In the 1820s Joseph Williamson had a series of tunnels built under
Liverpool. The labyrinths consist of as yet uncharted multi-level tunnels
including two complete four roomed houses cut from solid rock and an 80ft
long banquet hall.
He made his money in the tobacco trade and gave work to soldiers returning
from the Napoleonic Wars. This work was the cutting of tunnels with the
apparent sole intention of giving the men a weekly wage in a time of great
need and depression. One of the first job creation schemes.
The subterranean world was built apparently without plans yet they were well
made. While the railway engineer Robert Stephenson’s miners were excavating
the tunnel beneath Edge Hill to the present day Lime Street station they
came across Williamson’s tunnellers working below them. After a tour given
by Williamson himself, Stephenson declared the Edge Hill tunnels were
marvels of construction.
After his death the tunnels were blocked and largely forgotten. A
geophysical survey team from the university has indicated possible sites for
as yet undiscovered tunnels. At present there are plans to develop the
tunnel site around Mason Street and it is hoped that more regular access to
them will be provided.
