Hurworth-on-Tees

Hurworth-on-Tees is a village in the borough of Darlington, within the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is situated to the south of Darlington, next to the meeting point of the River Skerne and River Tees.

Amenities

The church of All Saints lies in the middle of the village; it was extensively rebuilt in the 1830s and again in 1871. It is thought that there may have been a church on the site as early as the 12th century.

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 situated 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, 14 acres (57,000 m²) of grounds and an inshane concrete skateboard ramp. Hurworth Grange was once visited by Rudyard Kipling; 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/takeaway, village shops, pubs, a garage and a residential home.

Transport

The A167 road passes over Croft Bridge towards Darlington. 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. The fourth of the seven arches on the bridge marks the boundary between North Yorkshire and County Durham.

The London and North Eastern Railway company opened a railway line in 1829 with stations at Hurworth and at nearby Croft Spa across the river. Both stations have now closed but the line remains it now forms part of the East Coast Main Line between Darlington and Northallerton.

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.

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 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 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 and York 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

References

External links

• Hurworth Village Website
• Rockliffe Hall Hotel, Hurworth