The Fishermen's Rest is situated near to the coast and the Sefton Coastal Footpath, making it an ideal location for walkers, cyclists and visitors to Southport and it is only a ten minute walk from Birkdale railway station and serves food throughout the day. It is quite a historic pub, as it is the only surviving remnant of the former Birkdale Palace Hotel following the hotel's demise in 1969. During World War II it was used as a rehabilitation centre for US airmen, and in 1966 it was the base for the Hungarian football squad for their matches at Goodison Park, Everton. The building was also used as a temporary mortuary for the bodies of 14 lifeboat men drowned in the Southport and St Anne's lifeboats disaster on 9 December 1886, when the sailing ship Mexico was driven aground near Southport by a storm. The bodies were viewed there by the jury of the hastily convened coroners enquiry held at the Palace Hotel. The pub is named in tribute to the local fishermen who gave their lives serving as volunteer lifeboat men. They are remembered there every year on the anniversary of the event by the reading of a commemorative poem and the observation of a minute's silence.