Hurworth-on-Tees is a village in the borough of
Darlington, within the
ceremonial county of
County Durham, England. It is situated in the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
of Hurworth. The village lies to the south of
Darlington on the
River Tees, close to its meeting point with the
River Skerne
The River Skerne is a tributary of the River Tees. It flows through County Durham in England.
Course
The Skerne is about long and begins in Magnesian Limestone hills between Trimdon and Trimdon Grange and ends at Hurworth Place where it ...
, and immediately adjoins the village of
Hurworth Place, which forms part of the same civil parish.
Amenities
The church of All Saints is situated in the middle of the village. There may have been a church on the site as early as the 12th century. The church was extensively rebuilt in the 1830s and again in 1871.
There was a school at Hurworth before 1770, when it was refounded. Currently the village has two schools. Hurworth Primary School caters for around 250 children aged 4–11. The secondary school is called
Hurworth School Maths & Computing College; it caters for around 650 students aged 11–16. There was also a small independent school,
Hurworth House School, which closed in the summer of 2010.
The
Hurworth Grange Community Centre is based in a manor house built in 1875 by the Backhouse family. Facilities include the large hall, meeting rooms, lounge bar, sports hall, football pitch, children's play area, of grounds and a concrete skateboard ramp. Hurworth Grange was once visited by
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
; it is claimed that 'The Roman Centurion's Song' is based on a
sarcophagus he saw there.
The village has a number of other amenities including a
fish and chip shop
A fish and chip shop, sometimes referred to as a chip shop, is a (often fast food) restaurant that specialises in selling fish and chips. Usually, fish and chip shops provide takeaway service, although some have seating facilities. Fish and c ...
, village shop pubs, a garage, community karate club (Kyosho Karate) and a residential home.
Has a shop
Transport
The
A167 road
The A167 and A167(M) is a road in North East England. It is partially a trunk road and partially a motorway, where it is commonly referred to as Newcastle Central Motorway. Most of the road’s route was formerly that of the A1, until it was ...
crosses the River Tees via Croft Bridge on its way towards Darlington, passing through Hurworth Place. The bridge was built on the site of an older one in 1673. The bridge has been closed to traffic many times in recent decades because of flooding of the Tees due to heavy rainfall in
Teesdale
Teesdale is a dale, or valley, in Northern England. The dale is in the River Tees’s drainage basin, most water flows stem from or converge into said river, including the Skerne and Leven.
Upper Teesdale, more commonly just Teesdale, falls b ...
. The fourth of the seven arches on the bridge marks the boundary between
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...
and County Durham.
The
Stockton and Darlington Railway Company opened a branch line in 1829 which ran from Darlington and terminated within Hurworth parish, close to Croft Bridge. The settlement that grew up around it became known as Hurworth Place, described in 1834 as a hamlet in the township of Hurworth, growing rapidly under the influence of the railhead and coal depot.
In 1841, the
Great North of England Railway
The Great North of England Railway (GNER) was an early British railway company. Its main line, opened in 1841 was between York and Darlington, and originally it was planned to extend to Newcastle.
Mergers
In 1846 it was absorbed by the Newcastl ...
opened the main line between Darlington and York, passing through Hurworth parish; the previous branch line and terminus remained as goods facilities. A passenger station was built on the new line in Hurworth Place, although it was named Croft Station and later renamed
Croft Spa Station after the village of
Croft-on-Tees
Croft-on-Tees is a village and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. It has also been known as Croft Spa, and from which the former Croft Spa railway station took its name. It lies north-north west of the cou ...
which faces Hurworth Place on the opposite bank of the Tees. The branch line and goods yard, by then known as Croft Depot, closed in 1964, and Croft Spa station closed in 1969, but the line remains, forming part of the
East Coast Main Line between
Darlington and
Northallerton
Northallerton ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Vale of Mowbray and at the northern end of the Vale of York. It had a population of 16,832 in the 2011 census, an increa ...
.
When travelling on the East Coast Main Line it is possible to see
Rockliffe Park training ground, which lies to the east of the village. It is the training ground for
Middlesbrough FC
Middlesbrough Football Club ( ) is a professional football club in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Aroun ...
.
History
There has been a settlement at Hurworth since at least as far back as the 12th century. The estate that Hurworth was part of has changed hands many times over the centuries.
In 1665, the
Great Plague
The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...
almost wiped out the village population of 750 leaving only around 75 survivors. The plague struck many other nearby villages including
Birkby and
South Cowton. Three dips in the village green mark the site where as many as 1,500 people were buried in massive
lime
Lime commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Botany ...
pits. According to old records, bodies from other nearby villages were ferried across the River Tees for burial in Hurworth.
Perhaps the most famous person to have lived in Hurworth was
William Emerson, an eminent mathematician born in Hurworth in 1701. He was educated at
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...
and
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
and then devoted himself to mathematics. He died at Hurworth in 1782 and has a monument in the church of All Saints.
See also
*
List of settlements on the River Tees
*
List of places in County Durham
*
Old Hall, Hurworth-on-Tees
References
External links
Hurworth Village WebsiteRockliffe Hall Hotel, Hurworth
{{authority control
Villages in County Durham
Places in the Tees Valley
Places in the Borough of Darlington