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Now lost is the church that gave its name to Overchurch, near Upton. Built almost a mile from the centre of Upton, the church seems to have once been part of a village named Overchurch (‘the church by the shore,’ a name which has inspired further legends concerning Wirral’s changing coastline). Nothing remains of the village now, nor did it in the early nineteenth century when the church (Upton’s parish church) was finally abandoned after over a century of neglect. The church was demolished and later a new parish church erected in Upton itself.
During the demolition of the church, the famous Overchurch Rune Stone, or Biddan Stone, was discovered. This dates from Anglo Saxon times, some time after St Chad converted the area to Christianity, and it commemorates one Aethelmund, for whom the ‘folk’ were asked to offer prayer. One theory links this Aethelmund with the ealdorman of that name who ruled over the Hwicce, under the auspices of the Mercian kings Offa and Coenwulf, and who fell in battle against the men of Wessex in 802.
The churchyard is a circular area like St. Andrews and the church at Woodchurch, which has led some to conclude that it began its existence as a pre-Christian religious site. Rumour has it that modern pagans and witches congregate here at the Summer Solstice. Now entirely overgrown, hidden at the centre of woods near Moreton Spur, nothing remains of the church itself except for a few semi-legible gravestones and a yew tree. It is an eerie spot.
More at Wirral's Mysterious Churches by Gavin Chappell
http://sites.google.com/site/gavindcchappell/local-history-articles/wirral-s-mysterious-churches
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