SOUTHPORT  , a municipal and

county borough and seaside resort in the Southport parliamentary division of Lancashire, England, immediately S. of the embouchure of the Ribble into the Irish Sea, 182 m . N. by W. of Liverpool . It is served by the Lancashire & Yorkshire and London & North-Western rail-ways, and by the Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension system . Pop . (Igor), 48,083 . Its foreshore consists of a great expanse of firm, bright sands, and the mildness of its winter climate is attributed to the radiation of heat from them . Its proximity to Liverpool and Manchester has drawn to it a large resident population, and its visitors number many thousands annually . The promenade along the shore is 2 M. in length; in its centre is the pier, r m. long, down which tramcars are drawn by a stationary steam-engine . Other facilities for outdoor enjoyment are provided in Hesketh Park (presented to the town by the Rev . Charles Hesketh, formerly rector of North Meols, and one of the lords of the manor), the Botanic Gardens, Kew Gardens, South Marine Park, and the Winter Gardens . The last, laid out at a cost of £130,000, include a large conservatory, a fine enclosed promenade, a theatre and an aquarium . The principal public buildings are the town hall, the Cambridge Hall (used for concerts, &c.), and an extensive range of markets .

There are several infirmaries and hospitals, and a

sanatorium for children . Southport has also a free library and art gallery, a literary and philosophical institute, and a college (Trinity Hall) for the daughters of Wesleyan ministers; and a museum and schools of science and art . An extensive service of electric tramways is maintained . The first considerable house in South-port (an inn for the reception of sea-bathers) was built in 1791, and soon after other houses were erected on the site now known as Lord Street, but the population in 1809 was only loo . Birk-dale is a residential district adjacent to Southport on the south . In 1867 Southport received a charter of incorporation . It be-came a county borough in 1905 . The corporation consists of a mayor, to aldermen and 30 councillors . Area, 5144 acres .