The Blacketts of Wylam were a branch of the
Blackett family of Hoppyland,
County Durham
County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly â€About North East E ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and were related to the
Blackett baronets
There have been two baronetcies created for members of the Blackett family, both in the Baronetage of England. One creation is extant as of 2013. The Blackett family can be traced back to the Blacketts/Blakheveds of Woodcroft, County Durham, some ...
.
John Blackett was
High Sheriff of Northumberland
This is a list of the High Sheriffs of the English county of Northumberland.
The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries ...
in 1692, He married Mary, daughter and heir of Richard Errington.
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John Blackett (died 1714) was the son of John (above), grandson of Christopher Blackett of Hoppyland (1612-1675) and the greatnephew of
Sir William Blackett. In 1685 he acquired two farms at
Wylam
Wylam is a village and civil parish in the county of Northumberland. It is located about west of Newcastle upon Tyne.
It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early railway pioneers. George Stephenson's Bir ...
,
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land ...
, and the Manor estate including the mineral rights, from the exploitation of which the family was to benefit greatly. John was
High Sheriff of Northumberland
This is a list of the High Sheriffs of the English county of Northumberland.
The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries ...
in 1714. His residence was Wylam Hall. He married Elizabeth, daughter of John Bacon.
John Blackett (1712-1769), his son, High Sheriff in 1738, sold the families Co Durham properties and established coal mining and
Wylam Colliery in the township in the mid 18th century. The
waggonway
Wagonways (also spelt Waggonways), also known as horse-drawn railways and horse-drawn railroad consisted of the horses, equipment and tracks used for hauling wagons, which preceded steam-powered railways. The terms plateway, tramway, dramway ...
connecting the colliery to the
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Wat ...
at
Lemington was built in 1748 and the colliery continued to flourish until about 1870. He married twice: firstly Dorothy, daughter of Edward Grey, and secondly Elizabeth Crosbie. He was succeeded by another John.
The family were keenly involved in the development of steam power for the improvement of coal transportation.
George Stephenson
George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians
In the history of the United Kingdom and the ...
was born in Wylam in 1781.
William Hedley,
Timothy Hackworth
Timothy Hackworth (22 December 1786 – 7 July 1850) was an English steam locomotive engineer who lived in Shildon, County Durham, England and was the first locomotive superintendent of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.
Youth and early wor ...
and Jonathan Forster all worked at Wylam Colliery for
Christopher Blackett (1751-1829), and there produced the famous early steam locomotives
''Puffing Billy'' (1813-1814) and ''
Wylam Dilly'' (1815)
References
''History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland'' (1835) John Burke. Vol I pp 257-9 ()
Further reading
*{{cite book, last1=Kirtley, first1=Allan, last2=Longbottom, first2=Patricia, last3=Blackett, first3=Martin , title=A History of the Blacketts, year=2013, publisher=The Blacketts, isbn=978-0-9575675-0-4
External links
The Blacketts of North East England
History of Northumberland
English families