# Raby, Merseyside

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Not to be confused with [Raby Mere](/source/Raby_Mere).

**Raby** (/ˈreɪbi/) is a [hamlet](/source/Hamlet_(place)) in the [Wirral](/source/Metropolitan_Borough_of_Wirral) district of [Merseyside](/source/Merseyside), England. It is on the [Wirral Peninsula](/source/Wirral_Peninsula), in the [Clatterbridge](/source/Clatterbridge) [Ward](/source/Ward_(electoral_subdivision)). The settlement is within the parliamentary constituency of [Wirral South](/source/Wirral_South). Raby is a former [civil parish](/source/Civil_parish), but since 1974 has been directly administered by [Wirral Council](/source/Wirral_Council)

Raby is close to Merseyside's boundary with [Cheshire](/source/Cheshire) and is around 4 km (2.5 mi) North East of [Neston](/source/Neston) and 5 km (3.1 mi) South West of [Bebington](/source/Bebington). The hamlet of [Raby Mere](/source/Raby_Mere) is 3.6 km (2.2 mi) to the east.

At the time of the [United Kingdom Census 2001](/source/United_Kingdom_Census_2001), Raby had a total population of 100.[2]

## Geography

Raby is in the central part of the Wirral Peninsula, approximately 12.5 km (7.8 mi) south-south-east of the [Irish Sea](/source/Irish_Sea) at [Leasowe Lighthouse](/source/Leasowe_Lighthouse), 3.5 km (2.2 mi) east-north-east of the [Dee Estuary](/source/Dee_Estuary) at [Parkgate](/source/Parkgate,_Cheshire) and about 5.5 km (3.4 mi) west of the [River Mersey](/source/River_Mersey) at [Eastham](/source/Eastham,_Merseyside). The hamlet is situated at around 50 m (160 ft) above sea level.[3]

## History

The name Raby is of [Viking](/source/Viking) origin, derived from the [Old Norse](/source/Old_Norse) *Ra-byr*, meaning 'boundary settlement'.[4] It is believed to be so named because it lay close to the 10th- and 11th-century border between the Norse colony in Wirral to the north, centred on [Thingwall](/source/Thingwall), and [Anglo-Saxon](/source/Anglo-Saxons) [Mercia](/source/Mercia) to the south.[5] It was part of the [Wirral Hundred](/source/Wirral_Hundred).

Raby was formerly a [township](/source/Township_(England)) in the parish of [Neston](/source/Neston) and the county palatine of Chester.[6] From 1866 Raby was a civil parish in its own right. In 1933 the parish was incorporated into the [urban district](/source/Urban_district_(England_and_Wales)) of [Bebington](/source/Bebington) and was thereafter administered as part of that town (which became a [municipal borough](/source/Municipal_borough) in 1937).[7] The civil parish continued to exist until 1974, but as an [urban parish](/source/Urban_parish) with no parish council.[8] The parish had a population of 131 in 1801, 195 in 1851, 350 in 1901 and 308 in 1951.[9]

The borough of Bebington was abolished in 1974 under the [Local Government Act 1972](/source/Local_Government_Act_1972) and was incorporated into the new [metropolitan borough](/source/Metropolitan_borough) of Wirral and Merseyside. No [successor parish](/source/Successor_parish) was created for the former borough and Raby is therefore directly administered by [Wirral Council](/source/Wirral_Council).

## Community

Raby is a [rural](/source/Rural) community, comprising a few houses, two [farms](/source/Farms) and an old, [thatched](/source/Thatched) [public house](/source/Public_house), the 'Wheatsheaf', which is well known in the locality.

Raby, along with the neighbouring villages of [Brimstage](/source/Brimstage) and [Thornton Hough](/source/Thornton_Hough), are within an Area of Special Landscape Value, a protective designation to preserve the character and appearance of the area. This is part of the Wirral Unitary Development Plan of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral.[10]

The parish church is [All Saints Church, Thornton Hough](/source/All_Saints_Church,_Thornton_Hough). The local primary school is Thornton Hough Primary.

## Transport

### Road

Raby is accessible from the [A540](/source/A540_road) to the south-west, the [B5151](/source/B_roads_in_Zone_5_of_the_Great_Britain_numbering_scheme) to the east and the [B5136](/source/B_roads_in_Zone_5_of_the_Great_Britain_numbering_scheme) to the north.

### Bus

Services operating in the Raby Area as of 2015:

Number Route Operator Days of operation 85 Clatterbridge Hospital - Heswall Avon Buses Monday - Saturday

### Rail

The nearest station to Raby is [Bromborough railway station](/source/Bromborough_railway_station), about 3.5 km (2.2 mi) to the east. This station is on the [Wirral Line](/source/Wirral_Line) of the [Merseyrail](/source/Merseyrail) network, with frequent services to [Liverpool](/source/Liverpool), [Chester](/source/Chester) and [Ellesmere Port](/source/Ellesmere_Port).

## See also

- [Listed buildings in Raby, Merseyside](/source/Listed_buildings_in_Raby,_Merseyside)

## References

1. ["Coordinate Distance Calculator"](http://boulter.com/gps/distance/?from=53.312+-3.038&to=51.507+-0.127&units=m). *boulter.com*. Retrieved 6 March 2016.

1. ["Wirral 2001 Census: Raby"](http://www.wirral.gov.uk/factsandfigures/census2001/oneward2recset.asp?ref=TS34). *Metropolitan Borough of Wirral*. Retrieved 21 February 2008. [dead link]

1. ["SRTM & Ordnance Survey Elevation Data in PHP"](https://web.archive.org/web/20130627005017/http://www.osola.org.uk/elevations/). Archived from [the original](http://www.osola.org.uk/elevations/) on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2016.

1. Sulley, Philip (1889). *The Hundred Of Wirral*

1. Roberts, Stephen J. (2002). *A History of Wirral*. The History Press Ltd. ISBN 978-1-86077-512-3.

1. ["History of Raby, in Wirral and Cheshire"](https://visionofbritain.org.uk/place/4563). [A Vision of Britain through Time](/source/A_Vision_of_Britain_through_Time). Retrieved 8 August 2023.

1. ["Relationships and changes Raby CP/Tn through time"](https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10157560). A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 8 August 2023.

1. ["Wirral Registration District"](https://www.ukbmd.org.uk/reg/districts/wirral.html). UKBMD. Retrieved 8 August 2023.

1. ["Raby"](https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/CHS/raby). GENUKI UK & Ireland Genealogy. Retrieved 15 July 2020.

1. ["Brimstage, Raby & Thornton Hough: A Strategy for Change Management"](https://web.archive.org/web/20071007101405/http://www.scarecrowfestival.co.uk/Thornton%20Hough%20Final.pdf). *Thornton Hough Community Trust*. p. 28. Archived from [the original](http://www.scarecrowfestival.co.uk/Thornton%20Hough%20Final.pdf) on 7 October 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2007.

## Bibliography

- Mortimer, William Williams (1847). [*The History of the Hundred of Wirral*](https://archive.org/stream/historyhundredw01mortgoog#page/n284/mode/2up). London: Whittaker & Co. pp244-245.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Raby, Merseyside](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raby%2C_Merseyside) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raby%2C_Merseyside?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.