Here, we look at the city of Chester, and some of the towns and cities in Cheshire, North West England. Cheshire is a culturally rich and historical place, with many different allusions made to it in popular culture, for example The Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland, as well as famous for other things such as Cheshire cheese, salt, bulk chemicals and woven silk. Cheshire was at one point called 'Chestershire', named for the famous Roman city that serves as the county's Admin HQ. Cheshire's landscape consists of sweeping plains and hills. The highest point of Cheshire is the Shining Tor, a hill in the peak district which is on the border between Derbyshire and Cheshire and between the towns of Buxton and Macclesfield. Aside from the towns aside the River Mersey, and the ancient city of Chester, the county is mostly rural, with some towns and villages dotted around to retain an agricultural industry. Cheshire County has more to it than Chester. Chester isn't even the biggest town in Cheshire! Whilst Chester is the most popular tourist destination in the area, there are a lot of historic towns nearby. Here's a guide to some of the area's bigger towns.

Chester

Chester is a historically important city located on the England/Wales border in Cheshire. Formed by the Romans and named “Deva”, Chester has been arguably one of the most fought over cities in England.

Chester has a population of around 80,000 and has probably one of the best preserved medievil walls in Europe. Chester is also unique with its Chester Shopping high street, which exists on two levels. This has been immaculately preserved for centuries.

Sights in Chester include the Eastgate Clock, which is reportedly the second most photograph clock in the UK (behind Big Ben), the town hall and cathedral, a number of roman ruins dotted around the place and of course the River Dee that flows through the city. The city new builds with the old architecture thanks to some pretty skilled architects in Chester.

It’s easy to find things to do in Chester as the city and area has great transport links.

Warrington

Warrington is the largest town in Cheshire with a population of just under 200,000. The town is a popular shopping destination – in spite of the proximity to the Trafford Centre, Manchester, Liverpool and Chester.

Warrington grew as a town during the Industrial Revolution. It’s location – straddling the River Mersey – made it ideal area for industrial goods as they could be shipped along the Manchester Ship Canal. Warrington was popular with steel, wire, brewing and textiles industries.

Sports wise Rugby League is the main sport, with two teams – Warrington Wolves and Warrington Wizards. The latter has been a succesful side, managing to stay in the top flight of Rugby League Football since it’s foundation. Football has a small following in the town, with Warrington Town being the most successful club.

Crewe

A town formed in 1841, Crewe has links with one industry only. The railway.

The town was named after a station that was located in the general vicinity of where the modern station is now. It’s purpose of the settlement was to provide houses for employees of the railway companies. It remained a small village (less than 100 people) until The Grand Junction Railway chose the town as the site for their new North West Junction. Crewe grew, and by 1871 had a population of 40,000.

Sporting wise one of England’s most underachieving teams, Crewe Alexandra, is based in Crewe – the Gresty Road ground can be seen from the train station, and when approaching & leaving the station from the east, you can see into the stadium itself.

Runcorn

Located in the north west of the county of Cheshire, almost on the border, is Runcorn. Located on the southern bank of the River Mersey, Runcorn was a small village up until the Industrial Revolution. Runcorn was actually one of the first health resort towns, providing the residents of nearby Liverpool and Manchester a place to escape for a short weekend. However, as the Industrial Revolution went on, and transport links improved dramatically, North Wales and the Lake District became the destinations for the retreating.

Thankfully, Runcorn reinvented itself as a manufacturer, it’s position on the rail network, as well as the port along the River Mersey at the terminus of the Manchester Ship Canal, meant that Runcorn was a great place to transport goods from. Soaps, alkalis & quarried goods were regularly exported from Runcorn, and even after the decline of these manufacturing industries, the town’s geographical location meant that it was still popular shipping terminal, and nowadays Runcorn is home to warehouses & distribution centres for large companies.