Editing Beeston, Cheshire

{{Short description|Village and civil parish in England}}
{{Other uses|Beeston (disambiguation){{!}}Beeston}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country =                  England
| official_name =            Beeston
| static_image_name                 = Beeston Castle Gate.jpg
| static_image_width                = <!-- allows control of the image width. Should be omitted in most cases (will default to 240) -->
| static_image_caption              = Beeston Castle gate
| coordinates    = {{coord|53.123368|-2.6861262|display=inline,title}}
| civil_parish =             Beeston
| population =               188
| population_ref =           ([[United Kingdom Census 2011|civil parish, 2011]])
| unitary_england=           [[Cheshire West and Chester]]
| lieutenancy_england =      [[Cheshire]]
| region =                   North West England
| constituency_westminster = [[Eddisbury (UK Parliament constituency)|Eddisbury]]
| post_town =                Tarporley
| postcode_district =        CW6 
| postcode_area =            CW
| dial_code =                01829 
| os_grid_reference =        SJ541585
}}
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'''Beeston''' is a village and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the unitary authority of [[Cheshire West and Chester]], which itself is in the ceremonial county of [[Cheshire]] in the north of England. It is located approximately 10&nbsp;km south-east of [[Chester]], and approximately 3.5&nbsp;km south-west of [[Tarporley]], close to the [[Shropshire Union Canal]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Beeston Google Maps|url=http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&rlz=1R2ACAW_enGB390&q=beeston+cheshire&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x487aee3998a9782d:0x80013008caf7e44d,Beeston,+Cheshire+West+and+Chester&gl=uk&sa=X&ei=0BRLUZzgNYu7PdG6gPgN&ved=0CJMBELYD|work=Google Maps|publisher=Google Maps|access-date=21 March 2013}}</ref>  According to the 2011 census, Beeston had a population of 188.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beeston (Parish): Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics |url=https://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11120558&c=beeston&d=16&e=62&g=6407232&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1455121805078&enc=1 |work=Neighbourhood Statistics |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=10 February 2016 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140729125608/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7 |archive-date=29 July 2014 }}</ref>

==History==
Beeston is listed in the [[Domesday Book]] in 1086 as a parish within the ancient [[Hundred_(county_division)|hundred]] of [[List of hundreds of England|Rushton]] in Cheshire.<ref>[https://opendomesday.org/place/SJ5358/beeston/ Open Domesday: Beeston]. Accessed 23 July 2022.</ref> The hundreds of Cheshire were consolidated in the 13th century, with Beeston becoming a township within Bunbury parish.<ref name=VoB4981>[https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/4981 A Vision of Britain through Time: Beeston History.] Accessed 23 July 2022.</ref> 

[[Beeston Castle]] was occupied from the 13th to mid-17th centuries; its site west of the center of the village is in the care of [[English Heritage]]:
:[[Beeston Castle]] here crowns an isolated sandstone rock, 366 feet high; and commands a charming view of the vale of Cheshire, and over the Mersey to Liverpool. The castle was built, as a fortress, in 1228, by [[Ranulf_de_Blondeville,_6th_Earl_of_Chester|Ranulf de Blundeville]]; became a royal garrison between [[Henry III of England|Henry III.]] and his barons; was dismantled, in 1645, by order of [[Long Parliament|parliament]]; and is now an extensive and picturesque ruin.<ref>{{cite book|last=Wilson|first=John|title=Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales|year=1870–72|publisher=A. Fullarton and Co.|location=Edinburgh|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/place_page.jsp?p_id=4981|access-date=4 February 2013}}</ref>

The Victorian-era [[Peckforton Castle]] is less than a mile southwest of Beeston.

==Population==
According to the 1881 Census data, the population of Beeston was 328.  Of these, 56 were engaged in [[agriculture]], suggesting a strong farming community in the area.  30 persons were employed in [[domestic service]] in the parish at the time as well, possibly indicating the presence of a country estate.  There was also a [[schoolmaster]], an [[innkeeper]] and a [[shopkeeper]], which suggests that there was a school, an inn and a village shop present in 1881.<ref>{{cite web|title=1881 Census of England and Wales|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/census/table_page.jsp?tab_id=EW1881AGE_M10&u_id=10172500&show=DB|work=A Vision of Britain Through Time|publisher=University of Portsmouth|access-date=3 April 2013}}</ref>

The overall trend for in Beeston has been that the population has declined since the 1881 census, with approximately 188 people living in the village in 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beeston Tn/CP / Population / Total Population|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10172500/cube/TOT_POP|work=A Vision of Britain Through Time|publisher=University of Portsmouth|access-date=3 April 2013}}</ref>  This is despite the overall number of households in the parish increasing.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beeston Tn/CP / Housing / Total Households|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10172500/cube/HOUSEHOLDS|work=A Vision of Britain Through Time|publisher=University of Portsmouth|access-date=3 April 2013}}</ref>

[[File:Beeston Pop Graph.pdf|thumb|280px|Beeston population graph (click to enlarge)]]

==Transport==
Beeston is located off the [[A49 road (England)|A49]], which bypasses the village to the east.

The village was once served by [[Beeston Castle and Tarporley railway station]] on the [[Chester]] to [[Crewe]] main line.  The station closed to goods traffic in January 1965, and to passengers 15 months later, in April 1966.  The line remains open, and sections of the platforms are still in situ.<ref>{{cite web|last=Wright|first=Paul|title=Beeston Castle & Tarporley|url=http://www.disused-stations.org.uk/b/beeston_castle_and_tarporley/index.shtml|work=Disused Stations|access-date=21 March 2013}}</ref> 
[[File:Beeston Castle & Tarporley Station 1781802 99809193.jpg|thumb|280px|View of Beeston Castle and Tarporley Station in 1961]]

==See also==
{{Portal|Cheshire}}
*[[Listed buildings in Beeston, Cheshire]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Beeston, Cheshire}}

{{Cheshire, Cheshire West and Chester}}
{{Cheshire}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Villages in Cheshire]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Cheshire]]