Toxteth

Toxteth is located in the L8 area of Liverpool and the name came from an Anglo-Saxon name ‘Stochestede‘, meaning ‘the stockaded or enclosed space’. Anglo-Saxon stocc ‘stake’ and Anglo-Saxon stede ‘place’. This term is found in many place names across the country, usually spelled ‘stead’.

Although there is evidence of when the area was first recorded, there is some ambiguity to the origin of the name.

‘Stochestede’ is how Toxteth was described in the Domesday book.

The history of the area dates back to 1207, which is when King John established a royal hunting park by purchasing the manor of Toxteth from the prominent Molyneux family, when he established the borough of  ‘Liuerpul’.

Before the Norman Conquest, Toxteth was divided into two manors of equal size. From this time to 1604, it made up part of West Derby forest.

Heavy immigration took place in Toxteth from the 19th Century, with African and Chinese sailors arriving as well as thousands of Welsh and Irish Catholic migrants. This has continued to the modern day, from the Caribbean, Yemen and Somalia. Because of this, the Toxteth are has a large community of mixed ethnicity.

Researched by Sasha Snowden-Leak