Natural Features

Natural features like rivers and hills can still have important impacts on the history of Liverpool and Merseyside. These articles describe the most important ones.

Aerial photograph of the Ditton Brook area

Ditton Brook

Ditton Brook makes up the northern boundary of Halewood, and flows in a south-westerly direction before flowing out into the River Mersey between the town of Ditton and Hale Bank.... read more

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Photograph of the River Alt, by Ian Greig

River Alt

The River Alt flows north east through Lancashire and Merseyside. It rises in Huyton township at the Hag Plantation, and flows through Croxteth Park, West Derby and Maghull. It then... read more

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Shirdley Hill Sand, Sefton Coast

Wind dropped Shirdley Hill Sand across a vast swathe of land in the millennia since the last glaciation. The sand lies along the Sefton Coast several kilometres inland, and has... read more

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Photograph of Liverpool taken from an aeroplane

Merseyside Uplands

The Merseyside Uplands include the higher ground to the east of Croxteth, and strips at Mossley Hill and elsewhere. They have had an important influence on Merseyside and Liverpool throughout... read more

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Photograph of Mersey Flat wreck, River Mersey near Widnes

River Mersey

The valley of the River Mersey was created during the last ice age. Thick glaciers moved inland from what is now the Irish Sea, carving deep parallel iceways. The iceways... read more

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The Pool: Liverpool’s beginnings

The Pool is arguably one of the major reasons for Liverpool’s existence. King John was looking for a suitable place from which to launch ships to Ireland, and Liverpool fit... read more

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