains legible;

* the stone stands in its original position.

Historic interest:

* the stone provides a physical and inscribed record of the highest extent of a major flooding event that occurred on 20 January 1862.

Group value:

* the stone benefits from a strong spatial, functional and historical group value with a nearby Grade II listed tidestone, which records an earlier flooding event that occurred in 1802.

Recommended Books

• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990: Updated version
• 
  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)