Suggestions ??

Do you know of any interesting or unusual places you think should be added to the site ?

I’m still forever finding new things however there’s bound to be huge amounts I still don’t know about.

Please add any suggestions below.

281 thoughts on “Suggestions ??

    • I have discovered two pillboxes upon the hill at Leven bank. one is just at the top of the hill with the alpacas in and the other one is in the farmers field and both can be seen from google maps and they are both near the Ingleby Barwick pillbox I hope you can pin point them and put them on the hidden Teeside map.

  1. Have got some pics of The Hermitage over by Falling Foss / Littlebeck near Whitby if you’d like to put those on? Interesting little place.

  2. What about a piece on the original Middlesbrough to Guisborough railway line, that runs to the north of the dual carriageway? There are various remnants still in existance, even though the line closed in the 1860’s.

  3. Or perhaps a piece on the Rosedale mines branch line incorporating the incline, and what remains of the line between Bank Foot and Battersby?

  4. Whinney Banks. Or Acklam Green, as they are trying to rebrand it as.

    The large memorial stone dedicated to William Henry Thomas and the ‘garden’ that was there. The green open space opposite the playground and the Roseberry filling station on Acklam Road.

    Be interesting to hear a bit more about it other than just what is inscribed on the memorial, and maybe a period image or two.

  5. Fantastic site, loved it. makes me want to drag the kids out around cleveland and point things out to them.
    heres another good site http://homepage.ntlworld.com/bandl.danby/ some interesting stuff there too.
    a favorite place of mine as a kid was Parkers Pit in Skelton,the original site for North Skelton mine im led to believe,before they built it to the south east of skelton. you can still lob bricks down the shaft(makes a big boom after about 5 seconds if you get it right) and there is a powder house to explore(probly full of beer cans and used needles now though)

  6. Absolutely fascinating site. I must have passed some of these things so many times without noticing! I have some things you may be interested in on my Flickr page (all geotagged).

    The Vicar’s Trod in Marske, a Norman footpath from St. Germain’s church to the Tithe Barn:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/nekoglyph/3486267411/

    Kind of a geoglyph made of trees on Whorl Hill near Carlton-in-Cleveland, planted to commemorate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/nekoglyph/3392251719/

    You may already have this pillbox on the beach at the Redcar side of South Gare:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/nekoglyph/3713059417/

    Ghost signs taken for the online archive project on Flickr including some mentioned in comments on your site:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/nekoglyph/sets/72157619185388830/

  7. How about Margrove Park ironstone mine? Apparently there is not a lot to see nowadays but there does not seem to be a great deal of information out there regarding this site. Maybe a post would spark some discussion on the topic.

  8. I wanted to forward an email I received about the work at Middlesbrough railway Station to install some platform lifts . Some old posters have been exposed and would probably fit into your website really well ? My own interest is local aviation history and I was involved with the Thornaby Aerodrome Memorial and Spitfire plus the Aerodrome History Trail . Brilliant website , both informative and slightly quirky at the same time . Well done and thanks .

  9. The mine at Saltburn looks remarkably like the mines which were common on the coast in the 60s. They were collecting boxes for the Shipwrecked Mariners Association and had access for the collectors to empty them. It would be worth checking the one at Saltburn to see if there are traces of the collecting box near the top.

    THANKS POST UPDATED

  10. Just a note to ask for any information on the community centre in Charltons. I have heard that it was the old bath house for the now long gone local mine, possibly Boosbeck. Its exterior is modern-ish but the internal structure was kept after a fire destroyed the roof of the old building, and a modern ‘shell’ built around it.

    When inside, the original wooden baton facias still adorn the walls and beneath the floor are many of the old workings etc.

    Might be worth a stop if you are passing with your camera?

    • UPDATE FROM SIMON CHAPMAN :-

      They are talking about Charltons Institute which was modernised with the
      financial help of British Steel during the 1980s. It was the ‘recreation
      centre’ for the mining village but part at some early date was a communal
      wash house i.e. where the women of the village could wash clothes and have a
      gossip at the same time. It was never a bath house as per a colliery.

      As for workings under the floor – there were mine workings nearby and the
      drift giving access to Slapewath/Spawood Mines but one of the reasons for
      building the village where it is was the lack of workable ironstone beneath.

  11. Great website, You’ve given me so many locations to go out with my camera I don’t know where to start.

    Putting them all on a map is so helpfull. I can plan routes and everything.

    Many Thanks

  12. In Den Helder, Netherlands we are restoring a former steam/sailing gunboat of the Netherlands Navy the “Bonaire”. She was launched in 1877. Her iron or steel deckbeams were made by Hopkins & Co, Middlesbro. The characters are rolled in relief on the beams. If you are interested I can send you some photos.
    Do you know some facts about the Hopkins plant?
    Best regards, Jan Klootwijk, Netherlands.

  13. Dear Mr Twigg

    RE: http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/

    The British Library would like to archive your website.
    The site has been selected to form part of a collection of websites representing aspects of UK documentary heritage. Can you please send us an email address of the person responsible for your website, so that we can send you documents to inform you about this opportunity to preserve your website and to enable us to comply with legal requirements.

    Yours sincerely

    Akiko Kimura
    Web Archiving
    The British Library
    Email: web-archivist@bl.uk
    TEL: +44 (0)20 7412 7211
    Fax: +44 (0)20 7412 7691

  14. Re The Old Customs House – work has started on the refurbishment!! I have a jpeg pic of the building with scaffolding.

  15. Hi. I have a photo of the entrance to the mine drift at charltons which was called Spa-Wood.The photo dates back to the late 1800s if you want a copy for your site. Also steam train going over viaduct at spa-wood.Neil Readman

  16. My Ggrandfather, William Parish, was a blast furnaceman, designated a superman as he was immensly strong and supposedly earned £1 a day in 1874. He worked for Farnley Ironworks and like you I am trying to find out more about this Ironworks as some more of my relatives worked there.
    I found one of my relatives on a census and it looked as though he lived perhaps in cottages as pages and pages of the census were designated ‘Farnley Iron Works’.

    I would be good if we could liaise on this.

    Wendy Howard

  17. Fascinating…. every area/town should have one! So many of the items will be lost, and pleased there’s somewhere to register them. Thanks for putting it together.

  18. Oh…. and what about the various coastal mortuaries, such as Saltburn and Robin Hood’s Bay? They’re probably on already; it’s just that I haven’t found them on the site yet.

  19. Good to see the photos of the old mine workings in Errington Woods, we enjoyed a very interesting and informative walk there recently, led by Simon Chapman the author of the book “Upleatham Ironstone Mine”.
    There are several plaques around New Marske giving historical details, a photographic record of those may be of interest. Also…I notice that part of the Lifeboat station at South Gare has been demolished recently…..will it still be there in the future?

  20. Really informative site, thanks very much for sharing all the photos and information. I stumbled across it a year or so back and have just found it again. Looking forward to sitting down and going through it properly…then getting out and seeing these things for myself combined with some walks. The map is most useful for this! Maybe I am being blind but I can’t see the Fanhouse at the top of Lazenby Bank, one of my favourites?

    Here – http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2007/01/09/guibal-fanhouse-ss-castle/

    Not sure if such a thing has been arranged before, but if anyone is interested in walking/exploring to take in some of these sights (and/or sites) and hopefully discover more, maybe we could arrange a few interested people to get together? Anyone interested feel free to contact me at socialflutterbutty@gmail.com or arrange here perhaps? Just thinking some like minded people getting together would be good, certainly something I’d be interested in as I don’t really know anybody with such interests-apart from my good friend who I may encourage to join in! Would be good to learn from more knowledgeable people; if there is anything like this already set up in the area please let me know.

    This is the only way could find to contact anyone about the site etc so I hope it’s not against site policy and I’ve put my foot in it… Keep up the excellent work 🙂

    • Emma (the social flutterbutty) I’m a few years late responding but maybe you still have email alert set for your post.. The SS castle isn’t at the top of Lazenby Bank as such its a bit further on. On the attached map the SS castle is just a small grey square. Zooom the map. Find Lazenby Bank and Mount Pleasant. Follow a straight line down from the “an” in Pleasant. Just below a path is a grey square… That’s the SS Castle 🙂 http://maps.nls.uk/view/91629717#

  21. I was reading the report about kirkleatham Hall Stables.
    I would like to let you know i have information on just why the stable have not been renovated.
    Its not as odd as it sounds. Work was due to commence quite sometime ago to renovate it (not sure to what) but on a site inspection it was found that the lofting area of the stables was full of a nest of bats. It is estimated that the colony is around 2000 strong.

    THANKS FOR THE UPDATE – http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2009/04/20/kirkleatham-hall-stables/

    • The bridge is, I believe, part of the old Dunsdale Mines, it lies at the end of what we knew as the Coach Road, which starts at The Lodge, Dunsdale. btw Dunsdale Mine was called Kirkleatham Mine as it lay in that Parish.

      • I’ve never heard of the bridge being linked to the mine at Dunsdale before, I believe the ironstone was taken out via a narrow gauge railway the remains of which you can still trace through the woods down towards Kirkleatham.

      • my mistake, I am remembering the way we used to walk from the Coach Road to the bridge at Wilton, couldn’t work out how to take that message off the site.
        Apologies. Anne

  22. Just been to Westerdale and there are a few interesting sites that could feature on this website. The old hunting lodge, it was also a Youth Hostel, looks an intriguing building, a memorial of a mariner in a cottage garden to the south of the village and the old pack horse bridge, just the right of the main road bridge/ford as you leave the village to the north.

    Please keep this site going, it is a real treasure trove!

    UPDATE :
    I’ve got one, but will have to look out for the others.
    http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2007/07/25/hunters-sty-bridge-westerdale/

  23. Suggestion for your site (Assuming its not already on here somewhere) – The old PowderHouse at Lingdale/Kilton mines.
    Im not totally sure if the property is freely accessible without permission, as there is a locked gate at the entrance (but last time I looked it was vandalised and accessible). It is located about half way down the remains of the mine railway between Lingdale and Kilton. If you are interested or need further directions please contact me.

  24. anything in billingham would be good…it really is an old town!!. the now demolished and built over ‘billingham hall’, the gate house remains. st cuthberts church, parts of which are 1000 years old. also the last 4 houses at the bottom of sunnybrow ave billingham different to the rest…result of a german bomb, subsequently all the houses in that area suffered from subsidence. also victoria bridge stockton, shrapnel holes/bomb damage in the cast iron balastrade, left hand side if you are going into thornaby, (WWII).

    UPDATE : Some Billingham now done and Victoria Bridge

  25. listenupnorth.com and Writer’s Block North East have created the
    Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge Centenary Writing Competition to
    celebrate 100 years of this wonderful bridge. The winning entries are
    recorded and available to listen to on
    http://listenupnorth.com/writer-profile/354 – they share a great affection
    for the bridge and wonderful ways of capturing this feeling.

    We wondered if you would like to publicise these winning entries and
    the competition. Your commitment to celebrating
    landmarks of this region’s history make it well suited to spread the word
    about this magnificent bridge. We are happy to cross-link.

    Many thanks,

    Rachel

    Rachel Cochrane
    listenupnorth.com

    • During my ICI apprenticeship I had to attend Redcar Tech college. The Pig-n-Whistle was one of the many pubs I had an extended lunch break in. Another was the Royal Standard. But that was way back in 1969/73.. 🙂

  26. Hi

    Great site! I was wondering if you could help actually.. I am searching in earnest for a photo or photo’s of the old gas works/giant cylinder which stood on West Dyke Road in Redcar.. I think it was knocked down in the early 80’s and i think morrisons garage is there now? Although i dont remember it being that far along?
    It used to haunt me as a kid as it was quite a hulking thing just stood there..

    Any help on this would be really appreciated! 🙂

    UPDATE : Covered here http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2011/11/09/redcar-gas-company/

  27. The original police station at South Bank on North Street.
    Currently a MOT type place on the corner of the junction with Normanby Rd.
    The words POLICE STATION can clearly be seen carved in one of the red painted lintels over a doorway.

    The 1930’s nick on Middlesbrough Rd is now flattened and is awaiting redevelopment.

    • I have been given a picture of a police station in middlesbrough (when i was visiting the Chester Le Street History Group), they need identification of it, who could I send it to, perhaps it is the one you mention here.
      can I print my e.mail address here?

  28. Great website, very interesting – but seems to be very little about Stockton on here, which is strange with plenty of options like the railway, a former castle, and birthplace of the matchstick…

    UPDATE : Some Stockton now added, but still lots to do.

  29. The Newport, (Middlesbrough) to Shildon railway line was electrified with 1500v DC overhead electric wires in 1915, it was de-electrified in 1935. There are several things which still exist from this short modernisation scheme.
    The road bridge at Thorpe Thewles, (on the road to Carlton) has railings on one side of the bridge, this was to prevent contact from above of the wires, also the next bridge, a farm crossing has the railings all the way across. An interesting feature of the raod bridge is the former hole in the parapet that allowed acess to Carlton later Redmarshall station that existed below the bridge.

    At Bowesfield signalbox there is a wooden lean-to attachment which now houses the Toilet, this originally housed a lever frame where certain parts of the overhead wires could be isolated from.

    Hope this helps

  30. I have been reading about Ayresome Gardens on

    http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/local/middlesbrough/8168837.Unearthing_secrets/

    You have the Millennium Gate but I believe the council has recently given to OK to further “improve” the park using Northeast Groundwork. I think the fact that this is in fact Middlesbrough’s first main cemetery, and the presence of 11,000 burials, should be given much more publicity There is a display about the cemetery in the Cleveland Archive entrance.

    UPDATE : http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2012/02/08/ayresome-cemetery/

  31. In the mid 1970’s The Talbot in Bishopton had a framed local newspaper article on the wall, it was dumped when the place changed from a pub to a restaurant. The article gave details about a WW2 Auxiliary Unit based in Bishopton. It recorded the people involved and gave details of the installation of a brick and concrete hideout in the bank of the stream near to the entrance to the windsurfing centre. I have never put my wellies, or wetsuit, on to find this but someone may like to try.
    Newspaper Researchers may be able to find the article again.

  32. A Roman settlement was discovered a few years ago during the development of The Forum area of Ingleby Barwick. A Roman Villa is still unexcavated and being preserved under the village green. The rest of the site was excavated just before building houses.

    I have some photo of the dig that you are more then welcome to use:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/weewow/sets/72157625926766918/detail/

    UPDATE : http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2012/02/07/1483/

  33. Can I suggest Bute street in the Dovecot street area of Stockton which has been kept in its near as original state as possible ( a couple of satellite dishes have appeared) . The old cobbles and street lamps are still there though.

  34. I have a hand painted ilustrated certificate showing my Grandmother as the first Lady Mayoress of Middlesbrough , whihch could be uploaded to the site.
    My Grandfather Emanuel Spence was also responsible for the compulsory purchase of land . gardens and buildings to form Linthorpe Road.

  35. The former Saltscar School / Sir William Turners School Corporation Road Redcar. Is in the early stages of demolition. May be worth a look.

  36. Hi Chris, I love looking at this website. Having been a resident of North Norfolk for the last 15 years its good to see pictures of my old area. Some great walks round here but you never stumble on industrial remains as you do up there.
    One place that always facinated me up there was blue lake near hutton village. I never fully worked out what the spilways did and if you venture further into the woods from the lake you come across a long stone culvert type structure about two feet in diameter never had a clue of its purpose but wondered if it was some kind of supply for the lake to stop it getting contaminated with mine water?
    Keep up the good work and if your in Guisborough woods have a look
    Russ

    • There’s a book about this, but I don’t have a copy yet.

      Blue Lake and Home Farm: The Story of Nineteenth-century Water Power in Hutton Lowcross

      by Paul A. Smith

  37. Great website, a mine of information for some good photographs.

    There’s yet another “stench pipe” that you may like to add to your database, and that is on Hartlepool Headland not far from St. Hilda’s Church. It’s actually in the middle of the road, and originally had a gas lamp (now converted to electric) next to it. The “stench pipe”, if that’s what it can be called is quite ornate, and a photograph of it and the lamp can be seen at — http://holzernes-herz.deviantart.com/art/Street-lamp-and-ventilator-111275745

  38. There was an old castle near Hilton – you can walk to it from the village – there is a distinct circular walk round it and in the centre the ground is raised – I don’t know much about it other than knowing its whereabouts from when I was shown it years ago when on a field trip from a Harrow Road University course on Ecology.

  39. There is meant to be a plane crash in Guisborough forest where if you stand in the field opposite Butt lane you should see the trees suddenly change colour (if you look harden enough) if you go to that group of differently coloured trees there is meant to be pieces of aircraft less than 10cm deep under ground

  40. Hi, My friend lives on Granville Tce in Redcar and showed me some photo’s taken in front of the Park Hotel from the beach in the last few days which appear to show the original sea wall built of sandstone I know not when, very similar to the few remains of the windmill closeby. This has been uncovered as the old concrete sea wall has been striped away during the ongoing new sea defences. might be woth a look.

  41. Hi,

    I live in whitby and on the A171 near Ugthorpe, there is a bunker of some sort. On google maps the coords are – 54.485746,-0.790436 and was wondering what the hell it is!

    Dan

    • This thing ?
      http://goo.gl/maps/rSh3

      Nothing more sinister than a covered reservoir I think.

      The aerials are probably to control it remotely rather than someone having to go all the way out there everytime a valve needs turning.

      • certaily a covered service reservoir, your right , the aerials ARE FOR TELEMETRY FOR ALARMS AND REMOTE CONTROL, INCIDENTALY RESERVOIRS ALL HAVE INTRUDER ALARMS WITH AN INSTANT RESPONSE.

  42. Hello Harry I saw your piece about the pit heap at Kiltonthorpe.Did you notice whether or not a lot of the heap has been removed? Iwas there Fri 27th July 2012 and saw that literally hundreds of tons have gone ( not just a geezer with a barrow and a spade job!).Do you or does anyone out there have any idea what is happening?I thought it was a Heritage site Regards Edward

    • We believe the material was removed in 2010 and it was raised with the landowner at the time, more recently it seems to have come to the attention of local councillors and has been raised with the landowners again who have moved the old steps from the winding house to block access.

      However if anyone observes further removal, it should be reported.

  43. I am working with the Churches Conservation Trust . The trust is a body set up to maintain historic churches which are no longer in use. The trust owns such a property in the East Cleveland area All Saints Skeltonhttp://www.visitchurches.org.uk/Ourchurches/Completelistofchurches/All-Saints-Church-SkeltoninCleveland-North-Yorkshire/
    At the moment the church is an under used resource which could be put to good use for local people as a gallery or performance space. We are also working on interpreting the church for visitors. The CCT are hoping to set up a support group to help with the church this will involve people to carry out research ,cleaning , and giving information to visitors .
    I am a musician and I will be playing for visitors to the church from 12pm on saturday 1st Sept. This will be something to entertain visitors and hopefully encourage people to get involved with this wonderful building. If you have not visited this church I encourage you to do so its a beautiful hidden gem .
    I have attached a link to my FB page which explains what will be happening on the 1st

    Sept http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=169270763208687&set=a.135731003229330.25771.119102198225544&type=1&theater
    Kind regards Peter Lagan

  44. Try a re-visit to Carrs Tilery. There used to be the remains of a overhead crank steam engine. Very old. Unfortunately parts of the engine had been smashed off for scrap, but when I last visited, the crank shaft, flywheel and steam cylinder were still there. Location is nearer to Margrove Park than the ovens. You may just be able to see it from the Whitby Road. On the otherhand it may all have been destroyed, I haven’t been there recently. Great Website.

  45. THIS IS THE BEST THING I’VE DISCOVERED IN YEARS! AS A LONG TERM EXILE FROM SKELTON-IN-CLEVELAND IT LIFTS MY HEART EVERYTIME I SEE ANOTHER GREAT PHOTO. CAN YOU HELP WITH A QUERY? I’M LOOKING FOR A PHOTO OR ANYONE WHO REMEMBERS THE ELEPHANT RIDE WHICH RAN AROUND THE PADDLING POOL OUTSIDE THE OLD REDCAR BATHS – THIS LATER BECAME THE SKATING RINK. IT WAS AN ALMOST FULL SIZE (OR SO IT SEEMED) ELEPHANT & IT MUST HAVE BEEN AROUND 1950

  46. Born in Skelton-in-Cleveland in 1938, and now living in Brisbane, Australia, I have just discovered the fascinating Hidden Teesside website. As a Liverpool University geography and planning student in the late 1950s and early’60s, I undertook a couple of research projects on Cleveland, and I still have the photographs and Kodachrome transparerncies I took as part of my studies. Sites include North Skelton mine, Park Pit, shale heaps at Margrove Park, Lingdale and Liverton, Carrs Tilery, old industrial and associated housing areas in Middlesbrough, and Marske Mill, long since demolished, near Saltburn..Is anyone interested?

  47. My late mother-in-law who lived in Ridley Avenue, Acklam told me that during WW II a collection was made locally to buy a Spitfire. She said it was called the “Acklam Spitfire”. Do you know any further details about this?

  48. hello, i saw you last post on the stench pipes in middlesbrough, and like many others thought they where old lamp posts for about the last 30 years since i was a kid, but now i know thank you, but i used to love finding them, and know where there are 3 possibly 4 others in boro and where one used to be, and have been out taking photos for you, i was just wondering how i could pass them on to you, cheers, chris

  49. There’s a WW2 Decoy sight, in a farmer’s field just off the A66 on the way into Darlington. The Defence of Britain DB says it’s destroyed, but I caught a glimpse of it today through the hedgerow today and it’s definitely still there! Giving it’s position and the current weather, it might be better visiting in the spring/summer!

  50. Do you have any information on the mine entrance/draiange tunnel exposed in the cliffs to the east of Saltburn, below Saltburn Scar?

  51. Have you looked at the bridge over the railway line between Newport Bridge & the Transporter. It is located near Marsh Rd, and is now serves as a footbridge. It is constructed from sandstone, and has some interesting features that suggests it may be the town’s earliest bridge. I have been posting on the Facebook page ‘Memories of Middlesbrough’ where there are some photos. Cheers, Sean

  52. Anybody know anything about the painted gangster silhouettes / stencils on the cliffs in Saltburn? They’re visible from the prom along from the pier and look a bit Banksy.

    • Itis an Elvish ‘G’ Rune from Lord of the Rings.

      This Runewith the 4 dots is used as a signature by Gandalf.
      It’s a modern addition to the stone

      There are others carved on various stones and boulders around the moors.

      All done by the same person.

  53. Hello. I was wondering if anyone has any information on Marske castle, which was located in the field south of the railway station in Marske?

    Thanks Nick.

  54. Just came across this blog. Amazing amount of information! I’m from Norton and doing my MA in London, basing my fashion collection on the imagery, sensations and materials of the north east, so all of your posts give really great background info to my research. Thanks!

  55. Does anyone know what the structure is at the Eston end of the A174 opposite the row of houses at Old Lackenby. It has ventilation ducts and it not marked. My parents remember in the 60’s it was well fenced and secured and from the hills you could see a really deep pit as it was built. There is no mention of it anywhere. Some say its a pump house—-From where to where though??–there are no reservoirs close by unless its a Keilder booster house but there would be some noise if it was. Others say its a nuclear bunker. Can someone shed some light into this structure as it is quite big and has been well covered with grass and the likes. E-mail me at b246kvn@yahoo.com

    On Google earth it shows a small brick building which i have seen vans go to but the big structure behind is a mystery as it is huge.

    • Its a covered reservoir rather than anything mysterious like a nuclear bunker, its marked as such on some older mapping such as 1980’s OS data.

      Most likely something to do with the water supply for Wilton site, there are two other open reservoirs just a short distance away across the roundabout.

  56. I would so love it if you did a piece on Spark’s Daylight Bakery in Stockton, it’s such a beautiful piece of art deco architecture and I’d love to know more about it. Also, Ropner Park is a fantastic place and I’d love to see it featured. It has a lovely bandstand and has recently acquired an interesting fish sculpture.

  57. Great website – interesting – you guys should really start a twitter account promoting the website and posting random pics and info – I think it would get a good amount of followers and also increase traffic to the website – we only started a month ago and we already have over 800 followers – the majority Teesside folk!

  58. Hello!

    I’ve only recently come across your website and it’s a great read; I’ve learned so much.

    I’m doing my MA Fashion and the Environment collection using Teesside and the North East of England as a kind of memoir to create couture clothing that is truly authentic, a beacon of craftsmanship and a symbol of where I’m from. The materials I use (such as rope and linen), the imagery (such as embroidered birds and flowers) and the textures are all inspired by what I believe Teesside to be. I want to tell a story.

    So I’m looking for your help.

    Firstly, with a survey that will help in my understanding of what other people believe authenticity and sense of place to mean. Here’s the link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QHSMTC5
    If you could somehow pass that on to others, that would be amazing!

    Secondly, to ask people to help me find materials. I’m looking for old rope, old tarpaulin (rubberised or canvas), metal washers and nuts, sheets of steel/aluminium, glass beads, jet beads (obviously you’d only give fake away), beads made from minerals/gems, doilies/tablecloths/curtains/linen… The more it’s related to the north east, the better, but I want things that have a kind of inherent story. You can see the patina of use, and verbal stories attached to them would be great! I live in London but obviously able to come to collect objects, and offer money if necessary (but the freer the better…).

    If you could post it on here, WOW. Or if you know anywhere I could post this, or anyone I could ask, please let me know!

    Thanks!!

  59. Great job on the website. Theres a big old house in hartlepool called tunstall court. its wide open at the moment so can be fully explored. As you would expect its been heavily vandalised. Iv also spotted another even bigger house on the outskirts of esh by the name of ushaw college but i couldnt find a way into this one. It was used to educate priests. Iv found a few pictures online and theres still plenty of religious stuff in there if you can get in.

  60. You recently published some photos of the Carlton Moor gliding club, now derelict. I was up there today (2/3/13) and some work is going on there. I guess they are demolishing it – some wall panels of the main hangar have been removed – though its possible its a radical strip down for rebuilding as they haven’t touched the roof or main structure yet.

    Anyway – thanks for a fascinating website!!!

  61. There is a tunnel a similar to the Boulby alum works approx 700yds from the ship inn in saltburn heading towards skinningrove round the cliffs, I have a few photos in wanted?

    Great website!!!

    • I know the place you mean, no-one has ever managed to give me a definitive answer on what it is. Must pay a visit some time.

  62. Hi really good site well done. It would be really good if you could put a colour coded key on the map page to so you can click on flags & distinguish by colour!

    Thanks

    M

  63. Carlton Moor Gliding club has now been completely demolished – only a disturbed bit of ground indicates that it was ever there!

  64. Possible old Stench pipe at Stewart’s park in front of cafe and steps of old house, not visible as tree has enveloped it…worth a visit…great site

  65. I’ve just been back to look at the stench pipe / sewer ventilator near St. Hilda’s Church on Hartlepool Headland. The lamp post that stood next to the ventilator has been removed, possibly after an accident. If you want photographs of what it is like now, and what it was like 4 years ago when I last looked at it, let me know where to send them, and I will oblige.

  66. Referring to the fountains of Darlington

    There is a drinking fountain (kind of ornate) at the South Park, at the end of Bedford Street entrance! Wonder if this could be another of Pease’ fountains

  67. Hi there
    I have some photos of the cannon actually in situ at the lake at Albert Park. They are part of a collection which is to be sold but I could photograph the originals and let you have the photos of them if you wish to put them on your site. I also have one of Saltburn pier when it was long and also two of a trainline ruining through Gypsy Lane on the Whitby line. The whole collection is dated from 1929 – 1933. Drop me a line if you would like photos before they are sold which will be within the next week or so.

  68. There’s a ghost sign on the south side of the warehouse 50 West Row, Stockton. I can’t make out what it says though. You can see it on Google street view.

  69. Hi, any idea what the big black aerial is about in stockton, just to the left of the petrol station near the horse and jocky roundabout with the big tesco and mcdonalds etc…?

  70. The Stockton transmitter also broadcast BBC Radio Cleveland’s original AM / Medium Wave signal on 194 metres – a frequency at the extreme ‘short wavelength’ end of the medium wave allocation, and which meant that a lot of cheaper trannies could not physically receive it !

  71. Do you have any information on Haverton Hill? I know it was all demolished but are there any leftover hints of what was once there?

    • I think the lych gate of the church there has been preserved plus some gravestones – and of course the pub (empty or trading, I don’t know)

  72. Can you find out about the field next to the railway goods shed in Marske ? I have heard it may have been a castle with links to Robert De Bruce.If you view it from google maps you can see some outlines.With the impending new estate being built soon I thought it would be worth checking out.

  73. i am looking for a picture of the old houses that use to be under Warsett hill, Brotton since demolished because of cliff eroison i think they belonged to the railway .now used by boulby potash mine

  74. There seems to two old chapels in Loftus that you have not got on you site, on is the one at Loy Lane next to the cemetery at East Loftus, the other is the primitive chapel at the hamlet of Upton Street Houses up Micklow Lane Loftus, both have now been renovated and I do have photos i took of the upton one in its journey from 2010 up to date if your interested.
    Thanks Cody

  75. do you have a picture of saltburn house on marine parade saltburn; formaly a convalesent home.A loverly old building and i think it once was the home of the person who built saltburn Henry Pease surly it should be a listed building

  76. Amazing site! My mum lived in Loftus and I was always fascinated by the old workings, so have spent hours reading your articles and pouring over the pictures.
    My particular interest is the railway history, and I’ve been constructing a website depicting old railway lines (www.railmaponline.com). I’ve included Paddy Waddell’s railway even though it was never completed, but have had to guess at the route South of Scaling. Do you have any information on the correct route?
    Details of any other tracks that I’ve missed from my map would also be appreciated.
    Thanks, Matthew

    • Pay a visit to the Cleveland Model Railway Club at the Beehive Centre in Skelton.
      They are there Tuesday and Thursday evenings.
      They have a very good reference library and some very knowledgeable people..

      At the moment they are researching and building an epic model of Skinningrove Valley for the Mining Museum, it includes the Switchback Incline and Kilton Viaduct

  77. Some sort of RAF shelter, just a brick building, with a steel door. But peeking through some meshed metal above the door you can see the inside is kept, or built as, how it once was. Located south east of the forest also east of the Cod beck reservoir north of Osmotherly. I have pictures and the exact location.

  78. Hi,

    I have heard rumours that there is some sort of nuclear bunker that exists under whitby’s telephone exchange, have you heard anything about this?

    Also heard of things being burried under durham tees valley airport….

    • I’ve never heard anything about a bunker in Whitby, although the possibility of something at the airport is fairly likely from its long history back to WW2 as RAF Middleton St. George / RAF Goosepool

  79. Thought you might be interested in the ruined mill (I think) just to the north west of Kildale, there are some fairly substantial stone and earthworks hidden down by the river, have some photos if wanted…

    Great site by the way, keep it up.

  80. Clay Bank/Wainstones. If you know where to look there is a big rock with a few carvings of dogs (hunting variety) on it. Dated 1870’s, and there are “names/initials” on them as well. Nature is slowly growing over the rock. I used to go once or twice a year and remove the moss, grass, etc but haven’t been for a few years. A bit of someones history that is slowly going missing.

  81. Nothing on here about the chapels on the outskirts of Middlesbrough.

    Through genealogy I found that my great great grandfather was a founder of South Bank, Eston and neighbouring chapels. Couldn’t find out much about him but a distant cousin emailed me some literature and photos that might be of interest to you.

    If you send me your email address I’ll invite you to my Ancestry family tree, where you can view most of it for yourself. If it is of interest, I could try to find the images to email to you.

  82. Hi ,
    I used to work on the Tees as a deckhand , the following maybe of interest , tho only accessible at low water on a spring tide .
    The original steps or ferry landing of the ferry from Middlesbrough to Port Clarence still exist ..sandwiched between the transporter and the Marine Fire Station .
    Remains of the original staithes of Port Darlington exist but are hidden under the jetty of what is the craft maintenance depot of PD Ports , roughly near the pilot cutters …great big thick baulks of timber cut off 3 foot or so above the mud under the jetty …there are pictures of them in a book somewhere I recently seen in a book .
    Opposite on the North side of the river is the remains of the Salt Union Jetty , marked on old charts .
    At Haverton Hill you can get good views of the old slipways at the shipyard …even the markings , or V , where the keels would lay and be heavily greased prior to being launched .
    Down at the old Smiths Dock opposite side , is the remains of an old jetty , which I’m told was a jetty that served a ferry that operated from South Bank too the North side …old charts appear to confirm this .
    A plaque at the QE2 jetty near Tees Dock commemerates when the Queen visited in 1952 or 3 on Brittania …assuming she opened the jetty …and perhaps visiting Teesside ??
    Seaton Carew beach in the Dunes between the village and North Gare the tank traps still exist …large square concrete blocks still standing in a line guarding against any landings .

    Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures ! …but please email for any further info !

  83. Hi Chris, just wondering if you are putting anything on here to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the end of Cleveland’s mining industry tomorrow?
    Excellent site Chris
    Cheers
    Russ

  84. Amazingly quirky local website. View it every day for new images. I have an image of an upright, green metallic, rectangular box
    Iike structure. It’s just on the outside of The Crown Hotel car park at Kirklevington. Would you like me to send you the image?
    Regards,
    Ian

  85. When I studied at Kings Manor School (Acklam Hall), there were rumours of tunnels leaving from beneath the manor house to various areas in Acklam. Are you aware of these rumours and if so, do you know where they went and their purpose?

    • I’ve never heard anything about that, although most large houses seem to have ‘secret tunnels’ stories. Not sure if theres any truth in them.

  86. Fantastic Resource. Searchable database of old OS Maps. All of England Wales and Scotland 6 inch maps one inch and 1;25000 1840s to present day

    http://maps.nls.uk/geo/find/

    Maps from 1849 editions are good, they show the massive additions to towns and villages caused by the opening up of the Ironstone.
    It lacks most of the railways and terraced housing and industrial building.

    What is good on this edition is over by the coast it features all the Alum Workings and buildings including the Alum tunnel at Boulby.

  87. Hi you have a picture of Lingdale Institute (8th January 2014).
    I may be able to help you – It is rumoured that the sign was concreted over during the war to help stop the German’s knowing the area they were in if they were shot down for example.
    I cant confirm that this is the exact reason – its just what I was told when I was brought up!

  88. I found your site after a search prompted by a conversation last night about what is now the Isaac Wilson pub on Wilson Street, Middlesbrough and the building that was the Chicago Rock club next door. I was told that Isaac’s was a former courthouse and that executions took place there in the past, and also that under the Chicago Rock building there is a graveyard. I was trying to confirm any truth in these stories. I’m not much of a historical researcher and wondered whether anyone knew anything about these two buildings.

    • Hi Mark,

      The Isaac Wilsons pub did used to be the court house, right up until the current courts opened around 1991
      I’ve never heard of any executions there though, it was only built in 1901, and the last executions in our area all seem to be held in Leeds or Durham.

      http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/hanged1.html

      The graveyard is true though, the two buildings are on the site of a Quaker meeting house and cemetery.
      Someone made this comment on a previous post about the Quaker Burial Ground in Linthorpe Cemetery :-

      “When they built the Hippodrome in 1908,in Wilson street, it was built on a old Quakers burial ground. They exhumed the remains in the dead of night and transferred them to Linthorpe cemetery”

  89. I am looking for information / photos of the site behind Eaglescliffe Hotel Yarm Road Stockton, a few years back it was an Iron Works with numerous railway sidings believe to be the Head Wrightson Works. I understand My 3 x great grandfather one Henry Smith opened an Iron Foundry there in the 1860s .The foundry ran under various names it may have started life as Millfield Iron Works owners were Smith & Thompson / Smith & Stokoe. Henry Lived in a big house built for himself in Hartburn called Cleveland House this is still there and is used as a children’s nursery.
    TIA

    • Millfield works I believe is a former name for what is now Thomsons scrapyard in Grangefield road Stockton, as to if this site was possibly a former foundry site I don’t know but it may be worthwhile looking into. The scrapyard itself is now closing down. Try looking on Picture Stockton and maybe ask the question there.

  90. I currently run the Marske History Site on FB. Would it be possible please, to use some photographs from here on there, if I put the link to this site?
    Thanks in advance

  91. Just wondered if you knew anything about the old N.E.R Railway cottages that are on The Vale in Middlesbrough? As they seem a little far away from any local lines. there are what appears to be two very old railway sleepers standing up right on the corner of saltersgill avenue (against the corner of the church hall wall) which is directly opposite the cottages.

    I’ve always wondered about these two locations and how the fit in to the local history.

    the cottages are now empty and ready to be demolished which seems to be one hell of a waste. 🙁

  92. are you sure they are NE Cottages? there was never any railway in that area? can you link to them on Street View?

  93. Hits, yeah, there used to be a plaque in the middle of the windows saying N.E.R. there is a picture of the cottages and plaque on google images too.

    there are also two sleepers opposite, standing up right.

  94. I was told by my Dad that Cannon Park Middlesbrough was used by the Military in the 1800s and that the old job centre opposite Captain Cooks Square is where the Cavalry horses were stabled that pulled the cannons for training on the cannon park area but I cant find any more information. Can you help? I think this should be researched more on Middlesbrough History sites.

    • I’ve found a passing reference to their being the D Sqn Yorkshire Hussars of the Yorkshire Hussars based in Middlesbrough around WW1.

  95. I find your site and pictures a pure delight relating to Guisborough,I was born and bred in Guisborough. I was born at home in Woodhouse Road, Formerly called Scugdale place.I know this estate was built in the early 1950s but there seems to be nothing to show this building work being carried out.It must have been the biggest council building site in Guisborough for years before. Please help..

  96. Is it possible to provide you with some photographs and descriptions, which you may find useful . . . or not?

    Colin.T.

  97. When Eston Hospital was still there, and i was at school, we used to play down an air raid shelter behind the hospital. i wonder if its been filled in or built over with houses?

  98. Friends of Redcar Cemetery unveiled a plaque at Roseberry Library on 4th July to mark the 100th anniversary of the opening of RNAS Redcar

  99. I would like to use some photos from your website in a proposed book – can you please put a phone number or other contact details on the website, so I can contact you to discuss this possibility. Alternatively, please contact me on 01642 487208 (Redcar)

  100. Amazing website. I left Teesside in 1999 and went to Perth, Western Australia and do I ever miss my home. You should go for a shuffle around Norton, its got a great church with history. If you do go there, stop by Blackwells butchers and have a pork pie for me… best pork pies in the world.

  101. Just been looking for conkers in Thornaby with my daughter and spotted a stench pipe not listed on the site. It’s located alongside Acklam Road in Thornaby, inside the memorial gardens, around 15 yards to the right of the war memorial. Looks in good condition, just seems forgotten beside a tree.

  102. This is a minor suggestion, but certainly fits under the title of Hidden Teesside. We moved to Saltburn, in May 2014, and whilst renovating much of the house discovered a long forgotten purpose built 2nd WW air raid shelter under the front garden!

    We have been able to put together some of its history and, obviously, taken photographs. If you would like some of this please let me know.

    Regards, Paul

  103. Great site! I went to South Park Sixth Form College, Flatts Lane, Normanby in the mid 90’s. The building has since been demolished and the college merged with Prior Pursglove in Guisborough. When I was a student there I heard that it had been built in such a way to be rapidly converted into a hospital in the event of nuclear war. I wonder if you (or any other visitors to this site) had any further information about that to prove or disprove the rumour.

    Thanks again!

  104. Peoples mission New Street Thornaby on Tees. Does anyone have any photos of the chapel, and history of it? This is a subject I am very interested in, but have not been able to get any help with. Thank you.

  105. Hi, Does anyone know the current location of the greyhound sculpture ‘Racing Ahead’ it seems to have been removed when thye started to do up Stockton High Street …and its never come back. I am assuming the Council have found it a new home but I can’t find out where!!!

  106. May I suggest that you visit the Ha’penny Gift and Vintage Tea Room in Skelton? A piece of Hidden Teesside awaits you inside as the shop contains the original board of tolls from the Ha’penny bridge itself. Missing since demolition of the bridge in December 1974, it is now displayed on the wall of the shop where it was presumably gifted by the Skelton & Gilling Estates.
    For more information, try: http://hapennyvintagetearoom.weebly.com/

  107. Hi Chris, thanks so much for the pics of Blakey Guidestone. We’ll credit ‘Chris Twigg / Hidden Teeside’ if they’re used. Do you know what the “R+B” “R+E” “IW” mean on it? I can’t work it out. Cheers! Mary-Ann

  108. The First world war practice trenches behind Bydales school Marske
    only just visible as crop markings (but noted in the heritage coast survey! )and the old WW1 buildings in the Longbeck Industrial estate

    ” One illustrative example was seen in the Parish of Saltburn Marske
    and New Marske (1458481), displaying the classic layout of a front line trench, reserve trenches and communication trenches with saps in-between. ” https://content.historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/nercza-aerial-survey/3929nerczasreportasssurvey.pdf/

  109. Windmills
    I was interested to see the article about Redcar windmills and the stone walls that are present at 2 of the sites. These are not remains of the windmills- if they were there would be curved sections of wall. I have heard, however, that a section of wall from the Coatham windmill survives, incorporated into the United Reformed Church hall.
    At Marsh House Farm, I wonder where the windmill stood in relation to the surviving farm house. With all the old maps I have looked at online, the mill tower had gone by the time these were drawn. I see from looking at Google Streetview that there are a couple of World War 2 tank traps next to the farmhouse.

  110. More Windmills
    Regarding the picture of the 4 sailed windmill in Redcar with men on the top, this has to be the Coatham mill as the tower looks much more like that of the windmill that was made part of the church in Station Road, despite the wall in the foreground looking like a surviving wall in Lord Street. The other Redcar mill that once had 6 sails is taller and thinner. An old windmill in Walsall converted into first a camera obscura, then an observatory, but now ruinous, looks rather like the Coatham mill when it was converted.

    At Greatham, the windmill plot itself has not been built on (as far as I know) and I believe there could be minor remains left of this tower mill.

  111. Last year, two green plaques were erected in Loftus to commemorate Lewis Hunton. One is at Hummersea Farm, the other is somewhere in the Market Place (sorry, don’t know exactly where)

  112. Not ancient but unusual is a life sized stone head carved into the face of an old quarry on cold moor near clay bank, first heard of it from an old CLTHS bulletin and recently managed to find it and get some pics….

  113. Saltersgate Inn – The fire that never goes out
    Posted on January 6, 2017
    Geotag Icon Show on map

    The Saltersgill Inn was said to contains a peat fire that had never gone out ….
    —————————————————–
    Mix-up of pub name: Saltersgate – Saltersgill – needs fixing.
    Best regards. Wonderful site. Thanks.

  114. I think the grave of PC 6 William Henderson, the only Officer wilfully murdered in the execution of his duty in our area is worthy of mention. He met his end in 1893 in Linthorpe whilst trying to arrest a man who was to be committed to an asylum.

  115. There’s an interesting unused old street light in Hemlington village. It’s attached to a telegraph pole in the hedge leading from The Gables to the Stainton Way roundabout. This is on the old route of Hemlington Lane.

    Also, there’s also a handrail to nowhere on the south side of Thornaby Road railway bridge. It used to lead down steps to what was Darlington Street.

  116. I notice the link to Tomorrow History is now inactive. An alternative site that is very active and well supported is on the SABRE Website on the maps page where there a variety of old OS and county maps which can be loaded as overlays on Open Street Map. https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/maps/.

  117. We now have the ongoing demolition of the controversial abattoir in Boosbeck, and for all the time I have been following this long running saga, I have never seen any mention anywhere of the site’s previous use which has become largely forgotten among all the furore over the abattoir and which is now rapidly passing out of living memory. A bit of background info may therefore be of possible interest to people born or new to the area since the 60s, who might not be aware of its history, especially with the demise of the last of the original buildings and the proposed redevelopment of the site, and the general lack of detail about the railway in Boosbeck.

    The site in question has been an abattoir for many years but before that it was the goods yard of Boosbeck station, which was an important stop on the much missed Yorkshire coast line between Middlesbrough, Guisborough and Whitby, and Scarborough, and from 1958 to 1960, between Middlesbrough, Guisborough and Loftus only. Buried within the various newer buildings was the original brick built goods warehouse which over the years since its change of use had been greatly extended and added to; there were also sidings, signals, coal depot, weighbridge, crane, loading dock and assorted huts as well as a signal box and level crossing where the long building nearest the road stood. Further down the line near the South Skelton Ironstone Mine there was a water tank and water column provided for steam loco use. The former passenger station (Station House) is on the other side of the road behind the three new bungalows built around 10 years ago, in residential use and little altered externally apart from the loss of the Whitby-bound platform and waiting shelter. Beyond here a new bungalow has been built in the cutting below Wharton Cottages.

    Because the line was so busy with mineral, passenger and holiday traffic in the nineteenth and last centuries and the level crossing gates frequently closed to road users, a pedestrian subway was provided from early on, on the station side of the level crossing, rather than a footbridge which would have made it harder for train crews to see the signals particularly as the line curved sharply through the station; this was filled in after the tracks were ripped up and the three new bungalows now stand where it was.

    All this was taken away in 1965 after rail traffic finally ended with the closure in September 1964 of what had been downgraded to a public delivery siding from the Brotton direction [mostly coal]; the lines and infrastructure between Brotton, Guisborough and Nunthorpe were all uplifted and it was not very long after this that the site’s new use began. The land had been in continuous industrial/transport use since the 1850s for ironstone mining and railway purposes; once the railway had gone in 1965 the land was unused and derelict (although to be fair it had looked that way for years with the rails overgrown and rusty and used for storage of old wagons). The former railway buildings were put to a new industrial use, albeit of a very different nature, and the abattoir provided much needed employment for many years. However, since then Boosbeck has changed and grown with new housing, regeneration, school, playing fields and pleasant surroundings; having an abattoir on this site slap in the middle of the village became completely unacceptable and so this redevelopment is cautiously welcomed in the community – although maybe with a slight tinge of regret from those in the know at the loss of a little more of East Cleveland’s railway history, which is at least being well documented.

    I hope the council’s choice of street naming for the new development whatever form it eventually takes, will be able to reflect the site’s railway heritage, as there is not much otherwise left to show that a very busy main line used to pass through the village.

    Hope this helps.

  118. Thornaby old runway
    Maybe worth mentioning that this may be at risk, visited last week to find now mostly fenced off and appeared to being used as a storage site, hope they aint planning to “develop” it

  119. Just been put up by Bluebell Beck acklam, 5 very good wooden sculptures , to find them enter beck walk from Malvern Drive and keep to the path that goes over two bridges and you will pass them all, similar style and standard to those at Fairy Dell, I can send photos if required or can be seen on Acklam Home dog Boarding facebook page blog for 15th July 2017

  120. Hi there. What is the history of the ‘old tank’ at the top of Belmangate under the shale heaps at Guisborough? Anyone know? Just found this site, by the way, and it’s brilliant!!

    • There used to be a firing range at the top of “Butt Lane” hence the name.
      I’ve got a photo of it here, but not sure when it was removed.

  121. Right, Butt Lane! I’d forgotten the name. Further along Whitby Road right? So the tank is gone? I used to play up there when I was a kid all the time.

  122. I suspect that one of the illustrations of Coatham Pier is incorrectly captioned.
    See: http://www.hidden-teesside.co.uk/2009/07/20/victoria-pier-coatham-redcar/

    The steamer landing jetty was at the end of Redcar Pier. The original of this illustration was first published in a book of Redcar views by ‘Coverdales of Redcar’, a local printing & stationery firm that, on the death of Alexander Coverdale (proprietor), was bought by my grandfather A.A.Sotheran.

  123. I still have my Grandmother’s ( first lady Mayoress of Middlesbrough ) tree planting plaque after the council threw it out. I also have some other treasures . My grandfather was responsible for the creation of Linthorpe Road as we now know it. My father led the Green Howards parade through Middlesbrough after the 2nd world war. The family name of Emanuel Spence is still associated with Plumbing and Heating.

    • Wasn’t the name Emanuel Spence also linked to Solicitors in M’Bro??
      My dad was in the Green Howards during WWII.. He didn’t get to lead a parade thru’ M’Bro but he did get shot at, bombed, etc in North Africa, Italy, Belgium, and Germany.

      • Ahhh ! Well !

        Bit of History for the site , yes my Dad was Captain and Major in the Green Howards and I have a picture of him leading the parade, however he fell out with them when demobed when they left his brigade at catterick without transport !
        Now solicitor link , here we go. My Gran ( Florence first lady mayoress of Middlesbrough ) was one of four sisters, Gran married Emanuel Spence the plumber, Hilda Almgil sister 2 married Forbes the Baker and built Forbes building on Linthorpe Road. Freda Almgil sister 3 married a Macnay and built up McNays GKN , Maud Almgil sister 4 was a spinster and lived in Goathland. Freda’s daughter Joan married Jim Lithgow ( Lithows Auctioneers ) and they rented the property on Albert Road to Jack Sutcliffe as a solicitors ( solictor link ! )

        They all had independent means, At the Age of 21 , their Dad gave them 21 houses each on their 21st birthday, – all in Talbot Street, Roscoe Street, Craven Street etc My Gran sold the last one to me in 1980

        And yes my Dad did get bomberd at shot at, he has mentions in dispatches and loads of things but fell out with the high command in Cairo after the Oxometer request.

        My Dad sent a request from Tobruk for an Oxometer – needed to win the War. It got to Montgomery and Churchill, so they sent back to David asking exa\ctly what type of equipment it was. My Dad replied back to Churchill – An Oxometer is a machine for measuring Bullshit !!!!

        • Hi, I’ve starting researching my family history and found this post, my grandad, David Bruce Almgill born 1895, was the younger brother of your gran, he was 18 when his father died so unfortunately didn’t get the houses given to him on his 21st birthday. So far I have found the history of the Almgill family fascinating, my dad, Peter Almgill was the son of David Almgill. I am hoping to find photographs of the Almgill family of Middlesbrough and wondered if you might have any?? Hope to hear from you

  124. New wreck (large cobble or Small trawler) at Bran Sands, South Gare.

    Not sure how long it’s been there as this was my first visit since last Autumn.

    I have two photographs if you would like them.

    Dave

    • Dave, I have a large collection of photos taken inside the chapel of Sir William Turner’s Almshouses at Kirkleatham. Would you like a small selection – the chandeliers (old & new), the guilded chairs, SWT’s death mask etc?

  125. Hi love this site its excellent. One thing I would like to know more about but can not find any real details is the Grangetown Area Control comms centre its a brick building as it says on google but no more details

  126. There is a ‘stench pipe’ on Richmond Road, Stockton, which is not indicated on your site maps. I can send you some photo’s if you are interested?

  127. Many (many) years ago I did the DoE bronze (later Silver as well) Our walk with a night camping started at Ingleby Greenhow and took us via Battersby, Baysdale Abbey (ruins of).. When we walked from Ingleby somewhere along the road an old-ish guy stopped to chat and mentioned that the trees, on the righthand side of the road, had been planted to commemorate those from the area who had been killed in WW1. Each tree represented one person. From what I remember it wasn’t just a line of trees (like a hedge) but a bit of land about 6-to-10 ft wide.. As far as I can discover there is no plaque or mention of the trees.. Would be nice if it’s true. 2018, 100 years after the end of WW1.. Needs remembering.

    • The avenues of trees were the idea of 2nd Viscount Ingleby of Snilesworth, a major landowner in the area. 500 lime trees were planted in Ingleby Avenue and Greenhow Avenue funded by various contributions from local families and others. The trees are a living memorial to the dead of WW1 & WW2 and were constructed to coincide with the 21st anniversary of D Day in 1965.

      There is/was a plaque on a 6ft pole at end of Greenhow Avenue but the trees and undergrowth of the last 50 plus years would make it difficult to find and see.

  128. Hi,
    Good website – lot of content!

    One correction on “Normanby – Forum Cinema” section the link to our group is to the webarchive which is now over 4 years out-of-date!
    The Normanby Local History Group is still going strong…
    Our live website is at http://www.normanbyhistorygroup.co.uk/

    Hope you can correct it for us!
    Keep up the good work.
    Regards, Mike Wheatley (Normanby LHG WebMaster)

    PS I am adding your website to our Links page this week.
    Would be good to hve our website on your Links page!

  129. Not many people know this and it’s quite hard to get to, but connected to the top lake in fairy dell behind a few houses (dell close) are large stone remains of what I think was the folly shown on the notice board. the notice board says something along the lines of ” where it stood we will never know “. but my best guess says it was here. will try to get some photos next time I’m over there.

  130. I’m getting the following error on your RSS feed:
    XML Parsing Error: duplicate attribute
    Line Number 9, Column 1:
    xmlns:georss=”http://www.georss.org/georss”

  131. The Cleveland Way marker at the top of the climb from Saltburn to Huntcliffe:

    This stone sculpture features an artificial fault line running vertically that splits the marker into two parts. The fault line intersects two different inscriptions on both the top and front of the sculpture. On the front of the sculpture, the fault line cuts through the “N” of the inscription “ClevelaNd Coast”; on the top of the sculpture the fault line cuts through the “E” of the inscription “HeritagE”. This sculptural feature, this line that cuts through both the “N” and the “E”, points directly to 45 deg North, which is, of course North East (“NE”).

  132. I was down by the river Tees yesterday, just next to where they are working on the land on Riverside business park. They have unearthed massive foundations there and you can see them from the path on the river. I had a quick look and I think it may be where Newport Steel Works was. You can see arches in some of the foundations. Might be something good to take a look at before it’s all demolished. If you go to newport bridge, walk down the ramp and towards the direction of the transporter bridge, you’ll find it after about 5 minutes walk.

  133. Anyone got a photo of the derelict Arriva North East Loftus Depot? its next door to the right of Loftus Cricket & Athletic Club. The building has no roof and I’m pretty sure it’s just the steel frame of the building.

  134. Suggestion

    Coatham Bridge OS NZ 4116 1742, on Durham Lane, approx 250 meters south from Elton Interchange on the A66. It is currently hidden amongst the trees; however there is a small track in the undergrowth, near to the farm entrance, that takes one onto the orginal road and down to the bridge. My friends and I always refered to it as Devils Bridge.

  135. Does anybody know where Eston Barracks was in the 1860’s. It was something to do with the coastal defence battery

  136. Has anyone got or does anyone know where I could find a photo of the old game keepers cottage/house that used to be in the field at the end of the sandy track from Sandy Lane (New Marske) to Upleathem. I remember this cottage/house when I was a kid we used to play inside and around it and as I remember it was in the mid 1970’s. I am sure it got demolished in the early 1980’s ? Bits and bobs can still be found in the corner of the field where it once stood like old bottles and tins etc

  137. Chris,

    A contractor is slowly clearing the site of the Ex. MOD Facility in Eaglescliffe in preparation for building houses. The site supervisor advised us that an underground ammunition storage bunker and associated tunnels have been uncovered, might be worth getting down there pronto to record them before it is all lost!

    Cheers, Jim W

    • It used to be an aircraft dismantling Poland during the war, the older sheds were part of this as was the main road which was in fact the runnway, they also built ans owned Allen’s west station for bringing in workers.

  138. What about adding some shipping mines to your Wartime relics? – Ive found 3 around Staithes, Skinningrove & Kettleness (can provide photo of one)
    The Coast between Skinningrove & Port Mulgrave has at least 4 artificilal docks (not including the ‘main’ harbours, including the one at Hole Wyke to serve Boulby Alum tunnel. Post holes still identifiable.
    I may also have misssed it on the site, have you got the railway sleeper indents that run on the foreshore between Staithes and Old Nab – I assume to transport iron ore quarried from where the main seam is exposed.

  139. Can you tell me what the different coloured pins relate to on the the map please? As I cannot seem to find what each coloured pin represents ie. red pins, pink pins, orange pins, Google pins ect…. Karen 🌈✨🦄 x

  140. Have you looked at the railway that wend to Cumberland rd in LInthorpe, It followed the beck from town, ran along claireville common and up Cumberland rd, Could account for the weird design and gentle slope of Cumberland road, the wall behind the telephone exchange which cuts Douglas street in 2 and the fact that the houses on the ‘line’ side of Park Vale rd are 1930’s when the rest of the area is victorian/edwardian. https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=18&lat=54.56084&lon=-1.24052&layers=168&b=1
    I looked but aside from the road and the Douglas street wall (which seems newer) I cant find anything of it

  141. Hi
    I havent gone through all of the suggestions but I know the origins of the Rowntree printer sign. The printers was on the left hand side of an alley opposite the Coop in Marske High Street.
    The printer had a hunchback and was the father of Julian, they lived off Park Avenue in Redcar.
    The sign was originally on the wall of the entrance to the Alley.
    Cheers
    Roy

  142. HI

    I’ve got a question. I’ve recently obtained the marriage certificate for my great grandmother. Her husband is noted as living at ‘Down Hall Dining Rom, Thornaby’. Any clues on what sort of accommodation this was?

  143. The Redcar Blast Furnace at South Gare. It’s significant to our area. and future generations unfortunately may not be able to view it, other than online. It’ll be down by the end of Summer and the Coke Ovens are already down, so hopefully you can catch it for the future. 🙂

  144. I am looking for a place in Spa wood which has come up in a family search.
    I cannot find out anything about. It is simply
    Spa Wood House
    Spa Wood
    Guisborough
    This address was noted on a official document May 1954 and was the residence of the Pearsons. Have you any info that may help

    • I would guess its the ex mine-managers house at the Spa Wood mine. It later became the scrapyard, it’s still there and inhabited

  145. Three Crosses Well near Ings Farm Boulby. All cross bases are still present as is the little stone house for the spring itself?

    Also the redundant 18th century bridge at Dalehouse is impressive.

  146. Hi Chris,
    Thanks for possible info regarding Spa Wood House. If it is the ex mine managers house it would have been the family home of my paternal father (Thomas Wilfred Pearson who died in 1954) who lived their with his father (R. P. Pearson) during the 1950s. I am as you may guess collecting information on my ancestors.

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