Hightown, Merseyside

infobox UK place
country= England
latitude= 53.5248
longitude= -3.05829
official_name= Hightown
population=
metropolitan_borough= Sefton
region= North West England
metropolitan_county= Merseyside
constituency_westminster= Knowsley North and Sefton East
post_town= LIVERPOOL
postcode_district= L38
postcode_area= L
dial_code= 0151
os_grid_reference= SD299036
map_type= Merseyside

Hightown is a village in the borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. It is located on the coast near the boundary of the Mersey Estuary and Liverpool Bay. The River Alt joins the sea at this point and forms an estuary.

Hightown beach is the site of a former wartime military base known as Fort Crosby. The fort was situated midway between Hightown and Hall Road and housed a number of Italian and German POW's during WWII. Following its decommission at the end of the war a small cinema screen within the complex was reputedly used by local residents for a number of years until the camp was finally demolished in the mid-1960s. Remains of many of the buildings, pathways and fences can still be seen today.

During the early part of the 20th Century the village formed its own voluntary fire service following a number of deaths and injuries resulting from the excessive time taken for the Crosby Fire Service to reach the village. The most notable of these incidents was the loss of a family during a blaze within the lighthouse which once stood close to the site of Fort Crosby.

The village is served by Hightown railway station, on the Northern Line of the Merseyrail network. Services run to Southport and to Hunts Cross via Liverpool city centre.

External links

* [http://www.sefton.gov.uk/pdf/9%20Hightown%20Hike%20v2.pdf A Walk Round Hightown - The Hightown Hike]
* [http://www.livedepartureboards.co.uk/ldb/summary.aspx?T=HTO&R=1 Hightown Train Times]