Welcome to Southport

Southport is located on the north-west coast of England, in the county of Lancashire, approximately 220 miles north-west of London and 20 miles north of Liverpool.

The town has a population of around 100,000. Administratively it is headquarters for the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton which covers an area of approximately 153 sq kms and which has a population of around 282,000.

It is an attractive, dignified and well laid out seaside resort with excellent sandy beaches and numerous visitor attractions in and around the town. First developed as a resort in the late 18th-century, it is renowned for its gardens and golf courses, including the world-class Royal Birkdale which hosts major tournaments such as the British Open. The town is also a thriving commercial and retail centre.

The town is barely two hundred years old, being founded by WIlliam Sutton when he opened a hotel here in 1798. However, there have been settlements in the area for much longer; some areas of the town have names of Viking origin. Southport grew quickly in the 19th century, developing first as a seaside resort; the merchants and industrialists from inland Lancashire then popularised it. A railway service from Liverpool arrived in the town in 1848, followed in 1853 by a rail link to Manchester, attracting thousands of workers frm the mill towns of Lancashire. Prince Louis Napoleon lived on Lord Street before becoming Emperor of France in 1851. During the 20th century it became a middle-class dormitory town with a haven of nature reserves.

Historically the town's economy was based upon fishing and agriculture but today it is based on tourism and light industry.

The name South-port first appeared in 1798. The name is thought to derive from the bay at Churchtown which local fishermen and farmers considered a port. The new village, lying to the south of the old village of Churchtown, was named so because of its position.